Telecommunications - Information, Everyday Tips

Telecommunications

DIALLING FROM OUTSIDE THE UK
The new dialling code for Central London is +44 (0)20 7

MAKING INTERNATIONAL CALLS FROM LONDON
To the USA and Canada: Dial 001 then the area code (e.g. 001 212 for New York City) then the rest of the telephone number. To make a call anywhere outside the USA or Canada: Dial 00 followed by your country code, the local area code (remembering to omit the first 0), and finally the phone number.

First of all, public telephones. In UK the bulk are provided by British Telecom and some by Mercury and are located in boxes and booths of various construction, as well as other public places like hotels, theatres, supermarkets and so on.

Most will use real money, others take Phonecards (BT and Mercury) and will be labelled so. The traditional national suspicion of new innovations means that the boxes using cards are often free when there is a queue for the cash variety. If you expect to make a significant number of calls invest in a Phonecard available in various denominations from £2 to £20 from main Post Offices and many shops.

An increasing number of boxes will take major credit cards. However, if you are a cash person have a good supply of 10p, 20p, 50p and £1 coins to hand. The days of 1 out of 10 boxes actually working are well past and reliability is generally good.

We celebrated the Millennium by changing all the London telephone codes. The previous 0171/0181 codes were replaced by a single code 020, with a 7 or 8 added to the original seven digit number. So 0181 984 0000 becomes 020 7984 0000.

International codes should be either displayed or in booklet form, depending on where you are.

If you do not know your required number, call 192 for UK or 153 for International numbers. Charges are ferocious but it's probably worth lowering the frustration level. Have as much information as possible - some enquiry operators can be exceptionally helpful but we all have bad days. Smart alecs use a public telephone box from which the service is free. Make the most of it before the accountants twig on.

For London there are three directories, two for private numbers, one for commercial. There is also the famed Yellow Pages directory which lists businesses and services under appropriate headings.

If all else fails and you are looking for a business, talk to Talking Pages, a very good free service operating 24 hours, which lists numbers of many thousands of businesses throughout UK. Call 0800 600900, again with as much information as you can.

Directories are held in hotels, by all residents and in post offices and libraries.

The operator, available by dialling 100, is essentially your friend and problem-solver. International person-to-person calls, alarm and credit card calls, and general information (but not number enquiries) are all dispensed usually with charm and courtesy.

A reverse-charge call on 155 is one of the most expensive forms of communication available. Try and find another way unless it's an emergency.

Making a call from UK to out of the country requires first 00, which is the International access code, followed by the country code and then the number.

Calling into UK from anywhere else needs you to dial the International access code, then the UK code 44, then the full number, leaving out the first 0.

Mobile phones are on the increase and most work on the two-band system. Mobiles which are not UK-sourced, can present problems particularly if your service provider does not have reciprocal arrangements in UK.

A smart solution is to purchase a 'pay as you go' mobile from someone like Carphone Warehouse. Good subscription deals are available, but be sure it is a model with International capacity.

For some reason modern telecommunications no longer do telegrams in UK. However, it is possible to send one to more or less anywhere else in the world. The number is 0800 190190.

Remember Sir Winston Churchill's old dictum - "jaw-jaw is better than war-war" - and communicate.