TV Pickup
TV pickup is a phenomenon in the United Kingdom where large surges in electricity demand occur when many people simultaneously use appliances, especially kettles, during breaks in popular TV programmes. These surges, which can reach up to 2800 megawatts, are uniquely significant in the UK due to high viewership of events like sports finals and soap operas. The National Grid manages these spikes by using pumped storage and forecasting demand based on TV schedules and viewer habits.
- ▪TV pickup causes surges of 200–400 MW, with major events reaching up to 2800 MW.
- ▪The largest pickup occurred after the England vs. West Germany 1990 World Cup semi-final.
- ▪Electric kettles, typically 2.5–3.0 kW, are the primary cause of the surge in demand.
- ▪The National Grid uses pumped storage and predictive modeling to manage TV pickup.
- ▪Popular programmes causing pickups include soaps, sports, and reality TV like 'Deal or No Deal'.
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Toggle the table of contents TV pickup 2 languages 日本語한국어 Edit links ArticleTalk English ReadEditView history Tools Tools move to sidebar hide Actions ReadEditView history General What links hereRelated changesUpload filePermanent linkPage informationCite this pageGet shortened URL Print/export Download as PDFPrintable version In other projects Wikidata item Appearance move to sidebar hide From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Increases of electrical power consumption at high rating TV programmes TV pickup is a phenomenon that occurs in the United Kingdom involving sudden surges in demand on the national electrical grid, occurring when a large number of people simultaneously watch the same television programme.
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