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List of channels on BFBS TV
More info: BFBS on Wikipedia
The British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) provides radio and television programmes for Her Majesty's Armed Forces, and their dependents worldwide. Editorial control is independent of the Ministry of Defence and the armed forces themselves. It was established by the British War Office (now the Ministry of Defence) in 1943. In 1944, it was managed by Gale Pedrick.
Originally known as the Forces Broadcasting Service (FBS), it was initially under the control of the British Army Welfare Service, with its first effort, the Middle East Broadcasting Unit, with its headquarters in Cairo. Before and after end of the Second World War, various radio stations were set up, some using the FBS name, others using the name British Forces Network (BFN), but by the early 1960s, these had all adopted the BFBS name.
From 1982 until 2020, BFBS formed part of the Services Sound and Vision Corporation (SSVC), a registered charity, which is also responsible for the British Defence Film Library, SSVC Cinemas (now BFBS Cinemas), and Combined Services Entertainment (CSE; now BFBS Live Events), providing entertainment for HM Forces around the world. In March 2020, most of the properties under the SSVC umbrella were rebranded under the new BFBS and Forces brandings. On 23 July 2020, SSVC was renamed BFBS. BFBS does not carry commercial advertising.
BFBS Television
BFBS Television started in Celle, near Hanover in the then West Germany, on 18 September 1975 from Trenchard Barracks. This used taped broadcasts from the BBC and ITV, flown to Germany from London, which were then rebroadcast using low-power UHF transmitters. Live broadcasts of news and sport began in 1982, using a microwave link between the UK and West Germany, extending as far east as West Berlin.
The BFBS TV service used the 625-line PAL system, used in the UK as well as West Germany. By 1982, it was available at 50 sites throughout northern and central regions of West Germany.
It was known as SSVC Television (Services Sound and Vision Corporation) between 1985 and 1997, when it reverted to the BFBS name. Today it now broadcasts live via satellite. DVDs are still sent to forces serving in more remote areas. There was also a service known as Navy TV, which broadcasts time-shifted versions of the channel to Royal Navy vessels around the world via military satellite.
All channels below are free-to-air to military personnel and their families. A specific set-top box or viewing card may be required for copyright reasons.
Key
| Abbreviation | Description |
|---|---|
| Africa | |
| Asc | Ascension Island |
| Ken | Kifaru Barracks, Kenya |
| Americas | |
| Can | Canada |
| FaM | Falkland Islands - Military |
| FaC | Falkland Islands - Civilian |
| Asia & Far East | |
| Op | Operation Herrick in Afghanistan, Operation Toral in Afghanistan and Operation Kipion in the Persian Gulf & Indian Ocean |
| DiG | Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory |
| Nep | Nepal |
| Europe | |
| Bel | SHAPE, Belgium |
| Cyp | Cyprus |
| Ger | Germany |
| Gil | Gibraltar |
| Other | |
1
|
Available in HD via cable on said channel number. |
1
|
Available in HD via satellite on said channel number. |
| 1
|
Available in HD via cable and satellite on said channel number. |
| 1
|
Available in SD via cable on said channel number. |
| 1
|
Available in SD via satellite on said channel number. |
| 1
|
Available in SD via cable and satellite on said channel number. |
Channels
TV
All TV channels are encrypted.
