Unusual places our O2 network is found

As you may know, we invest £2 million in our network every single day to make improvements for you, our customers. As demand for a reliable connection grows, so does our need to innovate to ensure we’re reaching as many parts of the UK as possible, so you can stay connected wherever you are.

You might not have thought about turning telephone boxes into hidden network boosters, creating “stealth” masts in church towers or building artificial trees that blend seamlessly into the surroundings to deliver strong signals – but we have.

What might sound like 3am coffee-fuelled fever dreams is, in fact, cutting-edge technology that’s out in force keeping you connected like never before. Here are some of the stranger things we’re doing to give you a better mobile experience.

Mobile coverage isn’t just for your commute – it’s essential for keeping fans connected in the stands too. Maybe you’re checking the latest transfer news, keeping an eye on your rivals’ score or, ahem, distracting yourself when your team is having a bad day.

In July 2024, we completed a major upgrade at Old Trafford in just 16 weeks – a task that usually takes twice as long. Now, the home of Manchester United offers matchgoers the use of an advanced mobile network – talk about a “Theatre of Dreams”.

In 2024, we reached a milestone in our Shared Rural Network programme, which has brought reliable 4G coverage to 227 rural communities across the UK.

One of the most challenging projects was on the Isle of Eigg, a tiny island off the west coast of Scotland, just 9km long. The Isle is 100% community-owned and relies almost entirely on renewable energy for its electricity.

Collaborating closely with the local community, we were able to install a mast that provides the residents with reliable connectivity. It’s a small island, but a giant leap in keeping even the most remote places connected.

Expanding mobile coverage is important, but so is preserving the natural beauty of our landscapes. In certain rural areas, we’ve deployed masts disguised as cypress trees, blending into the environment while providing robust coverage. Yes, really.

These “tree masts” house our cell antennas within their branches, keeping the landscape beautiful while ensuring you stay connected. It’s just one of the ways we have innovated to expand our network with minimal environmental impact.

Our network isn’t just in cities and towns – it’s making a difference in the countryside too. Last year, we partnered with Cannon Hall Farm in Barnsley to launch our “Connected Farm of the Future” trial.

This initiative demonstrated how improved mobile connectivity can significantly boost agricultural productivity, from using animal trackers to monitor livestock health to crop sensors that optimise yields. Bet you’ve never herd that before!

It also plays a critical role in safety, ensuring farmers – doing what can be an isolated and hazardous job – can quickly connect with emergency services when they need to.

In the flat landscapes of East Anglia, our network takes to the skies – well, almost! Many of our sites in this region are located on water towers, which provide the elevation needed for strong signal coverage across the area.

As with our tree masts (we promise they’re real), we’re committed to using stealth solutions to expand our network without compromising the beauty of our environment. That means utilising existing landmarks to hide our tech in plain sight.

Across the country, we’ve installed “stealth” masts concealed within buildings and structures to avoid disrupting the local scenery. From church spires to utility building chimneys as well as historic sites, our stealth solutions blend seamlessly into their surroundings while providing the coverage you need.

These towers come in all shapes and sizes, presenting challenges for our engineers, who often rely on scaffolding instead of cranes to complete their work. It’s a complex task, but it ensures that even in the flattest regions, our signal is strong and reliable. Flat’s amazing? Just a regular day for us.

In urban areas, we face similar planning challenges as in the countryside, but we’ve got a clever solution: small cells. These compact bits of radio infrastructure are no bigger than a shoebox and can be easily hidden in everyday objects like streetlamps and telephone boxes. Yes, we’ve turned phone boxes into cell towers.

We’ve deployed more than 1,800 small cells across 36 regions in the UK, adding extra capacity to our network where it’s needed most. Next time you’re using your phone in the city, remember – you might be taking advantage of a nearby hidden network booster without even knowing it.