The Frozen Face

Posted on January 26, 2010

Guest post from Ray Bryant on his recent experiences upgrading to Digital TV.

Have you ever been on Facebook? I must confess I have no experience of it.

Recently my family kindly gave me a Freeview box for Christmas to ensure that I was ready for the change to digital TV when it comes.

My grandson (family consultant on all things "gismo") duly visited to install the new wonder and then pronounced the first problem. "Sorry, you need a new aerial!"

So we engaged the "aerial man" who came and installed a shiny new array of antennae above the roof. Back in the TV lounge he connected up, switched everything on and, with his own mysterious electronic box of tricks, checked lots of data. He then left me with the rudimentary instruction, "When you want to watch TV you just press this button on the remote and you're away."

Ok, so now, instead of being restricted to two BBC channels and ITV1, I was in command of a vast range of new channels to view (most of the content of which I don't necessarily want to see.)

My first evening programme was "Question Time" in which politicians and audience air their views. As one debater was speaking his face suddenly froze on the screen. His words were continuing in sound but his face had frozen in mid-grimace. It was ten past eleven on Thursday evening and his frozen face continued to drift across the screen as the debate progressed. I listened to the rest of the programme in sound while the phantom visage fixed me with his glassy stare.

"Aerial man" came back next day, switched off the power to the box and then switched it on again. This enabled the equipment to "unfreeze", warm up and carry on normally! How simple when you know what you are doing!!!

But the frozen face still haunts me and the word Facebook is still a mystery; and I intend it to remain so.

-- Ray Bryant