1985 Archives - Page 6 of 18 - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

23rd February 202323rd February 2023

Dublin super-pirate Q102 marks one month on air

Irish-owned Q102 rocked the Dublin market when it came on the air on 23^rd January 1985. In these recordings from one month later, it’s clear that the new station has found its feet and is beginning to make a mark on listeners and advertisers. In the first recording above from 1038-1126 on 23^rd February 1985, John O’Hara presents the final 20 minutes of his Saturday morning breakfast show before handing over to Jason Maine. The sound is tight and slick, with agency adverts and professional station imaging. There’s also a promo for cash giveaways for listeners spotted wearing Q102 badges. The second recording below is from 2304-2352 on 24^th February and features Martin Block with the laid-back ‘bedtime Q’ show.

Eddie West from 24.02.85

Both tapes were made from 102 FM and are from the Anoraks Ireland Tapes Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson.

23rd January 202319th January 2023

Launch of new Dublin super-pirate Q102

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These recordings are of the launch of the new Dublin super-pirate Q102, that began broadcasting on Wednesday 23^rd January 1985. The station shook up the competitive Dublin radio market, offering another professional music-based station for listeners and introducing innovative features such as Eye in the Sky, traffic news reported from a helicopter flying over the city. The first recording above starts at 1613 and is of the countdown to the launch, featuring continuous music and promos. The second part below is from 1701.

Part 2 from 1701.

The next recordings begin at 1850 and include the official launch at 1900 with a Cold War-style promo voiced by Lawrence John, one of the original station founders. He is followed by Jason Maine until 2000 and then John Kenny with the night-time show. There are some comedy-style commercials but no actual advertisements.

Part 3 from 1850 including launch.

Part 4 from 1935.

The next recording begins at 2018 and includes more of John Kenny’s programme. The cassette was damaged and only the first 40 minutes has been digitised.

Part 5 from 2018.

The final recording begins at 2302 and features John Kenny with a more relaxed late night sound.

Part 6 from 2302.

These recordings were all made from 102 FM and are from the Anoraks Ireland Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson. The first 90 minutes of Q102, including the launch, were recorded originally by Kieran Murray. Q102 closed down on 30^th December 1988 at 1800.

18th January 202317th January 2023

Eddie Coady on Crystal City Sound

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Crystal City Sound broadcast from Waterford city from 1985-1988, replacing an earlier station, Suirside Radio. Crystal City Sound retained the AM frequency of 1332 kHz and also broadcast on FM. It changed its name to NCR in April 1988, closing down at the deadline of 31^st December. The station claimed to offer a broader range of programmes than other Waterford pirates WLR and ABC. In this recording from its early days in 1985, the final few minutes of Kevin McCarthy’s show are heard before station manager Sandra Penkert reads lunchtime news.

Sandra is followed by Eddie Coady (RIP) with his Saturday sports show, featuring plenty of racing results. Some adverts for local businesses are heard but Crystal City Sound clearly had yet to establish a stronger commercial base in the city. Eddie was a popular local DJ and huge Elvis fan who also ran a chip shop and he was well known in the city. He died tragically in a car crash in 1994.

The recording was made on 9^th November 1985 from 97.8 FM between 1300-1347. It is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson.

13th January 20237th January 2023

Friday night on Waterford’s ABC

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This recording of Waterford station ABC was made on a Friday evening in late 1985 and features Roddie Cleere on air. The tape begins with the final section of the Golden Hour and is followed by the start of two hours of love songs. There is a competition for passes to a local disco and plenty of requests from listeners looking forward to the weekend. Roddie also reads news at the top of the hour. He has had a long radio career in the southwest since the pirate era and is currently heard on Kilkenny/Carlow station KCLR FM.

Our tape was recorded on 8^th November 1985, presumably from 101 FM, ABC’s Waterford City transmitter. 1026 kHz AM is mentioned on the cassette label but this is a stereo recording. It is from the Anoraks Ireland Tapes Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson.

11th January 202310th January 2023

Sunday afternoon on Waterford’s ABC

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Although largely playing chart music, this recording gives a sense of some of the diversity of weekend programming on Waterford station ABC. It includes Russ Padmore presenting the American Top 40 and Billy Power with a country music programme. News at 6pm is also read by Russ Padmore and there are plenty of adverts for local businesses and national brands. Russ is clearly burning the candle at both ends because he is to return at 1am for the night shift. He is now a journalist with BBC World Service. Billy Power went on to present a country show on rival Waterford station Crystal City Sound.

Our tape was made from 1026 kHz AM from 1735-1820 on Sunday 5^th May 1985 and was recorded in Kilkenny, some distance from the transmitter. It is from the Anoraks Ireland Tapes Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson.