Greenwich Time Signal Greenwich Time Signal The Greenwich Time Signal (GTS), popularly known as the pips, is a series of six short tones broadcast at one-second intervals by many BBC Radio stations. The pips were introduced in 1924 and have been generated by the BBC since 1990 to mark the precise start of each hour. Their utility in calibration is diminishing as digital broadcasting entails time lags. There are six pips (short beeps) in total, which occur on each of the 5 seconds leading up to the hour and on the hour itself. Each pip is a 1 kHz tone (about halfway between
Greenwich Time Signal As most stations only air the pips on the hour, "The Chris Moyles Show" was the only show where the pips were broadcast on the half-hour. Chris Moyles continues to use the pips at the beginning of his show on Radio X. Zane Lowe's Masterpieces, the playing of an album in its entirety, is begun with pips, and they also feature at 19:00 on Fridays to signify the start of the weekend and at 16:00 on Sundays to mark the start of "The Official Chart Show". "The Weekend Breakfast Show with Dev" begins with the pips at 06:00, and they