Border series: North Atlantic Radio breaks away from Radio North

Border series: North Atlantic Radio breaks away from Radio North
North Atlantic Radio 1st birthday poster in 1990 (courtesy DX Archive)

There were many splits in the Radio North camp during its long existence since 1986. One such offshoot station was North Atlantic Radio that began broadcasting around the beginning of November 1989 from Carndonagh, also on the Inishowen peninsula where Radio North was based. It was run by Tommy Cunningham and specialised in classic gold and country hits. A report in the Donegal Democrat on 2nd March 1990 listed North Atlantic as one of five pirate stations operating in Inishowen alone, taking advantage of the proximity to the border and listeners in Derry and beyond. In a letter to Ian Biggar on 6th March 1990, Francis Callaghan of Radio North said that North Atlantic was set up by former DJs who took over the station’s previous premises and telephone number. On 18th January 1991, the Donegal Democrat reported that North Atlantic Radio was proposing the establishment of a community broadcast co-operative to seek a licence for the Inishowen peninsula, claiming that the new licensed station Highland Radio had fallen short of providing public information and entertainment. Tommy Cunningham was quoted as saying that North Atlantic Radio would act as sponsors for such a co-op and called for the support of listeners, advertisers, community organisations and individuals.

The plethora of pirate stations in one small area of Donegal was clearly untenable, and Radio North closed down sometime near the end of 1991. On 16th February 1992, North Atlantic Radio was logged by Ken Baird of DX Archive on the old Radio North frequency of 846 kHz. Although there were brief appearances by Radio North in 1992 and 1993, on 13th January 1994, the Donegal Democrat reported that North Atlantic Radio was the only pirate left on air in the county. A short time later on 31st January 1994, North Atlantic reverted to the original Radio North name.

This recording of North Atlantic Radio features Mickey Bradley and DJ Heather with lunchtime shows. There are plenty of requests from both sides of the border and adverts from Donegal, Derry and Antrim, some voiced by Paul and Krissi from other pirate station WABC. The tape was made from 1125 kHz between 1217-1353 on 1st August 1990 and is courtesy of Ian Biggar.  

Border series: Breakfast show on Radio North

Border series: Breakfast show on Radio North
Radio North poster from 1991 (courtesy DX Archive).

Donegal station Radio North continued to broadcast into 1990 along with other pirates that risked the stiffer penalties associated with the new broadcasting legislation introduced a year previously. Although stations crept back onto the airwaves in various parts of the country, the border region was a hotspot for pirate activity due to the availability of plentiful advertising revenue from the North.

This recording of Radio North features a Monday breakfast show with Rockin’ Raymond from early 1990. The tape begans at the start of the day’s broadcasting with the station jingle and a popular country song about Radio North itself. Raymond plays a mixture of chart hits, oldies and country. Surprisingly there are no adverts in the first hour despite it being a peak listening period but a long commercial break is heard at 0900 featuring businesses across the border in Derry and Antrim.

The recording was made from 98.7 FM from 0800-0933 on Monday 29th January 1990 and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection. Radio North also broadcast on 97.7 FM and 846 kHz AM.

Sunday evening on Westside Radio

Sunday evening on Westside Radio
Westside Radio advert in Irish Radio News in 1983 when the station had big plans (courtesy Ian Biggar).

Westside Radio was a small station broadcasting to Dublin in 1982 and 1983. It had its origins in Double R Radio in Inchicore and moved around different premises in Dublin, later broadcasting from a site in Mulhuddart in the west of the city. Westside was one of a small number of pirates to stay on air following the infamous raids of May 1983 but did not last for long as it ran into trouble due to claims of interference, a common charge levelled against the pirates.

This short recording of Westside Radio was made on a Sunday evening in early summer 1982. Up first is Chris Byrne and he is followed by DJ Lynne. Both DJs read out a letter from the Irish Wheelchair Association thanking Westside for promoting them during a recent sponsored run in the Phoenix Park. Audio quality is fair to poor due to an over-modulated signal and cassette degradation.

The airchecked recording was made by Kieran Murray from around 2000 on 16th May 1982 from 1035 kHz, announcing 290 metres and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection.

Northeast series: Kieran Murray on Radio Carousel Drogheda

Northeast series: Kieran Murray on Radio Carousel Drogheda
Radio Carousel antenna at the Boyne Valley Hotel in Drogheda (courtesy Bill Ebrill).

The Louth station Radio Carousel developed many satellite stations during its long existence (1978-1988). Apart from the headquarters in Dundalk, at various times it had stations in Navan (Co. Meath), Drogheda (Co. Louth), Castleblayney (Co. Monaghan) and on the border aimed at Newry (Co. Armagh/Co. Down). The model was for satellites to run their own programming but link up with Dundalk for certain programmes, for instance Country Call presented by station owner Hugh Hardy (RIP). The first satellite service was opened in Drogheda in 1982 and claimed coverage of south Co. Louth and north Co. Dublin. The studios were based in the Boyne Valley Hotel but it was difficult for the station to gain a hold in Drogheda due to the dominance of Boyneside Radio in the town.

This short recording of Radio Carousel Drogheda features a familiar voice on the station, Kieran Murray, presenting an afternoon musical mix, interspersed with adverts and community announcements. The airchecked recording was made by Kieran from around 1500 on Wednesday 19th May 1982 from 99.4 FM and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection. Radio Carousel Drogheda also broadcast on 1413 kHz, announcing 215 metres.

Border series: test transmission by Gospel 98 FM

Border series: test transmission by Gospel 98 FM
Gospel 98 promotional poster (courtesy Ian Biggar).

Gospel 98 FM was a short-lived offshoot of Donegal station Radio North and an example of the long-standing religious programming on the station itself or on related services. It began broadcasting on 11th December 1989 from Shrove Head outside Greencastle on the Inishowen Peninsula. A promotional poster described the new station’s aim as promoting ‘vibrant, joyful, biblical Christianity’ over the airwaves. Gospel 98 was to be controlled and staffed by committed Christians who aimed to produce short bible studies, youth programmes and programmes for older people. The station’s ethos was described as non-denominational but also Evangelical Christian and it was envisaged that programmes would be sponsored.

This short recording is of a test transmission the day before Gospel 98 went on air and features music interspersed with recorded messages. The station was to broadcast from Monday to Saturday from 1500-1900 and promised gospel music and ‘lively content’. The tape was made in Lancashire on Sunday 10th December 1989 from 97.8 FM during an FM lift and is courtesy of Gary Hogg. Thanks to Ian Biggar for the image. Audio quality is fair and characterised by fading as to be expected some distance from the transmitter.

On 2nd March 1990, the Donegal Democrat reported that Gospel 98 had been put off the air by a storm the previous weekend. In a letter to Ian Biggar on 6th March 1990, Francis Callaghan of Radio North wrote that Gospel 98 had been broadcasting between 1500-1730 every day and relayed Radio North at other times. He said that it would be off the air for at least a month due to the storm but in fact the FM station seems never to have returned. There does not appear to be a direct link with Gospel 846, an AM religious service linked to Radio North that was set up in 1999 when the main station moved to FM only.