This is another recording of Galway pirate WLS Music Radio from 1985. Tony Henry is on air with laid-back music until midnight and is followed by Richie O’Shea with a more upbeat offering. There are few adverts given the time of night but one business featured is Supermac’s, now a successful west of Ireland fast-food company. The weather forecast contains a reference to ‘the bay area’, which was clearly based on the style of Radio Nova in Dublin.
Tape label from Anoraks ireland Collection.
The recording was made from 102.7 FM on 17th September 1985 and audio quality is fair with some distortion and hiss, so it is possible that the receiver was slightly off channel. Part 1 above runs from 2325-0011 and part 2 below from 0011-0057.
Part 2 from 0011
This recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Tapes Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson.
WLS Music Radio was a commercial pirate station broadcasting from Galway City from March 1985 to June 1987. It was set up by former offshore DJs Keith York (RIP) and Don Stevens who moved from South Coast Radio in Cork after it closed down in the summer of 1984. They joined existing Galway station Atlantic Sound and were later followed by fellow ex-offshore DJ Steve Marshall. The three took over Atlantic Sound and changed its format to chart music and giveaways, but by St. Patrick’s Day 1985 had set up WLS from across the road on Forster Street in the city centre. WLS was supposed to stand for the clumsy ‘West Local Station’ but was in fact based on a jingle package from a longstanding Chicago station of the same name that continues to broadcast today.
WLS broadcast on 846 kHz AM and initially 104 FM and later added shortwave on 6240 kHz. WLS switched to 102.7 in May 1985 in advance of a court case involving RTÉ. The national broadcaster alleged that WLS was interfering with television reception in Galway and had taken advertising revenue. When it moved to new premises on Prospect Hill in December 1986, WLS was praised for its high technical standards by Anoraks UK, who described it as on a par with licensed local stations in Britain. A station newsletter from late 1986/early 1987 (see below) said that its AM signal was designed to cover south Co. Galway and north Co. Clare both day and night, while its ‘superior FM stereo signal’ was aimed at the city. It also claimed to be the first pirate to broadcast in stereo to Galway.
WLS went off the air in mysterious circumstances around June 15th 1987. The City Tribune of 3rd July reported that the station had been off the air for the previous two weeks and its offices at Prospect Hill deserted. Equipment had been removed, the lock broken and the door left open. Attempts to contact manager Don Stevens were unsuccessful and he had vacated his rented accommodation in the city. An edition of the Radio West Anoraks’ Show in July 1987 reported that WLS had gone off the air after an irate investor dismantled equipment because he was unhappy with his return. In the same month, Steve Marshall and Keith York set up another successful Galway station, Coast 103, which broadcast until the end of 1988.
This recording of WLS was made on 23rd and 24th July 1985 and comprises airchecks of various programmes. The voice of Steve Marshall is heard on adverts for businesses in Galway and Castlebar. There are also agency adverts for larger national companies, a sign of the relative success of WLS just a few months after it started broadcasting. Presenters on the tape include Sarah Miles, Richie O’Shea and Brian Walsh. The 8am news is read by David Pollard and there’s also a promo for a Live Aid benefit concert to be held in Galway.
The recording was made from 101 FM in stereo and is from the Anoraks Ireland Tapes Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson.
Page 1 of 1986/7 newsletter (courtesy Ian Biggar).Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5
Postcard advertising the Brooklyn Pirate Radio Sound Map (courtesy David Goren).
Although Irish pirate radio is our main interest, today we explore the lively pirate scene in the Brooklyn area of New York City. The Brooklyn Pirate Radio Sound Map is a fascinating project established by radio producer and audio archivist David Goren and provides interactive maps and historical and contemporary recordings of the many unlicensed stations in Brooklyn.
This is a longer version of an interview by John Walsh with David Goren first featured in Wireless, a series about radio, audio and media on Flirt FM in Galway. It covers the history of pirate radio in Brooklyn and New York generally, attempts to crack down on the unlicensed stations, the role of low-powered FM, the background to the Brooklyn Pirate Radio Sound Map itself and plans for the future. Many thanks to David for taking the time to explain this fantastic project for us.
Radio Caroline Dublin flyer from 1992 (from Brian’s collection).
Radio Caroline Dublin (1989-2000) was one of the longest running stations of the second wave of the pirates following legalisation. It was set up by Brian Greene (Bobby Gibbson on air) and Tom Berry (RIP) who had previously run Centre Radio from Bayside in 1987-1988. Radio Caroline Dublin began broadcasting on bank holiday Mondays in 1989 and went full-time in January 1992. The station settled on 102.5 FM and increased its signal overtime but ran into difficulties with the authorities when Lite FM (later Q102) was licensed for 102.2 in 2000. Radio Caroline Dublin changed its name to WXTC but closed soon afterwards.
Radio Caroline Dublin was typical of pirate stations of the era. The Broadcasting and Wireless Telegraphy Act 1988 forced pirate from the high street and hotels into garden sheds for the majority of the 1990s. Radio Caroline Dublin never ran adverts and did limited fundraisers. Its core funding was through vigorous adherence to DJ subscriptions. Weekly and monthly subs were collected with two tiers for waged and unwaged. The subs from 25+ volunteers funded the very best of club DJing equipment in studio and a Dublin Mountains TX site. The subs were directly linked to democratic involvement in purchasing decisions. Ownership structure was more akin to 1970s AM pirates but there was a not-for-profit ethos from the start.
Full time hours were 5pm-12am Monday-Friday and 9am-1am at weekends. The station was involved in an unsuccessful licence bid for a community radio licence in 1996, and was a constituent group in the formation of Dublin-wide community of interest station Anna Livia FM, but then never got involved with that station as they were busy building Radio Caroline Dublin.
This interview with Brian Greene was conducted by Pete Reid (Simon Maher) and Gerard Roe in July 1998 in the Radio Caroline Dublin studio. It was featured in Anorak Hour #151 on 2nd August 1998 on Phantom FM and repeated during Anorak Hour #249 on 17th September 2000. This donation is with thanks to Gerard Roe.
Nick Richards in summer 1982 (courtesy Lillian O’Donoghue).
This is a recording of Nick Richards on South Coast Radio from the summer of 1982. Nick is sitting in for Keith York on his Saturday evening slot and plays tracks from the station’s albums of the week. South Coast was on the air for almost three months at this stage, so it is surprising that no adverts are broadcast, although a promo encouraging businesses to advertise is aired a few times.
The recording was made from 104 FM on 23rd May 1982 and runs from 1843-1928. Thanks to Ian Biggar for the donation.
