Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive
Open Free Radio Archive
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Jason Maine was a popular DJ from the Dublin pirate scene in the late 1970s and 1980s, presenting on stations such as Big D, Radio 257, Sunshine Radio and Q102. Here he is with a laid-back evening show on Radio Nova from spring 1982.
The partially airchecked recording was made from 88 FM in mono between 2145-2300 on Good Friday 9th April 1982 and is courtesy of Shay Geoghegan. Nova also broadcast on 846 kHz AM at this time.
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This short recording of Cork pirate Radio City was made in spring 1982, the station’s last year in operation. The Top 40 countdown is presented by Derry O’Callaghan in an afternoon slot. There are references to other DJs finishing up and changes happening in the station. The Cork radio scene was shook up around this time by the launch of a new professional pirate, South Coast Radio that would continue in its initial guise until 1984. Radio City left the air in autumn 1982.
The recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection and was made on 2nd March 1982 from 95.7 FM. The DJ also announces 199 metres (1512 kHz) but logs suggest that Radio City had moved to 240 metres (1242 kHz) by this time.
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Radio Carousel Navan (1982-1988) was one of several stations in the Carousel network run by Hugh Hardy from Omeath in Co. Louth. The Navan station occupied a high-profile position in a glass kiosk in the Meath town’s new shopping centre and listeners would often drop in requests in person.
This airchecked recording of Carousel was made not long after its launch and begins around 1345 with the end of Al O’Rourke’s lunchtime show, followed by station manager Kieran Murray. Kieran’s voice is also heard on adverts for local businesses. News at 1800 is read by Mike Ahern (Richard McCullen), who would go on to work in Boyneside Radio in Drogheda. The final section is of the Nightlight show with Nick Butler, which includes some surreal requests from local kids. The station closes down at 2300 with the Radio Carousel anthem Don’t Stop the Carousel.
The recording was made on 30th March 1982 from 1386 kHz (210 metres) and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection.
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Leeside Community Radio was a short-lived Cork station that broke away from another pirate, Capital Radio in 1982. Pat Anderson (Pat Galvin), formerly of Capital, was the driving force behind the new station and took many of the ex-Capital DJs with him. Unusually for the time, Leeside broadcast on FM only. It appears in a DX Archive log from August 1982 but not after that so must have fizzled out that autumn.
This short airchecked recording features the end of a news bulletin and part of an afternoon show presented by Mark Wilson. It was made from 102 FM on 2nd March 1982 and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection.
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This recording of popular DJ Declan Meehan on Sunshine Radio was made in summer 1982, as the north Dublin station approached its second birthday. Along with the usual mixture of contemporary hits and oldies, there’s mention of the ongoing World Cup tournament and the Sunshine Radio rock concert in Malahide Castle that evening. Commercial breaks include an advert for Tamango’s nightclub in the Sands Hotel in Portmarnock where Sunshine was based. There’s also a cash prize giveaway based on a car registration number. News is read by Siobhán Walls, who had previously worked in pirate radio in Cork. Declan Meehan would move to Sunshine’s great rival Radio Nova the following month.
The recording was made from 531 kHz between 1642-1727 on Friday 18th June 1982. After a wobbly start, audio quality is good. Thanks to Ian Biggar for the donation.