Leon Tipler Collection Archives - Page 7 of 13 - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

31st May 202122nd May 2021

Visit to Community Radio Fingal

Community Radio Fingal (CRF) broadcast from various locations in north Co. Dublin from March 1982 until the end of 1988. In September 1982, they were visited at the Rockabill Hotel near Skerries by the British radio enthusiast Leon Tipler during one of his Irish trips.

This is the unedited version of the interviews about CRF in Tipler’s documentary series ‘The Irish Pirates’. Speaking in the tiny CRF studio, Pat Young explains that the station emerged from Dublin Community Radio, which by 1982 was struggling with increased competition in the city’s pirate scene. At the time the station broadcast on 1584 kHz AM, announcing 189 metres, with 1 kW of power which gave it good reception all over Dublin. A 25-watt FM transmitter on 96 MHz linked to the AM installation a few kilometres away. CRF had 10-12 presenters and four sales staff and was doing well with listeners and advertisers. Tipler also interviews DJ Sindy who is one of four female presenters and a part-time sales representative.

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

21st May 202112th May 2021

Interview with John Clarke of Radio Nova

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

This is the original full recording of an interview by Leon Tipler with veteran DJ John Clarke on Radio Nova in September 1982. It was conducted in studio in the busy period leading up to 6pm and John chats away in between lining up music and ads on carts. An edited version was included in the documentary series ‘The Irish Pirates’.

He speaks about the history of Nova and describes the differences between it and its great rival, Sunshine Radio. Chris Cary wanted to begin broadcasting on FM and pushed a ‘clutter-free’ format with sweeps of music. The reaction from listeners was very positive from the start and Nova was soon a hit in boutiques, shops and factories with advertising flooding in. AM came later and the powerful signal increased the station’s popularity even more.

John also discusses the recent RTÉ jamming of Nova and a survey that established Nova’s dominance in the Dublin market. He says that most listeners to Nova and Sunshine were unaware of their pirate status because of the stations’ professionalism. The interview concludes with a mention of Kieran Murray’s Free Radio Campaign and the importance of logging pirate radio history. We’ll second that!

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

18th May 202118th May 2021

Punk and reggae on Concord Community Radio

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Concord Community Radio broadcast from the Artane/Coolock area of northeast Dublin from 1982 and would become North Dublin Community Radio (NDCR), which continued until the end of 1988. It was an AM-only station, announcing 337 metres or 890 kHz (presumably 891). This is a recording from 18^th May 1983, the day of the Department of Posts and Telegraphs raid on Radio Nova, which sent shockwaves through the pirate world. No time is given, but the choice of music suggests an evening programme. The unnamed presenter plays punk and reggae and takes requests from listeners but there is no mention of the raid that morning. In the following days many pirates closed down temporarily as a precaution.

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

17th May 202112th May 2021

Sunday morning on Radio Nova

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

This is a recording of Radio Nova as heard on 88 FM on Sunday morning 12^th September 1982 from 0930-1016. It begins at the end of the religious programme ‘Good News Tracks’ and is followed by the late Eddie West, who announces that Nova and KISS FM cars will be racing at the Mondello Park motorsports venue later that day. Ad breaks include regular spots for the Sunday World newspaper and the Red Corner Shop and a request is received from the Isle of Man. News is read by Bryan Dobson, now a well-known RTÉ journalist.

Eddie West worked at many pirates including Capitol and ARD as well as Nova and became Programme Controller at Downtown Radio and Cool FM in Belfast. He died in 2017 after an illness.

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

12th May 202110th March 2024

Sunday morning bandscan from 1982

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

This is a bandscan of Dublin radio by British radio enthusiast Leon Tipler during a visit to Dublin in 1982. It was made from about 0800-0930 on the morning of Sunday 12^th September 1982 and features both AM and FM stations. The bandscan begins with Bryan Dobson reading the news on Radio Nova and is followed by the start of that day’s broadcasting on the brand new Nova offshoot KISS FM. Some of Nova’s main service on 88 FM is also heard. There are snippets of Boyneside Radio, Radio City and Radio Dublin, including a promo for the Lebanon Requests Show presented by DJ Angie. There’s also a short extract of ‘RTÉ Radio 1 on VHF’ and BBC Radio Scotland on FM as well as an unidentified English station on AM.

The recording concludes with part of a Christian programme on Radio Nova called ‘Good News Tracks’, featuring religious music and reflections. Nova experimented with such specialist programmes in the early days, and Tipler’s documentary refers to another religious show on the station.

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