BBC presenter John Maguire interviews Graham Shirville G3VZV at the RSGB National Radio Centre

On Friday, November 22 a film crew from the BBC Breakfast show visited the RSGB National Radio Centre (NRC) at Bletchley Park to interview the FUNcube Project team about the new educational amateur radio satellite FUNcube-1 (AO-73).

BBC film Howard Long G6LVB and Jim Heck G3WGM working FUNcube-1 (AO-73)

BBC presenter John Maguire interviewed Graham Shirville G3VZV at the GB3RS station in the NRC.

Other members of the FUNcube team were filmed making a SSB contact from the Bletchley Park car park using the FUNcube-1 linear transponder.

During the visit to the National Radio Centre, John Maguire asked the FUNcube Team to support a visit to a local school, Abbeys Primary School in Bletchley, to meet up with some 10-11 year old pupils and talk to them about the FUNcube project.

Ciaran Morgan M0XTD and BBC crew at Abbeys Primary School in Bletchley

The visit was a huge success, with the school children asking lots of questions. As this was the first educational outreach opportunity after launch, the children were asked to compose a Fitter message which the FUNcube Team will upload to FUNcube-1 (AO-73) when they have decided what it should be! (Teachers’s comment “Might be their home work!”).

The FUNcube news report was broadcast on the BBC One TV Breakfast show on Monday, November 25 at 06:52 and 07:53 as well as on the BBC 24 hour News channel throughout the day. You can watch a recording at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25084547

Watch the BBC FUNcube item at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25084547

BBC Radio 5 Outriders Podcast, look for the “Outriders 26 Nov 13: Crypto, crosswords and tiny satellites” edition
http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/pods
Direct link to podcast http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/fivelive/pods/pods_20131126-0530a.mp3

BBC Breakfast show http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006v5tb

FUNcube-1 Deployed !!! https://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/21/funcube-1-deployed/

First Fitter Message Uploaded https://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/21/ao-73-first-fitter-message-uploaded/

First Transponder Test https://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/22/funcube-1-ao-73-transponder-tested/

FUNcube website http://www.funcube.org.uk/