Jenny Priestley meets a group of enthusiasts who are working to preserve TV technology from across the decades, including cameras, OB trucks and telecine machines
By Jenny Priestley
Published: April 11, 2024 Updated: April 12, 2024
Jenny Priestley meets a group of enthusiasts who are working to preserve TV technology from across the decades, including cameras, OB trucks and telecine machines
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> Jenny Priestley meets a group of enthusiasts who are working to preserve TV technology from across the decades, including cameras, OB trucks and telecine machines
https://www.tvbeurope.com/production-post/preserving-tvs-technological-heritage title=Share via Email class=share-email>
Since John Logie Baird made the first experimental television broadcast for the BBC in 1929, the pace of technological change within the TV industry hasn't stopped.
From SD to HD and UHD, satellite to IP and 5G, and film to digital, the TV industry is not backwards in moving forward.
But what's happened to all the technology that's fallen by the wayside? A group of TV enthusiasts is aiming to preserve the industry's heritage with the launch of a museum at Hemswell Cliff, just outside Lincoln.
The Broadcast Engineering Conservation Group (BECG) was set up five years ago, almost by accident admits chairman Paul Marshall. I've been collecting this stuff since I was about 14, and I've had three large outside broadcast vehicles for a long time, he tells TVBEurope.
We wanted to take my Southern one, which is the oldest fully operational outside broadcast truck in the world, to the last big Scampton Airshow and there were problems of getting into the RAF base without being a formal organisation.
Thus the BECG was formed and following further discussion, the group decided to make things formal by registering as a charitable incorporated organisation (ICO).
Marconi MkII camera Marshall points out that there is no other organisation in the UK working to save these engineering wonders for the country. And it's not just the kit that the BECG wants to preserve. We are trying to save all the knowledge base that goes behind it, he explains. This is analogue television with a smattering of digital on the end of it, and it's a skill set which has been lost. Analogue engineering is still very much in demand alongside digital.
It's not just TV anoraks' that are part of the BECG's remit. The Group wants to make the general public aware of the equipment used to create some of TV's most iconic moments. Among the kit on show at Hemswell Cliff is a Marconi MkII used to film Queen Elizabeth II's Coronation in 1953, as well as one of the four Link 125 cameras that shot the video for rock band Queen's hit, I Want to Break Free. All of our bits of kit have got a history and the general public do latch on to that, states Marshall.
The BECG is now in the process of expanding the Broadcast Engineering Museum at Hemswell Cliff, which will be home to all of its equipment, including multiple OB vans. They have taken over the 30,000 sq ft Sergeants Mess at the old RAF base, which had been derelict for over a decade. At the moment, the BECG is only able to hold open days rather than keep the building open all the time, with the next taking place on 25th and 26th May.
The Broadcast Engineering Museum before the BECG took it over And how it looks now All being well, we will progressively open more, says Marshall. We hope to be able to get more volunteers together that will help make it possible. We're trying to create a fragrant nosegay' of what a television station would look like back in the 50s 60s 70s and 80s.
We've got some of the first digital equipment designed in the UK and sold all over the world, including DICE, Digital Intercontinental Conversion Equipment, which was the means of converting American pictures into European and vice versa. It was designed in 1972 by the Independent Broadcasting Authority, who looked after ITV years ago. There were only 18 sold and they were about £250,000 a pop in the mid 70s.
As well as being able to open more often, another key priority for the BECG is to catalogue its equipment, as Marshall says they currently have no idea how much they actually have.
I think it's fair to say we've got the largest collection of Telecine machines in Europe, possibly in the world, he adds. I think we've got about six at the moment, with one more to come.
There are at least five outside broadcast trucks currently active, with the same amount in restoration mode. The most challenging has been the restoration of a former BBC OB Unit MCR23, 390 EXH, also known as Project Vivat. We started with a vehicle that was seriously derelict and it was really fit for the scrap yard, explains Marshall. The equipment that we decided to put in it is from the mid-'50s. We fitted it out with equipment that has come from all over the world. The principal monitors, transmission and preview, came back from Australia.
Project Vivat' We were on the cusp of going fully operational when the prospect of the Hemswell Cliff building came up, which was just short of three years ago. So sadly, Vivat didn't reach a conclusion, although to the lay visitor, it is complete, because bits of it work .
Other trucks that have been restored by the BECG or are in maintenance mode include a 1969 Bedford VAL used by Southern Television, a 1953 BBC Generator, and one of the Yorkshire Twins that opened the broadcaster's service in 1968 when its studios weren't ready. Marshall says the BECG is also open to housing trucks from more recent times. For instance, last year we took on a 2005 ex-BBC satellite truck. That's history, it's nearly 2
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
15/10/2025
Across the world, early-career reporters are interrogating systems that shape daily life, from mortuaries and classrooms to the corridors of legal education and...
15/10/2025
St. Louis Blues Pay Tribute to Ozzy Osbourne in New Pregame Open VideoThe NHL franchise worked with production firms 2WEI and 4th Floor CreativeBy Mark J Burns,...
15/10/2025
Cobalt Digital, G3DVu, Proxima Vision, and Telos Alliance Renew Premier Sponsors...
15/10/2025
By Paige Bethmann
Before my grandmother passed away in 2019, I went to visit her in the hospital where she'd been for a few weeks. When I arrived, the nurs...
15/10/2025
Two years ago, Spotify set out to grow the entire publishing industry by making ...
15/10/2025
People turn to DJ for a listening experience that feels personal, dynamic, and j...
15/10/2025
Las personas recurren a DJ para vivir una experiencia de escucha personal, din m...
15/10/2025
Rock legend Bruce Springsteen and luminary actor Jeremy Allen White came togethe...
