Nova car sticker from the 738 days (courtesy Ian Biggar)
This recording of Dublin super-pirate Radio Nova is of an overnight show presented by Lawrence John, who was involved in a range of 1980s Irish pirates including Radio Leinster, KISS AM/FM (Dublin), Q102 and KISS FM (Monaghan, where he was known as John Friday). Given the time of night, the music is laidback and talk is limited to occasional requests, including one for veteran offshore DJ Don Allen of Radio West in Mullingar. There are no adverts, although a promotion for a £10,000 cash giveaway is heard at the top of the hour.
The tape was made from 102.7 FM between 0036-0125 on Monday 9th July 1984 and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection.
Magazine advert for Energy 103 in 1986 (Anoraks Ireland Collection).
Energy 103 was one of Dublin’s most popular radio stations in the 1980s. Emerging from the ashes of Radio Nova, it began broadcasting on 29th April 1986 and quickly built a solid listenership and advertising base. The station closed suddenly on 11th March 1988.
These days, live radio programming is rare in the evenings, let alone overnight but back in the pirate era, many stations broadcast live around the clock. Although automatic options were sometimes used, larger stations could afford to pay an overnight DJ and maintain a live connection with listeners in the early hours. This recording gives a flavour of such overnight programming on Energy 103 in the autumn of 1986.
First up is Mike Kingston’s show from 0131-0219 on Monday 15th September. He is followed by Alan Burns from 0127-0215 on Tuesday 16th September. Given the time of night, the musical mix is relaxed and talk is minimal. There are no adverts or news but a smattering of requests intersperses the records.
The recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection and was made from 103 FM. Energy 103 also broadcast on 738 kHz AM.
An advert for Telstar Community Radio in Anoraks UK Weekly Report 1987
Telstar Community Radio (1980-1988) was a long-running pirate station based in and around Dundalk in Co. Louth. Despite stiff competition from Radio Carousel in the same town, Telstar built up and maintained its own listeners and advertisers throughout its time on air. This recording of Telstar was made in 1986, just after it had moved back into Dundalk from the village of Blackrock to the south, where it had spent the previous four years.
The recording begins with the breakfast show presented by Alex Evans, with news headlines on the half-hour and a mixture of chart, pop and easy-listening music. There are adverts for local businesses and branded station jingles. The second part of the tape begins with Alex handing over to Ray Stone for his mid-morning show until lunchtime. Ray promises an eclectic music mix including charts, ballads, céilí and rock and roll. He also shares community notices and trivia news items, apologising to listeners for the temporary absence of a phoneline following the move back into Dundalk.
The recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection and was made on Wednesday 30th April 1986 between 0652-0740 and 0956-1044 from 88.5 FM. Audible levels are variable and there is some distortion in places, due either to an on-air issue at the time or the cassette itself. Telstar also broadcast on 1197 kHz, announcing 250 metres.
Early Q102 sticker from when the station was on 828 kHz AM (Anoraks Ireland Collection).
By the summer of 1985, new kid on the block Q102 was well established as a serious player in the Dublin radio market. The Irish-owned super-pirate had a crisp, professional sound and high broadcasting standards. Q102 had many experienced DJs but also launched other media careers and some of the same people continue to broadcast to this day.
Over the August bank holiday weekend of 1985, Q102 broadcast a day-long special of number ones of the 1970s between 1000-1900. The hits were interspersed with historical news and entertainment items as well as voxpops with the public. The 9-hour show was followed by an all-time listeners’ top 70 records from 1900-2000 based on a phone survey. Customary high-level agency adverts for brands and larger businesses are heard throughout the recording, along with the iconic early jingle package. The presenters are Martin Block and Derek Jones and news on the hour is read by Brian Carroll.
The tape is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection and was made from 102 FM between 1000 and 1132 on Monday 5th August 1985.
John Clarke in the KISS FM studio at Christmas 1982 (Anoraks Ireland Collection)
KISS FM was one of the many offshoots of the renowned Dublin station Radio Nova. It was set up by Chris Cary in September 1982, offering specialist programmes for the Dublin audience and absorbing some of the advertising from Nova, such was the success of the main station. However, a jamming campaign by RTÉ and tensions between Cary and the National Union of Journalists put the entire Nova operation at risk and KISS FM closed down on 15th January 1984.
This recording is of veteran radio presenter John Clarke over the Christmas holidays in 1983, towards the end of KISS FM’s run. The musical style is relaxed and there are relatively few advertisments for the time of year, perhaps reflecting the wider problems affecting Nova. News headlines are read by Ken Hammond, who would go on to become an RTÉ journalist. The tape was made from 102.75 FM between 1634-1708 on Tuesday 27th December 1983 and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection.
