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Radio Dublin as heard in Cumbria

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Radio Dublin as heard in Cumbria
Radio Dublin badge from the Pirate.ie collection.

Radio Dublin was one of Ireland’s longest running pirate stations, on air from 1966 to 2002. This recording was made in Broughton-in Furness on the Cumbrian coast and features Gerry Stevens with the end of the breakfast programme, which was also broadcast on Radio Dublin Channel 2. Gerry announces that Channel 2 is coming on the air with separate programming at 1000 and he is followed by Adrian St James (Nolan) with the Morning Call International programme on the main Radio Dublin frequencies on AM, FM and shortwave. The phone is out of order but Adrian still shares requests from listeners, presumably dropped into the station in Inchicore or received by post. The daily Golden Hour slot begins at 1030 and there’s a promo for the weekly Lebanon Requests Show with DJ Angie.  

There is good AM groundwave propagation on the recording despite the distance of over 230 kilometres from Dublin to Cumbria. The tape was made from 1188 kHz (253 metres) on 26th June 1983 between 0936-1037. It is from the Leon Tipler Collection, donated to us by Steve England. Adrian Nolan continues to broadcast on Irish radio to this day.

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American Country Countdown on Radio Nova

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American Country Countdown on Radio Nova
Nova sticker from the 846 days (courtesy Ian Biggar).

The American Country Countdown was a syndicated country music show from the US presented by Bob Kingsley, aired by Dublin station Radio Nova in its early days. This recording from summer 1982 is of an early morning broadcast of the show, as heard on AM in Britain. It starts with night-time fading and some interference but the signal improves as dawn arrives. There are adverts for businesses around Dublin, including for brands, and mention of a Nova event at Maxine’s nightclub. The American Country Countdown is followed at 0600 by Colm Hayes with the first few minutes of his breakfast show.

The recording was made on Thursday 24th June 1982 from 846 kHz AM from 0407-0610. There are no details on the label but as the tape is from the Leon Tipler Collection, we presume that it was recorded at Leon’s home in Kidderminster near Birmingham. Thanks to Steve England for donating the Tipler Collection to us.

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Border series: More oldies on Radio North

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Border series: More oldies on Radio North
An undated photo of Paul Barnett (RIP) at Radio North (courtesy Steven Lynch).

This is another recording of former Radio North manager the late Paul Barnett’s popular morning oldies show on Donegal pirate Radio North. On a sunny autumnal morning, Paul has an electic mix of oldies from across the decades and a quiz with a cash prize up for grabs. Reflecting changing technology, listeners can phone in their answers or send a text. The first correct answer comes from Islay in Scotland, underlining the wide coverage area achieved by Radio North on AM. There are the usual adverts for small businesses in Counties Derry and Antrim, also voiced by Paul.

The recording was made in Scotland on 30th October 2006 from 846 kHz AM between 0955-1040 and is courtesy of Ian Biggar.

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Concord Community Radio explains aims of community broadcasting

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Concord Community Radio explains aims of community broadcasting
Concord Community Radio flyer (Alan MacSimoin Collection).

Concord Community Radio began broadcasting in March 1983 to the Artane district of the northside of Dublin, before changing its name to North Dublin Community Radio (NDCR) in 1984. It was one of a number of stations committed to developing licensed community broadcasting in Ireland and a leading member of the National Association of Community Broadcasters. Like the other pirates, NDCR closed at the end of 1988 but many of those involved went on to form NEAR FM, the licensed community station for northeast Dublin that launched in 1995.

This short recording of Concord Community Radio includes an unidentified DJ and a promo outlining the philosophy of community radio, reflecting the political debate about the licensing of local radio at that time. It was made from 891 kHz AM on Saturday 21st May 1983, just days after the raids on the large commercial Dublin stations Radio Nova and Sunshine Radio. The tape is from the Leon Tipler Collection, donated to us by Steve England.

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Border series: Paul Barnett plays oldies on Radio North

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Border series: Paul Barnett plays oldies on Radio North
Paul Barnett at the Radio North site in the 2010s (courtesy Steven Lynch).

This recording of Donegal pirate Radio North features former station manager Paul Burbank (Paul Barnett, RIP) with an edition of his popular daily oldies show from 2005. Copious adverts for small businesses in Counties Antrim and Derry are voiced by Paul who also reads news at the top of the hour.

The tape was made from 1050-1135 on Tuesday 15th February 2005 from 846 kHz AM and is donated by Ian Biggar.