15/10/2025
At Spotify, we're all about supporting rising talent and helping them connec...
15/10/2025
New SBS Documentary Series THE CANCER KILLERS Premieres 4 November on SBS & SBS ...
15/10/2025
SBS celebrates the Festivals of Lights with bold, illuminating stories across th...
15/10/2025
One of humanity's most profound questions continues: Is there any place in our galaxy suitable for life beyond Earth? NASA intends to find out, with the hel...
15/10/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
15/10/2025
Scality, a global leader in cyber-resilient storage software for the AI era, today announced the advancement of its comprehensive AI ecosystem certification pro...
15/10/2025
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today unveiled key highlights of the 2026 HPA Tech Retreat, scheduled for Feb. 15 19 at the Westin Rancho Mirage Go...
15/10/2025
At NAB Show New York 2025 (Stand 244), Interra Systems will showcase the future of media QC, monitoring, and captioning, highlighting its award-winning, AI- and...
15/10/2025
Grass Valley today announced that RMC BFM, part of the CMA-CGM Group and France's third-largest private media group, has chosen Grass Valley's productio...
15/10/2025
Appear, the global leader in live production technology, will demonstrate how its powerful hardware and software innovations are shaping the future of hybrid, s...
15/10/2025
Rakim to Join Berklee's Hip-Hop Hall of Fame at Signature Series Concert The rap icon becomes the latest inductee, following luminaries such as Roxanne Sh...
15/10/2025
Berklee Brings Live Music to the Head of the Charles Student artists will perform on multiple riverfront stages during the 60th anniversary of the world's...
15/10/2025
CobbTV, the government access television channel for Cobb County, Ga. recently acquired an automated playout system from Pebble, a global provider of automation...
15/10/2025
OSLO, Norway Appear, the global leader in live production technology, will demonstrate how its powerful hardware and software innovations are shaping the future...
15/10/2025
NEW YORK The NBA is making major changes to the NBA App and NBA TV as it takes control of them from TNT Sports, which has long managed the league's digital ...
15/10/2025
SAN MATEO, Calif. In what promises to be a major expansion of interactive features and personalized content on the DirecTV platform, the operator and Glance hav...
15/10/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Roku has launched changes to its user interface (UI) that the streaming platform says will better showcase original programming on the platform...
15/10/2025
LOS ANGELES Software-defined data storage and data services provider OpenDrives has elevated Alex Dunfey to chief technology officer, responsible for driving th...
15/10/2025
Abu Dhabi, UAE October 15, 2025: Space42 (ADX: SPACE42), the UAE-based AI-powe...
15/10/2025
Sheldon Nichols and Will Trickett to find and prepare more classic cars for budget conscious would-be owners from Wiser Films
UKTV have recommissioned the clas...
15/10/2025
Wednesday 15 October 2025
Nick Cave
JPEG (275 KB)
Explore the creative univer...
15/10/2025
Wednesday 15 October 2025
From breaking up with your partner to quitting your job - new polling shows some messages are just too scary to send
Over a fifth (...
15/10/2025
Rohde & Schwarz unveils compact MXO 3 oscilloscopes with 4 and 8 channels: Advan...
15/10/2025
Back to All News
Revenge Series The Resurrected' Captivates Audiences Across Asia
Entertainment
15 October 2025
GlobalTaiwan
Link copied to clipboard
...
15/10/2025
Back to All News
Bringing the Best in VFX and Virtual Production Together as Eyeline
Jeffrey Shapiro
CEO, Eyeline
Business
15 October 2025
GlobalCanadaInd...
15/10/2025
Deployed by Astound Business Solutions, Harmonic's Primary Distribution Solution Ensures Outstanding Video Quality and Seamless Ad Insertion at the Edge
SA...
15/10/2025
Collaboration extends a trusted relationship as RMC BFM invests in scalable, fut...
15/10/2025
Series coming in 2026 stars Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Justine Mitchell and Jason O'Mara released today
RT today released first look images of new comedy-drama ...
14/10/2025
SVG Europe Summit 2025: All Sessions Now Available to Watch on SVG PLAYNetworking event that preceded IBC2025 shone a light on elite live sports innovation acro...
14/10/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Author Rich Podolsky on Writing Madden & Summerall: How They Revo...
14/10/2025
SVG All-Stars: Michael Reiners, Coordinating Producer, FloRacingThe Illinois State grad steers a vast schedule of motorsports events at tracks across the countr...
14/10/2025
Content protection: Getting the right management for your DRM By Neal Romanek
Friday, October 10, 2025 - 10:11
Print This Story
Eluvio power the EPCR'...
14/10/2025
As League Takes Over Ops, NBA TV and NBA App Add 60 Games, Weekday Studio Show, ...
14/10/2025
Time and effort: World's largest student-led broadcast prepares to go On Air...
14/10/2025
(L-R) Guest, Kimberly Robinson Jones, Geeta Gandbhir, Pamela Dias, and Takema Ro...
14/10/2025
Lossless ist jetzt mit Spotify Premium verf gbar.
Verlustfreies Audio war eine...
14/10/2025
La qualit Lossless est disponible sur Spotify Premium.
Le format sans perte de...
14/10/2025
For the seventh edition of Spotify and FC Barcelona's artist jersey series, ...
14/10/2025
Spotify is committed to bringing the best listening experience to all our users, and that includes parents and families. That's why we're expanding mana...
14/10/2025
Since its debut, the Spotify Original podcast Caso 63 has been more than just a story; it's been a cultural sensation. The science fiction thriller captivat...
Jenny Priestley meets a group of enthusiasts who are working to preserve TV technology from across the decades, including cameras, OB trucks and telecine machines
