Ofcom and the Radio Spectrum
Many years ago I had my first experience of the use of radio mics in a theatre. It was the Sunderland Empire and the show was Willy Russell’s John, Paul, George, Ringo and Bert in, I think, 1974. The theatre is close to Sunderland’s main police station and, at that time, the main fire station was between the two, so the radio mic receiver kept picking up transmissions from the police and fire service, which did tend to spoil the show a bit! It was amusing at first, I admit, but soon became very annoying.
Later certain frequencies were set aside for theatrical use and, today, there are certain frequencies (I think it’s five) which are free and others which, although reserved for radio mics, require a licence. Because of the short range and low power of radio mics (they require no more than a 9v battery), they are not subject to interference from other users of the same frequency if they are more than about quarter of a mile away Indeed, it may well be less - I haven’t used them for some years.
Once the switch is made to digital broadcasting, the Office of Communication (Ofcom) intends to auction off the entire current radio spectrum to the highest bidder. If the radio mic frequencies are included in this sell-off - and currently it appears they will be - then entire sound systems in theatres throughout the country - and that includes the short-range radio communications that many theatres now use to keep backstage and front of house in contact - will become obsolete, so either liecences will have to be purchased from the buyers of the frequencies, if they are willing to sell them and they charge a reasonable fee, or new, digital equipment will have to be bought.
In the first case the purchasers can, as it were, hold the theatres to ransom and charge huge amounts, or, in the second, theatres will be faced with replacing entire sound sytems at great expense, which they can of course ill afford.
As we report in our news story today, Equity is urging its members to write to their MPs asking them to sign an early day motion to persuade the government to except these frequencies from the sale. But it is not just Equity members who will be affected: it’s also members of BECTU and the MU, as well as ordinary theatregoers and members of amateur operatic societies.
I would urge everyone who has the interest of music theatre (indeed, of theatre in general) at heart to take a look at that story and send off a copy of the letter (which we have reprinted there) to their MP. The analogue switch-off is not due for some years, so let’s get in early and try to prevent the major problems before they occur. It is a technical problem about which MPs (and, let’s be honest, even most of the theatregoing public) will not be aware, so the more we can do to make our Westminster representatives aware of both the problem and our concern, the better.
Let’s all get writing!