Mayo Archives - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

24th December 202124th December 2021

Closedown of Ballina’s Twin County Radio

The town of Ballina in north Mayo got its first pirate radio station late in 1980 when Alternative Radio West (ARW) came on the air. A leading light in ARW – and later Ballina pirates such as Castle Radio and Westward Radio – was the late Tommy Murphy from Enniscrone in Co. Sligo. According to Magic and Madness, a history of Midwest Radio by James Laffey, Tommy famously checked with the Gardaí before switching on his transmitter so that he wouldn’t use the same frequencies! In fact, it is said that no-one ever considered raiding Tommy’s stations because he was so popular in Ballina.

Tommy’s final pirate outing was Twin County Radio, which came on the air in the spring of 1988 and served a large area of North Mayo and neighbouring Sligo, hence the name. TCR broadcast on 95 FM, was backed by local businessmen and had a full-time staff of six. It closed on New Year’s Eve 1988, along with all but the more daring pirate stations.

This is the final hour-and-a-half of TCR, recorded from 1640-1810 on 31^st December 1988. DJs Paul Stevens, Brenda Murphy, Siobhán Caffrey, Jimmy Whittington and John McIntyre say their goodbyes and Tommy Murphy hosts the final hour. There are several references to how the pirates launched the careers of many Irish country music stars in the 1980s. Twin County Radio closes down with the Angelus, a recorded message from Tommy Murphy and the national anthem. Tommy was also heard on Independent Radio Mayo and on the pirate and licensed Midwest Radio and died in 2012.

We thank John Breslin for his donation of this recording. For a comprehensive account of the 1988 closedowns, see the Radiowaves site.

14th July 202115th July 2021

Independent Radio Mayo as heard in Scotland

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

This is a recording of Independent Radio Mayo (IRM) as received in Scotland from 1525-1720 on Friday 25^th July 1988 on 738 kHz AM. IRM was in fact heard by accident when Dublin station Q102, broadcasting on the same frequency, went off the air for approximately two hours. The recording begins with adverts on Q102 and a relatively strong signal due to the geography, followed by the weaker signal of IRM when the Dublin station goes off. However IRM’s 1kW professional transmitter, used originally by Radio Leinster in Dublin, was very effective and as can be heard, the signal travelled well as far as Scotland.

There follows almost two hours of IRM, including the afternoon show of one of the founders Gerry Delaney with plenty of community announcements, requests, the Golden Hour and a sports round-up. Joe Finnegan takes over at 5pm with his teatime programme and news is read on the hour by Chris Clesham. Of note are the long ad breaks featuring businesses from across Mayo and occasionally Sligo. At the end Q102 returns to the frequency, blocking out IRM.

This recording was made by Ken Baird and we thank Ian Biggar for sharing it with us. Reception is fair to poor but perfectly listenable for DXers.

12th July 202111th July 2021

The Golden Hour on Independent Radio Mayo

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Independent Radio Mayo (IRM) from Castlebar began broadcasting in July 1987, in competition with the popular local station Midwest Radio in Ballyhaunis. An advert in the Anoraks UK Weekly Report (left) shows that IRM had three FM frequencies: 96 MHz to east and south Mayo, 100 MHz in Castlebar and 102 MHz covering Ballina in the north. Test transmissions on 1044 kHz AM were mentioned but the station later switched to 738 kHz, using the old Radio Leinster transmitter from Dublin.

This recording of IRM was made from 99 FM from 1630-1719 on Friday 4th November 1988. It features the last part of the Golden Hour with Andy Rogers (formerly of the BBC) and Peter James, who review the music of 1972. The 5 o’clock news is read by Chris Clesham and this is followed by Joe Finnegan. The ‘Independent’ part of the station name was often dropped by presenters who referred simply to ‘Radio Mayo’. Along with most other pirates, IRM closed down on New Year’s 1988 in line with new radio legislation.

Reception is fair as the recording was made in Co. Clare, well outside IRM’s core FM coverage. We thank John Breslin for the donation.

10th July 202111th July 2021

Local news and chat on Independent Radio Mayo

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

This is another recording of the late Tommy Murphy Show on Independent Radio Mayo (IRM) from 4^th February 1988 from 1203-1248. Recorded from 99 FM, it begins with a syndicated US religious message following the midday news. Tommy thanks John Breslin from Co. Clare who sent in a recording of IRM as heard in the Banner County. There’s also an interview with a representative of Castlebar Swimming Club, a hospital requests slot, snooker results from Ballina and entries to the phone-in quiz from across Mayo.

We thank John Breslin for his donation of this recording.

8th July 202111th July 2021

Tommy Murphy on Independent Radio Mayo

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Independent Radio Mayo (IRM) was launched in Castlebar in mid-1987 on 738 kHz AM, using the old Radio Leinster transmitter from Dublin, which gave it a good range across the region. It also broadcast on 99 MHz FM and later on 95.7 and 101.6. One of those involved was Gerry Delaney who had founded Mayo’s first pirate station, Atlantic Radio, in 1978. According to Magic and Madness, a history of Midwest Radio written by James Laffey: ‘IRM was mainly targeted at a younger audience and its playlist was not dissimilar to RTÉ Radio 2 but it also had a strong local feel to it and was a credible rival to Midwest’. IRM also drew the attention of the national media when Sharon Flynn, daughter of the Minister for the Environment Pádraig Flynn, began presenting an Irish language programme on the station.

This recording from 99 FM is of the late Tommy Murphy from 1115-1200 on 4^th February 1988. The music is country and Irish and plenty of requests and ads from all over the county are heard. There’s also a phone-in quiz and an interview with a listener organising a charity event in Ballina. Tommy went on to work at the licensed Midwest Radio and died in 2012. News at midday is read by Chris Clesham, who went on to work in RTÉ.

We thank John Breslin for his donation of this recording.