1982 Archives - Page 17 of 19 - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

9th October 20207th August 2021

Northeast series: Boyneside Radio/CRD (1982)

After breaking away from Boyneside Radio in July 1981, Community Radio Drogheda went its own way until May 1982 when the two stations merged once again. The economic reality of two pirate radio stations in the one town had hit home and given that Boyneside had more financial backing, it was unsurprising that it won out in the end.

According to Eddie Caffrey, Gavin Duffy had had enough of the final nine months of CRD and announced that he was moving on and that anyone who wished to return to Boyneside was welcome to do so. Eddie and Richard Crowley (pictured above) met Boyneside owner Eobain McDonnell and brokered a merger involving every second presenter from both stations. Some Boyneside staff were not happy about the return of the prodigal sons but Eobain persisted. Around the same time, a meeting was also arranged with Radio Carousel in Dundalk which was trying desperately trying to break into the Drogheda market. That came to nothing as Carousel owner Hugh Hardy’s offer was too weak.

The merged station was known as Boyneside Community Radio but the name Boyneside/CRD was also used for a time before references to CRD were dropped entirely by the late summer.

Other DJs such as Mike Cluskey, Neil O’Brien and Seán Neilon were regulars on Boyneside following the merger doing weekend and holiday cover. This recording was made from 1540-1639 on 19^th June 1982 and begins with a reference to the forthcoming Rolling Stones concert at Slane Castle in Co. Meath. Mike Cluskey is the presenter and uses Boyneside/CRD on air. We thank Ian Biggar for the donation of this recording.

7th October 20207th August 2021

Northeast series: Boyneside Television (1982)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Boyneside Radio was one of a handful of Irish pirate radio stations to venture briefly into television. A basic studio with Betamax machines but without mixing facilities was built at Donaghy’s Mill in Drogheda. Boyneside Television came on the air in November 1981 using a 10-watt transmitter, giving it patchy reception on Channel D in the town. Broadcasts were initially from approximately 4pm to 7.30pm daily and included news, sport and a simulcast of the DJs presenting their radio programmes. By 1982, Boyneside Television was coming on air twice daily, at lunchtime and teatime, and also extended broadcasts into Saturdays.

Boyneside Television was used extensively by local politicians in the run-up to the general election of 18^th February that year. Around that time, Boyneside accused RTÉ of jamming its signal in Drogheda and said that the national broadcaster had placed a jamming transmitter in the centre of the town. RTÉ responded by claiming that it was carrying out tests following complaints of interference to television reception from pirate broadcasters.

Boyneside Television continued for a while after the merger of Community Radio Drogheda and Boyneside Radio but petered out by around May 1982.

This is an audio recording of an hour of Boyneside Television from February 25^th 1982, shortly after the election. The main lunchtime news is read by Áine Ní Ghuidhir and includes a reference to the RTÉ jamming which seems to be audible from the recording. Ad breaks and interviews are also heard. These are followed by sports news, apparently recorded later in the day, which includes an interview with former Down GAA manager Joe Lennon. Audio quality is poor at times and breakthrough from Garda communications can be heard. We are unsure if this was in the transmission signal itself or if a scanner was located near the recorder. Many thanks to Eddie Bohan for donating this recording.

15th July 20202nd April 2024

ABC Radio from Dún Laoghaire

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

ABC Radio broadcast from Dún Laoghaire in south Dublin in 1982 on 96 FM. This recording is from 1557-1727 on the 27th of February 1982 and features Jonathan Stewart followed by Sid Reade. Hugh Farley presents television highlights. There is a laid back, studenty vibe to the station’s music and style and the lack of adverts suggests a hobby operation.

Information about ABC is scarce but we have pieced together some details. The station may have been linked to the earlier Sonic Independent Radio from Shankill. ABC was run by Ian McDonald from his house in Clarinda Park, Dún Laoghaire, referred to as ‘Broadcasting House’ in this recording! There was a medium wave relay for a time, announced as 297 metres. The Dún Laoghaire station had no connection with the other ABC which broadcast from Dublin city centre from 1981-1984, so there were two ABCs on air for a time within a few miles of each other. This ABC later changed its name to South City Radio in May 1982. An Anoraks UK listing from the 1st of November 1982 lists South City Radio from Dún Laoghaire on 98 FM and 999 kHz AM. South City Radio later became KOVE FM. We thank Ian Biggar for his donation of this recording.

8th July 20202nd May 2024

Late-night Radio Nova as heard near Birmingham

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

This recording was made by the British radio enthusiast Leon Tipler at his home in Kidderminster in the English midlands. The tape label states that it was made from 819 kHz from 2217-2305 on the 17th of September 1982, but there is a jingle for ‘the mighty 890’ and the news ident at the top of the hour announces 846 kHz. According to the November 1981 edition of Short Wave News, Nova returned to 846 after briefly trying 891. Based on Anoraks UK logs, it seems the move to 819 kHz happened between the 7th and the 23rd of September 1982. It is possible, therefore, that Nova had very recently moved by the time of this recording but the ident had not yet been updated. Thanks to Ian Biggar for confirming details.

The DJ in this recording is Eddie West and news is read by Bryan Dobson, a senior RTÉ journalist until 2024. Audio quality ranges from poor to fair as there is plenty of skywave interference. At about 300km from Dublin, Kidderminster is well outside the coverage area of Nova’s 10 kW transmitter. During the recording, Eddie West wishes Sunshine Radio a happy 2nd birthday and also mentions Leon Tipler. That clip was used in Leon’s acclaimed documentary series The Irish Pirates, which is available on this archive.

This recording is from the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection, donated to us by Steve England.

4th July 202024th March 2024

Full recording: West Coast Community Radio (Galway)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

West Coast Community Radio (WCCR) broadcast on 1125 kHz (announced as 265 metres) from February or March 1982 until July 1983. It was the first relatively large Galway station since the closure of Independent Radio Galway (IRG) in July 1979. Some of those involved with IRG set up Radio Eyre in 1982 but this failed after six weeks and otherwise the city had only small, local hobby stations between 1979 and 1982. WCCR’s transmitter came originally from WKCR in Newbridge. Co. Kildare. The aerial was originally installed at Cloonacauneen Castle north of Galway and the station later moved to a cold storage unit in the eastern suburb of Roscam. Output power was initially 80-100 watts but the coverage area would be extended due to technical changes. One of those involved with WCCR was Keith Finnegan, who went on to become CEO of Galway Bay FM.

The Connacht Sentinel of 1st of June 1982 reported that WCCR was distributing flyers in housing estates in Galway in a big publicity campaign. Spokesman Gerry Delaney claimed they had a range of 50 miles (80 km) with an aim to increase it to 85 miles (135 km). He said that leading shops in the city were advertising on WCCR. The paper reported that the supermarket chain Quinnsworth had taken out advertising because they had a local promotion and found the radio station ‘handy’.

This recording of WCCR is from Saturday 23rd of October 1982 from 1942-2009 and features Seán Murphy on air. There are no adverts and one generic jingle just at the end. Audio quality isn’t great and the transmitter seems to drift off channel a bit, but recordings of WCCR are rare so we are delighted to bring you a flavour of this early Galway station. Many thanks to Ian Biggar of DX Archive for the donation. Listen here to Tom Breen’s memories of WCCR.