As well as the free HD transmissions of BBCTV and ITV Granada on Astra 2D at 28.2E it appears BBC1 starts on test from 3rd Nov
Presumably you've got an HD compatible 'box' to serve the HD TV ?
I can't tell from the sites [Kingofsat and Lyngsat are the best altho' both are quite cluttered] whether you need at least an expired Sky Card or the £25 Sky Freesat card to access these channels if you are using Sky's own box eg Skyplus as opposed to,say, the Sagem box I'm using.
Perhaps it's my eyesight, but I'd have to admit I can hardly tell the difference in HD and SD