A telecommunications cable comprising four twisted pairs of conductors and a separator spline comprised of a principal dividing strip and a first subsidiary dividing strip attached longitudinally along a first side of the principal dividing strip and a second dividing strip attached longitudinally along a second side of the principal dividing strip, the spline separating the four twisted pairs such that they are arranged in a staggered configuration. A method for reducing cross talk between adjacent cables in a telecommunications system, the method comprising the steps of, for each of the cables, providing a plurality of twisted pairs of conductors, winding an elongate filler element around the twisted pairs and covering the twisted pairs and the element with a cable jacket, the element introducing a visible distortion into an outer surface of the jacket.