AM Archives - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

14th July 202512th July 2025

Early Cork series: Second week on Radio City

This recording was made during the second week of broadcasting of the Cork pirate Radio City, that came on the air in September 1980. It features snippets from a variety of daytime and evening programmes, including Karl Johnson (Dan Noonan) with Afternoon Delight, Paul Cassidy with the Golden Hour and Tony Walsh with new music until midnight. Many DJs refer to their gigs in local hotels or nightclubs, which was common among pirate radio presenters anxious to supplement their income in the lean 1980s.

The recording was made on Wednesday 10^th and Friday 12^th September 1980 from 1512 kHz, announcing 199 metres, and is courtesy of Lillian O’Donoghue.

11th July 20253rd July 2025

Sunday afternoon on Metro Radio

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Metro Radio was a small short-lived AM pirate station broadcasting from Clontarf on the northside of Dublin in 1983. Anoraks UK first logged it on 1557 kHz on 31^st May but it does not appear consistently in listings and seems to have been an irregular or hobby rather than a full-time operator. The same frequency was also used by another irregular pirate, Diamond Radio, around this time and indeed Diamond reoccupied 1557 kHz in 1984 after the apparent demise of Metro Radio by the end of 1983.

This short airchecked recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection and was made from 1557 kHz, announcing 192 metres, between 1300-1500 on Sunday 16^th October 1983. The DJ is John Young and only one advert is heard during the broadcast.

7th July 20253rd July 2025

‘The Smurf’ on Radio City Cork

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Pat O’Rourke, also known as ‘The Smurf’, was one of the popular DJs on the early Cork pirates. Heard initially on the Cork Broadcasting Company (CBC), his show had a huge following as reflected in its large weekly mailbag. Pat joined Radio City when it began broadcasting in 1980 and this recording features part of his first show on the new station.

The recording was made on 6^th September 1980 from 2030. Audio quality is poor for the first part as it was made by placing a tape recorder against an AM radio. The second part was recorded from 95.5 FM using a radio-cassette recorder and seems to have been made at a later date. Thanks to Lillian O’Donoghue for the donation.

4th July 20252nd July 2025

Sunday afternoon on Wicklow Community Radio

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Wicklow Community Radio began as a temporary festival station in the summer of 1982, but due to its success soon became a full-time operation. In 1985, it changed its name to Wicklow Local Community Broadcasting (WLCB) and in 1987 it was relaunched as Viking 105, with a more commercial focus.

This recording begins with the Top 30 countdown and the number 1 record, presented by Gerry Lang. This is followed by Willie Naughton’s Sunday Special show featuring album tracks. Voices on adverts include those of Scott Williams and David Harvey, both of whom would become big names on 1980s pirate radio and who continue to work in the media industry to this day. An announcement of a festival in east Wicklow includes a reference to the popular Radio Nova disco roadshow! The station signs off for the night with a bilingual announcement at 1900.

This airchecked recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection and was made from 1512 kHz AM, announcing 198 metres, on Sunday 4^th September 1983 between 1700-1900.

2nd July 20252nd July 2025

Border series: plenty of requests and adverts on Radio North

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By 1997, Radio North was still broadcasting from Inishowen in east Donegal, aiming its diet of country and Irish music at Northern listeners. This tape from summer that year begins with the final part of a show presented by Connie Cooper (RIP), followed by Big Bad Jon (Jon Knox) with more music despite problems with a temperamental CD player. There’s plenty of chat between Jon and another DJ in studio, ranging from hair dye to turkeys! Despite the passage of almost a decade since the new broadcasting legislation, there is no sign of a lack of advertising on Radio North. Copious adverts are heard, mostly from the North, as well as requests from both sides of the border.

The recording was made from 846 kHz AM on 18^th May 1997 from 1850-2020 and is courtesy of Ian Biggar.