Cross-border transmitter built by Sean McQuillan, installed by Tom O’Dea and Frank Sweeney at the CCA as part of the Ballads of Rhinestones and Newcomers exhibition.
In 2022, Pirate.ie collaborated with an exhibition at the Centre for Contemporary Art in Derry about how analogue radio and television signals spilled across the Irish border in the past. The exhibition, Ballads of Rhinestones and Newcomers, covered differing experiences of the border at a time when the implications of Brexit are being felt. As part of the exhibition, the film 2 Channel Land illustrated how pirate radio and television deflector signals could be heard on both sides of the border in times past. Created by artists Frank Sweeney and Tom O’Dea, the exhibition was presented as a radio sculpture and visitors could move through the gallery with handheld radios and learn about the technology and culture of signal overspill.
As part of the project, Frank and Tom interviewed John Walsh of Pirate.ie for a podcast about the background to our archive, with particular attention to recordings of border stations. The podcast was first published in February 2023.
Letterhead from 1991 showing Armagh address (courtesy Ian Biggar).
The raid of August 1990 did little to dent the success of Radio Star Country, and the Monaghan pirate station carried on unimpeded into 1991, although facilities were basic. The Glasgow Herald mentioned the station in a news feature on the Monaghan/Tyrone border on July 13th 1991, commenting on ‘maudlin country and western’ and ‘repetitive ads for farm machinery suppliers and discount stores’.
Extract from the Glasgow Herald of July 13th 1991 (courtesy Ian Biggar).
There is a dramatic account of the station during this period in a book by Cathal ‘Ray’ McSherry (RIP), A Different Wavelength: The Pirate Radio Days from 2004: My first visit to Radio Star headquarters was unforgettable. After leaving the main road and travelling for twenty minutes, I arrived at an old ramshackle single storey dwelling at the side of a narrow boreen. Cement or breeze blocks filled out the windows. Inside was a bare earthen floor which was more likely to the found the days of the Famine. There was a fireplace minus a grate and in all honesty the whole thing looked so absurd and surreal. It was a spectacle I’ll never forget but this was our “studio”. From here we would defy the powers that be and from here we would broadcast our shows, send out our music and entertainment and silently wonder, or think to ourselves often as not, if we weren’t completely coco-pops. Within this hampered house was a mixing desk, microphones, turntables, and all the paraphernalia of radio pirating. A mast was located two miles away to receive the FM signal. Cathal McSherry died in 2021.
Free Radio News (January 1991) reported problems at Radio Star Country due to a strong harmonic on 1962 kHz (2 x 981). This was in the amateur radio band and operators could be heard discussing the signal. They were obviously not happy and apparently reported the harmonic to the UK Department for Trade and Industry. The problem was seemingly caused by technical work being carried out at the transmitter site. This continued on and off for a few days before being finally corrected and luckily no action was taken by the authorities.
This tape of Radio Star Country is a rare FM recording made on 11th May 1991 from 98.6 MHz. Station owner Gerry Byrne is on air with the Star Country Top 20 and his voice is heard on the large number of adverts from both sides of the border. Part 1 above runs from 1126 and Part 2 below from 1214.
Part 2 from 1214
Thanks to Ian Biggar for the donation and for assistance with the text.
Screenshot from 1989 video about Radio Star Country by Miles Johnston (courtesy Rodney Neill).
Although Radio Star Country was warned by the Department of Communications to close down in February 1989, it would be almost 18 months before the station was raided in August 1990. According to Simon Maher’s Free Radio News (August 1990), Radio Star Country was raided on the morning of Wednesday 24th August, when several Telecom Éireann vans along with Garda back-up arrived at the medium wave site just outside Monaghan town. Staff at the station were monitoring 981 kHz when they heard the transmitter go off the air. They looked towards the site where they could see the raid taking place. The FM link transmitter was quickly switched off and studio equipment removed. The station staff then had a conversation with the raiding party before they left with all the transmitting equipment. Radio Star Country returned on Friday morning 31st August.
Former owner Gerry Byrne shares his memories of that time: The licensed station for the area Northern Sound began its broadcasts in 1990 and they were forever complaining about Radio Star Country. They couldn’t figure how to be a success and blamed Radio Star Country for their own lack of ability to be a success. The Department of Communications took the transmitter in August 1990, but we were back on air the next day. By coincidence on the next night someone damaged Northern Sound’s mast. I believe there was another raid on an FM transmitter a couple of years later.
Free Radio News (November 1990) reported that Radio Star Country received a prohibition notice in early October, which meant that their electricity (and in some cases phones) would be cut off in 14 days. In the case of Radio Star Country, it was the power to the transmitter site that was to be cut as the Department of Communications had not established the whereabouts of the studio. In view of this threat, the station searched for an alternative site and a suitable one was found. The power supply was cut around 4pm on 19th October. The station was off the air for around 35 minutes before returning from to the air from the new site and normal programming resumed the following day. The Northern Standard newspaper reported on 13th December 1990 that Gardaí searching the Carrickroe area for a pirate radio station found poteen instead at a site in Bragan. On 13th June 1991, the paper reported that Peadar Keenan of Bragan, Carrickroe was fined £25 after pleading guilty to making a premises available to a pirate station. Acting on a tip off, Department of Communications officials had located Radio Star Country on August 22nd 1990 and had disconnected the electricity supply. The defendant said he did not own the equipment and that it was owned by a Frank McCarthy who had asked him to use his land. Keenan said he did not know it was illegal; he had been approached in 1987 or 1988 and asked to put up a mast on the land.
This recording of Radio Star Country was made in July 1990, a month before the station was raided. On air with his American country show is veteran pirate and offshore DJ Don Allen (RIP), who is in flying form. Don’s voice is heard on a promo: ‘Super Star Country from Co. Monaghan, the only 24-hour country music station in Ireland’ and a Northern number is given for requests. As ever there are plenty of adverts from both sides of the border, many voiced by Don, and a community noticeboard is aired just after 5pm.
