The Radio North caravan near Muff, Co. Donegal in 1991 (courtesy DX Archive).
This recording of Donegal pirate Radio North was made on a winter’s afternoon in 1991, not long before the station left the airwaves for over two years. It begins with Eddie Barr who holds a phone-in competition, attracting callers mostly from the North. In another reflection of the station’s popularity across the border, all advertisements in this recording are from Co. Derry. There is also a horoscope spot and plenty of requests for the usual diet of country and Irish music. Eddie’s show is followed by the evening drivetime programme with John Wright. Radio North closed down near the end of 1991 when its AM frequency was taken over by rival station North Atlantic Radio. In early 1994, North Atlantic Radio reverted to the Radio North name.
The tape was made from 846 kHz AM on Tuesday 29th October 1991 from 1504-1635 and is courtesy of Ian Biggar. It was recorded in Scotland and as would be expected for the time of year, there is increasing co-channel interference as darkness falls.
Radio North car sticker from c. 1990 (courtesy DX Archive).
This recording of Donegal station Radio North is of a Saturday evening show from the autumn of 1990. DJ Neil Sweeney has plenty of inane chatter and plays pop/chart music and oldies for the first half-hour, followed by a tribute to American country singer Marty Robbins. The feature includes recordings of WIL FM in Nashville. There are plenty of adverts from Donegal, Derry and Antrim and an advertising promo claims that Radio North has coverage of 5 counties. Syndicated news headlines from ITN in London are broadcast at 1730 and 1800 and a PO box number in Ballymoney, Co. Antrim, is given out as the station address.
There was cut-throat competition between the Donegal pirates at this time, and Radio North was no doubt feeling the pressure from loss of advertising revenue to rival station North Atlantic Radio, set up by former Radio North DJs in November 1989. This recording was made from 98.8 FM on 22nd September 1990 between 1729-1850 and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection.
North Atlantic Radio 1st birthday poster in 1990 (courtesy DX Archive)
There were many splits in the Radio North camp during its long existence since 1986. One such offshoot station was North Atlantic Radio that began broadcasting around the beginning of November 1989 from Carndonagh, also on the Inishowen peninsula where Radio North was based. It was run by Tommy Cunningham and specialised in classic gold and country hits. A report in the Donegal Democrat on 2nd March 1990 listed North Atlantic as one of five pirate stations operating in Inishowen alone, taking advantage of the proximity to the border and listeners in Derry and beyond. In a letter to Ian Biggar on 6th March 1990, Francis Callaghan of Radio North said that North Atlantic was set up by former DJs who took over the station’s previous premises and telephone number. On 18th January 1991, the Donegal Democrat reported that North Atlantic Radio was proposing the establishment of a community broadcast co-operative to seek a licence for the Inishowen peninsula, claiming that the new licensed station Highland Radio had fallen short of providing public information and entertainment. Tommy Cunningham was quoted as saying that North Atlantic Radio would act as sponsors for such a co-op and called for the support of listeners, advertisers, community organisations and individuals.
The plethora of pirate stations in one small area of Donegal was clearly untenable, and Radio North closed down sometime near the end of 1991. On 16th February 1992, North Atlantic Radio was logged by Ken Baird of DX Archive on the old Radio North frequency of 846 kHz. Although there were brief appearances by Radio North in 1992 and 1993, on 13th January 1994, the Donegal Democrat reported that North Atlantic Radio was the only pirate left on air in the county. A short time later on 31st January 1994, North Atlantic reverted to the original Radio North name.
This recording of North Atlantic Radio features Mickey Bradley and DJ Heather with lunchtime shows. There are plenty of requests from both sides of the border and adverts from Donegal, Derry and Antrim, some voiced by Paul and Krissi from other pirate station WABC. The tape was made from 1125 kHz between 1217-1353 on 1st August 1990 and is courtesy of Ian Biggar.
This is another recording of Northside Radio, to which Radio North changed its name after some of those involved stepped back from the pirate station in 1989 to apply for a licence for the north Donegal franchise. On air at lunchtime is station manager Francis Callaghan with country and Irish music and plenty of requests from both sides of the border. Francis also reads out community notices and presents the daily Helpline slot. Most but not all adverts are from the North and there is a promo for a Northside Radio roadshow in Co. Derry. The station reverted to Radio North a few weeks later after the licence application was unsuccessful.
This recording of Northside Radio was made from 846 kHz AM on Wednesday 23rd August 1989 between 1309-1440 from 846 kHz AM (the station also broadcast on 98 FM at the time). Reception is fair and consistent with daytime groundwave reception as this tape was recorded in Scotland. Thanks to Ian Biggar for the donation.
Don Allen at ERI in 1983 (courtesy Svenn Martinsen).
The Canadian radio presenter Don Allen (RIP) was a familiar voice on Irish pirate radio in the 1980s and 1990s, where he shared his love of country music with appreciative audiences in various parts of the country stretching from Monaghan to Cork. After leaving Canada, Don worked on the offshore station Radio Caroline from 1965-1968 and later with Manx Radio and the BBC, before coming to Ireland and its growing pirate scene. He continued to broadcast on licensed station Midlands Radio 3 until his untimely death in 1995.
This recording of Don’s trademark country show on Cork station ERI in 1983 underlines his natural genius as a presenter. It was made during an outside broadcast from Kinsale before an event later that evening featuring ERI DJs. Reflecting the station’s growing popularity after its expansion earlier that year, several adverts are heard from businesses in the city and all around the county. The airchecked tape was made by Kieran Murray on Sunday 17th July 1983 from 105.8 FM between 1713-1800 and is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection. ERI also broadcast on 1305 kHz AM, announcing 225 metres.
