List of BBC test cards

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The following is a list of test cards used by the BBC at various points in broadcasting.

1 Test Card A
2 Test Card B
3 Test Card C
4 Test Card D
5 Test Card E
6 Test Card F
7 Test Card G
8 Test Card H
9 Test Card J
10 Test Card W

[edit] Test Card A

The world's first television test card to be broadcast, Test Card A made its debut in the late 1940s. However, it and Test Card B were soon replaced by the more useful Test Card C.

[edit] Test Card B

Test Card B is an early BBC television test card. It was very similar to Test Card A but was never broadcast. The original card has since gone missing.

[edit] Test Card C

Test Card C is a BBC television test card first broadcast in 1948. It was the first test card to resemble the famous Test Card F.

[edit] Test Card D

Test Card D was a BBC television test card first broadcast in 1964. This was the first test card to be based on a specification.

[edit] Test Card E

Test Card E was a television test card designed in 1964 and made to accommodate the 625-line system on BBC TWO, as opposed to the 405-line system of Test Card D. However, it only lasted one day on television, and was soon replaced by a modified version of Test Card C. This lasted until 1967 when the colour Test Card F was introduced.

[edit] Test Card F

Test Card F was the BBC's longest-running and most famous test card.

[edit] Test Card G

Test Card G was a television test card broadcast occasionally by the BBC. It was the first electronically generated test card to be broadcast, and was a variant of the Philips PM5544 test pattern.