The recording was made in Scotland from 981 kHz on 3rd July 1990 between 1642-1759. Signal strength is good but a hum is audible during links. Thanks to Ian Biggar for the recording and for assistance with the text. Don Allen’s Country Jamboree was a hugely popular show on the licensed station Midlands Radio 3 and was much missed after his sudden death in 1995.
Video recorded by Miles Johnston and donated by Rodney Neill.
The legendary pirate DJ Don Allen (RIP) joined Radio Star Country in March 1989. Canadian by birth, Don cut his teeth with the offshore pirates such as Radio Caroline and Radio Northsea International in the 1960s and 1970s, where he became renowned for his country and western jamboree shows. He came to Ireland in the early 1980s and prior to the closedowns of 1988 worked with pirates such as ERI (Cork), Royal County Radio (Meath), Radio West (Westmeath) and Erneside Radio (Cavan). Don’s last station was the licensed Midlands Radio 103 (now Midlands 103) where he hosted a popular country show until his sudden death in May 1995.
This video from 17th May 1989 contains shots of Radio Star Country’s transmission equipment and includes part of an interview with Don Allen, who says he remains a pirate to the core and has no interest in working for licensed radio. Don reports that the Irish and American country format is proving very popular with listeners and advertisers and indeed, around this time Radio Star Country was announcing itself as the only all-country music station in Ireland. By mid-June 1989, Radio Star Country was noted with an excellent signal on 981 kHz, along with many adverts. The final edition of Anoraks UK’s Weekly Report, published in September 1989, stated that Radio Star Country could be heard over a wide area from Larne in Co. Antrim to Malin Head in Co. Donegal, with the signal also audible on a simple receiver in Dublin and over a large area of north Leinster.
We thank Rodney Neill for his donation of the video, which was made originally by Miles Johnston. Thanks also to Sean Brady for assistance with the text.
Radio Star Country has always been a champion of country music and during the heady days of early 1989, it used the tagline ‘305, keeping the country music alive’, a reference to its wavelength in metres, roughly equivalent to 981 kHz. On 3rd March 1989, veteran country music artist Vernon Oxford, who hails from Arkansas, was featured in an edition of ‘Arena’ on BBC2, in which he travelled around Northern Ireland. Vernon Oxford also visited Radio Star Country in the Swan Lake Hotel in Monaghan, where station owner Gerry Byrne interviewed him and offered Vernon the opportunity to sing live on-air. It was at this time, in March 1989, that it was noted that Radio Star Country was enjoying a successful period, with an excellent (daytime) signal on 981 kHz, plenty of advertisements and strongly featured station promos. Around this time also, ex-Kiss FM (Monaghan) DJ John Friday (also known as Lawrence John) was heard voicing adverts on Radio Star Country.
Radio Star studio including Vernon Oxford poster (Anoraks Ireland Collection).
On the morning of Friday 17th March 1989, Radio Star Country was noted off-air, apparently as a result of a visit from officials from the Department of Communications. The station was warned that it would be raided and closed down if it did not cease transmissions. Radio Star Country did switch off its transmitter for a time, but returned later.
Ian Biggar, who donated many recordings for this series, shares his memories of Radio Star Country:
In late July 1988, myself and Ken Baird were on a flying visit to Monaghan Town but of course made time to visit the radio stations operating at that time. Radio Star Country was one of the four and was located in the Swan Lake Hotel. It was very much typical of the mid-range stations of the time with domestic equipment in the studio, but generally was a nice little set up.
To be honest, after that visit I probably didn’t listen to the station again as country music wasn’t really my thing and tended to tune to such stations just to check they were there. Radio Star Country had a decent signal at home in southwest Scotland initially on 927 kHz, then 891 and finally on 981 kHz where it remains to this day.
That all changed on January 1st 1989 when the new broadcasting law was introduced in Ireland. I can clearly remember that Sunday morning and tuning across the now deserted medium wave. On 1188 kHz there was just a mess with a distorted relay of World Music Radio. Surprisingly, 846 kHz was silent as it was rumoured that of all the stations, Radio North from Carndonagh was most likely to defy the legislation. However, tuning to 891 kHz I was surprised and pleased to hear that Radio Star Country was on the air. I don’t think I had heard any rumblings about Star remaining on air, but there it was. It was around 10am and a taped programme was running and I can clearly remember one of the commercials wishing the station all the best for its continuation on air.From then on, I probably listened to the station most days whilst driving to work. I would tune between Star, Radio Dublin and Radio North which had returned to the air.
There were times when Radio Star Country was off air and I would always monitor the channel until they returned, which it always did! I remember one occasion in particular after a break that Gerry Byrne announced the station was now broadcasting from County Tyrone. This was for the benefit of the authorities and the station remained located in north Monaghan. I had now developed an affinity for the station. Yes, the music wasn’t to my taste, but the sheer determination to survive appealed to me.
In this recording from March 1989, Gerry Byrne is on air and the ‘305’ tagline is heard. The voice of popular Canadian country DJ Don Allen (RIP), who joined around this time, features on some of the many adverts from both sides of the border. Audio quality is poor on some commercials, possibly due to a dirty cassette deck. There are also community notices, a promo for ‘All-American Country’ coming up at 3pm and information about transport to a country music concert in Dublin.
The recording was made from 981 kHz on 1st March 1989. Part 1 above runs from 1430-1517 and Part 2 below from 1518-1603.
The recording was made by Rodney Neill and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection, donated to us by Paul Davidson. Thanks to Ian Biggar for the donation and to Sean Brady for assistance with the text.
