A BELOVED TV channel is closing down today in a blow to its loyal viewers.
While this station had been due to close operations in November, it was suddenly moved forward.
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Notts TV has been a popular station available on Freeview and Virgin Media for viewers in Nottinghamshire for the past decade.
The channel is owned by Nottingham Trent University (NTU) and is staffed by a corps of experienced producers and journalists.
But after a decade of broadcasting, the channel will disappear from viewers’ screens today.
Back in February, the university announced it would not seek a renewal of its broadcasting licence with Ofcom.
As a result, it had been due to bid its fond farewell in November.
But the date for closure was suddenly brought forward to the end of this month – and today marks its final day on air.
Professor Sarah Speight, Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Nottingham Trent University, said: “While our intention had been to continue the partnership until the end of the licence period in November, it is entirely understandable that colleagues are moving on to new opportunities.
“We are grateful for everything the team has accomplished over the past eleven years.”
For its swansong, the channel will broadcast a special schedule looking back on the its most popular programmes.
The final edition of its main live news and chat show Notts Today will air at 5.30pm.
Chris Breese, Notts TV Channel Manager, said: “We’re proud of the eleven years of hard work and innovation the channel has brought to local tv and online publishing – achieving lasting impact with our creativity, industry training and independent journalism.
“Hundreds of successful careers in journalism, radio, TV and film were started by the opportunities the channel offered, and thousands of Nottinghamshire stories and people were given a platform through our programming and online publishing.”
It’s not the only local broadcaster to have ceased operations in recent months.
London Live, which covered the capital, was shut down at the start of 2025.
Its slot has been taken over by a new operator, known as London TV.
MORE CHANNEL CLOSURES TO COME?
Analysis by Jamie Harris, Assistant Technology and Science Editor at The Sun
Everyone is streaming these days so it’s no wonder linear broadcast channels are struggling.
The BBC announced in 2022 that CBBC and BBC Four would disappear as traditional linear channels in a few years and go digital only via iPlayer.
However, the pair may have had a bit of a reprieve for now, after the BBC’s head of children’s programmes, Patricia Hildago, recently said “it’s really important… that if children still need us on a linear network, we’re going to be there for them”.
When Channel 4 announced the closure of The Box and other music channels it owned in January, the broadcaster hinted that more could come.
At the time the company said it was proposing to “close small linear channels that no longer deliver revenues or public value at scale, including the Box channels in 2024 and others at the right time”.
So which could the “others” be? It really depends what Channel 4 considers “small” but its other channels include More4, E4, E4 Extra, Film4 and 4Seven.
