Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

18th October 20207th August 2021

Northeast series: Boyneside Radio jingles

Boyneside Radio compliments slip (courtesy of Ian Biggar).

Boyneside Radio made good use of professional jingles and idents during its ten-year existence.

Here is a selection of station idents featuring the unforgettable voice of Bill Mitchell, in which several Boyneside presenters are named. They are followed by Boyneside’s familiar jingle package which was produced through CPMG (aka PAMS Europe) in Bexleyheath in England. The same company made the first jingles for ERI in Cork and did the South Coast Radio package as well.

Thanks to Eddie Caffrey for the donation and to Ian Biggar for background information. You can hear more Boyneside jingles here.

17th October 20207th August 2021

Northeast series: The Green Scene on Boyneside Radio (1986)

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The traditional Irish music show the Green Scene is the longest-running programme on commercial radio in Ireland and dates from the Boyneside Radio era. Presented by Eddie Caffrey, it was popular across the northeast of Ireland and further afield. This recording is from 1020-1105 on Saturday 27^th September 1986 and features a huge number of requests from Louth, Meath, Armagh, Down, Dublin and even Blackpool. There’s also an ad for a céilí in Rochdale, Lancashire, evidence of how well the Boyneside signal travelled on AM across the Irish Sea. The show also includes the regular radio bingo slot with Dermot Finglas and news is read by Gerry Malone.

The Green Scene is still presented every Saturday by Eddie Caffrey on LMFM. This recording is from the Skywave Tapes Collection. Skywave Radio International broadcast a shortwave station in the 1980s from Baldoyle in northeast Dublin.

16th October 20207th August 2021

Northeast series: Boyneside Radio (1985)

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By the mid-1980s, Boyneside had established itself as one of the main radio stations in Co. Louth and a successful regional station in its own right, with satellites in Kells, Co. Meath and on the border. Its main AM transmitter on 1305 kHz was heard far and wide throughout the northeast of Ireland and beyond and Boyneside was describing itself as the largest regional radio station in Ireland.

This recording is of the main Boyneside station in Drogheda from 0945-1030 on 19^th February 1985. Its features the end of Daire Nelson’s breakfast show, complete with comedy inserts, followed by news headlines at 10 o’clock. The late Dave C (Cunningham) then takes over for the mid-morning slot.

This recording is from the Skywave Tapes Collection. Skywave Radio International broadcast a shortwave station in the 1980s from Baldoyle in northeast Dublin.

14th October 20207th August 2021

Northeast series: Boyneside Radio (1983)

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Today we bring you two more recordings of Boyneside Radio in 1983. The first recording was made from 2003-2030 on 1^st July 1983 and features Áine Ní Ghuidhir on news followed by Neil O’Brien presenting the ‘Night Flight’ programme. There’s an ad for the popular Bubbles disco in Drogheda which regularly featured Boyneside DJs. Requests are received from north and south of the border, reflecting Boyneside’s large catchment area.

The second shorter recording below is the last part of a show presented by Dave C (Cunningham) from 1152-1200 on 28^th June 1983. Dave C was one of the pirate pioneers of the 1970s and involved in stations such as Radio Dublin and Alternative Radio Dublin (ARD). He was a director of Radio 257 and following its closure in 1982, he moved to Boyneside.

These recordings are from the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection, donated to us by Steve England. Both are from AM and sound as if they were recorded some distance from Drogheda, possibly on the west coast of the UK.

13th October 20207th August 2021

Northeast series: Balbriggan Festival Breakaway Radio (1982)

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Balbriggan Festival Breakaway Away was a temporary annual station set up by Boyneside Radio in the north Dublin town of Balbriggan. Broadcasting for a week in early June from 1981 to 1985 to coincide with the local festival, it was based in the Balbriggan Shopping Centre and came on air daily from 12 noon. In this promo from 1982, 225 metres is announced, the same as Boyneside in Drogheda but the pop-up station actually used 1323 kHz, two channels away from 1305. Output was about 500 watts from two 813 valves, given it a decent coverage area. Balbriggan Festival Breakaway Radio broadcast for a week in early June every year. The station was logged by Anoraks UK in June 1985 on 1494 kHz.

We thank Eddie Caffrey for sharing this recording of a little-known satellite station of Boyneside.