| Africa | Americas | Asia & Far East | Europe | Channel | Logo | Owner/Parent company | Broadcasting hours | Notes/Content from | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asc | Ken | Can | FaM | FaC | Op | DiG | Nep | Bel | Cyp | Ger | Gil | |||||
| 1
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
BBC One HD | 
|
BBC | 24 hours | BBC One (London) | ||
| 2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
BBC Two HD | 
|
BBC | 24 hours | CBeebies 06:00-10:30 CBBC 10:30-13:00 BBC Two (Eng & Scot) 13:00-06:00 | ||
| 3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
ITV1 HD | 
|
ITV plc | 24 hours | ITV1 (London) | ||
| 4
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
5
|
5
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
BFBS Extra HD | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | [n 1] |
| 5
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
Sky Sports HD | 
|
Sky Group (Comcast) |
24 hours | Various Sky Sports channels | ||
| 6
|
6
|
6
|
6
|
6
|
6
|
6
|
6
|
6
|
6
|
TNT Sports HD | 
|
Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe | 24 hours | TNT Sports 1-10 | ||
| 7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
BFBS Sports HD | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | [n 2] | ||
| 8
|
8
|
8
|
8
|
5
|
8
|
1
|
1
|
8
|
8
|
8
|
8
|
Sky News HD | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | Sky News |
| 8
| ||||||||||||||||
| 9
|
9
|
9
|
9
|
9
|
9
|
9
|
9
|
9
|
Channel 4 HD | 
|
Channel Four Television Corporation | 24 hours | Channel 4 (London) | |||
| 11
|
1
|
11
|
2
|
2
|
11
|
BBC One HD (Delayed) |
|
BBC | 24 hours | Delayed to local time | ||||||
| 11
| ||||||||||||||||
| 12
|
2
|
12
|
3
|
3
|
12
|
BBC Two HD (Delayed) |
|
BBC | 24 hours | |||||||
| 12
| ||||||||||||||||
| 13
|
3
|
13
|
4
|
4
|
13
|
ITV1 HD (Delayed) |
|
ITV plc | 24 hours | |||||||
| 13
| ||||||||||||||||
| 14
|
4
|
14
|
BFBS Extra HD (Delayed) |
|
BFBS | 24 hours | ||||||||||
| 14
| ||||||||||||||||
| 17
|
5
|
17
|
BFBS Extra 2 HD |
|
BFBS | 24 hours | Formally Sky Cinema. Sky Kids 06:00-20:00 (M-F), 00:00-11:00 (S-S) TNT Sports, Premier Sports 20:00-06:00 (M-F), 11:00-00:00 (S-S) | |||||||||
| 17
| ||||||||||||||||
| 18
|
18
|
18
|
18
|
18
|
18
|
18
|
18
|
Kantipur TV HD | 
|
Kantipur TV | 24 hours | Kantipur TV, Nepal TV | ||||
Notes
- ↑ Sky Showcase, Sky Witness, Sky Atlantic, Sky Max, Sky Comedy, Sky Documentaries, Sky Crime, Sky History, Sky History2, Sky Nature, Sky Arts, E4, More4, 4seven, ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, ITV Quiz, Comedy Central, Comedy Central Extra, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild. Also shows independent programming.
- ↑ BBC Two HD - (Sports programmes during 04:00-18:00), various Sky Sports channels, TNT Sports 1, 2, 3 and 4
Radio
All radio stations available in all locations.
| EPG | Channel | Logo | Owner/Parent company | Broadcasting hours | Encrypted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 51 | BFBS Radio | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 52 | BFBS Radio 2 | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | Yes |
| 53 | BFBS UK National | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 61 | BFBS Ops | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 62 | BFBS Cyprus | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 63 | BFBS Canada | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | Yes |
| 65 | BFBS Germany | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 66 | BFBS Northern Ireland | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 67 | BFBS UK Bases |
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 68 | BFBS Gurkha East | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 69 | BFBS Gurkha Radio |
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 71 | BFBS Beats | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 72 | BFBS Ops |
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 73 | BFBS Rewind | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 74 | BFBS Samishran | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 75 | BFBS Best of British | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 82 | BBC World Service | 
|
BBC | 24 Hours | Yes |
| 83 | Fun Kids | 
|
Children’s Radio UK | 24 hours | No |
| 84 | talkSPORT | 
|
News Corp UK & Ireland | 24 hours | Yes |
| 85 | BFBS Blandford | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 86 | BFBS Scotland | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 87 | BFBS Edge | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 91 | BFBS Gibraltar | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 92 | BFBS Salisbury Plain | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | Yes |
| 101 | BFBS Aldershot | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 102 | BFBS Brize Norton | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 103 | BFBS Bahrain | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 104 | BFBS Catterick | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 105 | BFBS Colchester | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 106 | BFBS Blandford |
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 107 | BFBS Brunei | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |
| 108 | BFBS Falklands | 
|
BFBS | 24 hours | No |