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More Radio Nova as heard in Cumbria

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More Radio Nova as heard in Cumbria
Tom Hardy on the day of the Radio Nova raid, 18th May 1983 (courtesy Joe King).

This is another recording of Radio Nova as heard in Cumbria on 828 kHz AM from 0915-0945 on 30th June 1983. Tom Hardy is on air and features include the Nova Jobspot advertising current employment vacancies around town. The late Bob Gallico reads news headlines at half past the hour. There are plenty of agency ads and promos for the Radio Nova Puma 10K race and for a Nova news hotline which has just been launched. Reception is fair but Nova was operating on reduced power at this time following the raid the previous month.

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

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Radio Nova as heard in Cumbria

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Radio Nova as heard in Cumbria
Colm Hayes at the Nova raid in May 1983 (courtesy Joe King).

Radio Nova courted listeners on the west coast of Britain throughout its five-year existence from 1981-1986. By the spring of 1983, it had a 10 kW transmitter in operation on 819 kHz, with a 50 kW rig ready to go into service. Expansion plans were set back by the infamous raid of 18th Mary 1983, and when it returned to the air, Nova operated on lower power for a while and switched frequencies between 828 kHz and 819 kHz.

This recording was made from 828 kHz AM in Cumbria on 29th June 1983 from 2045-2115. Colm Hayes is on air announcing AM only, because Nova’s 88 FM frequency was at this time used for an specialist service called Super Nova every evening. News is read by David Malone. Reception is reasonably strong but noticeably weaker than in other periods and it would be autumn 1983 before Nova resumed high-power broadcasting on AM.

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

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Non-stop Radio Annabel

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Non-stop Radio Annabel
Part of a letter sent by Gerard Roe to Brian and Dónal Greene in 1985.

Here’s another recording of Dublin pirate station Radio Annabel made from 98.1 FM on 20th September 1983. The station also broadcast on 1035 kHz AM at this time. Continuous music with jingles and stations idents are heard. There are no timechecks, so this could be an automated show, possibly for broadcast overnight. Radio Annabel was one of the smaller Dublin pirates of the early 1980s, broadcasting from Parnell Square in the north inner-city from 1983 to 1985.

Thanks to Shay Geoghegan for the donation.

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After Dark on Radio Annabel

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After Dark on Radio Annabel
Radio Annabel advert from the Sunday World, 06.01.85 (Alan MacSimoin collection).

Radio Annabel was one of the smaller Dublin pirates of the early 1980s, broadcasting from the north inner-city from 1983 to 1985. It began testing in September 1983 after the merger of two smaller stations, Westside Radio and ABC. After first using 1035 kHz and then 981, Radio Annabel eventually settled on 1323. The station was heard around 98 FM in the early days but later added 91.8 MHz. Radio Annabel was well-known among anoraks because of the weekly Free Radio Show presented by Gerard Roe. It closed down in March 1985 due to financial problems.

This recording was made from FM from 2134-2220 on 20th September 1983, shortly after the station’s launch. Steve Jones finishes his show and hands over to Paul McCafferty at 10pm with ‘Annabel After Dark’. The frequencies announced are 290 metres (roughly 1035 kHz) and 98.1 FM. Thanks to Shay Geoghegan for the donation.

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Robbie Robinson closes 3rd Sunshine charity auction

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Robbie Robinson closes 3rd Sunshine charity auction
Letter from Valerie Goulding of the CRC in the 1985 Sunshine Review (courtesy DX Archive).

This is the final section of the 3rd annual Sunshine Radio charity auction in aid of the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC). Station owner Robbie Robinson (RIP) auctions one of that year’s big prizes, a holiday to Portugal donated by Joe Walsh Tours. He then calls the founder of the CRC Lady Valerie Goulding to tell her that Sunshine has raised over £22,000 that year. As the letter above indicates, by 1985 the auction had brought in over £100,000 for the CRC, a considerable amount for the time and evidence of Sunshine’s commitment to charitable causes.

Another item of interest in this recording is a advert placed by the Association of Independent Broadcasters in Ireland, a group formed by some of the commercial pirate stations to represent the sector. News at 9pm is read by Caroline Callaghan.

This recording was made from 2054-2132 on 11th April 1983. It is from the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection, donated by Steve England.