Herefordshire landmark to feature in TV show (From Ledbury Reporter)

Herefordshire landmark to feature in TV show

7:00am Sunday 3rd February 2013 in News

BT’s international communications hub in Herefordshire is to take centre stage in a national television documentary.

The company’s satellite centre at Madley is to be featured in a BBC Two documentary this week.

The Genius of Invention will be aired on Thursday at 9pm and forms part of a new season of programmes on the BBC looking at science and technological innovation.

As well as exploring the history of the telegraph, telephone and wireless technologies, the episode gives viewers a rare glimpse into the day-to-day workings of the busy centre, which helps businesses and people communicate with each other – in some of the most difficult to reach areas of the world –through its network of 65 satellites dishes and subsea cables.

It explains how the Madley team works in conjunction with BT’s network management centre in Shropshire which, with its giant video wall, provides the television studio backdrop for debates, reports and experiments by presenters Dr Michael Mosley, Professor Mark Miodownik and Dr Cassie Newland.

Nick Wood, station manager at Madley international satellite communications centre, said: “While we’re pleased to be able to give people an insight into how we help people communicate in some of the most remote parts of the world, it was also intriguing for us to see what goes into making a programme like this.”