THE dates for the start of the digital switchover in Dorset and Hampshire have been announced, signalling the biggest change to broadcasting for a generation.

Switchover will see the five analogue TV channels permanently switched off and the Freeview service boosted to reach virtually all 2.48 million households in the Meridian region.

By March 21 next year analogue signals will have been switched off in Hampshire and Dorset, with thousands of homes in previous digital blackspots, such as Poole, able to receive Freeview channels for the first time.