Radio Dublin Archives - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

29th June 202628th June 2026

Radio Dublin broadcasts non-stop for 36 hours

Here we share recordings of vintage Radio Dublin from the days when full-time broadcasting was still a dream. These extracts are from the station’s 36-hour marathon over Saturday and Sunday 17^th and 18^th September 1977 with DJs John Paul, Alistair Mac, Jimmy St. Leger, Sarge, Sylvie, Kieran Murray and Johnny Day. Transmission quality left a lot to be desired and the cassettes are showing their age, but there’s no doubt that Radio Dublin was the leading station in Dublin at the time. As well as the music, there are community announcements, adverts and a live link-up to the Radio Dublin car at a racing event in the Phoenix Park. One of those interviewed in the park is the late Irish author Lee Dunne, who was at the time writing the popular RTÉ radio series Harbour Hotel.

A second recording below features a Beatles special presented by Alastair Mac from around 1950 on either 17^th or 18^th September. There are plenty of requests, including one from Lancashire. These tapes were made by Kieran Murray and are part of the Anoraks Ireland Collection.

Beatles special with Alastair Mac

A shorter extract of the weekend below is courtesy of Ian Biggar.

20 minute version of the marathon broadcast

Previously the pirates were sporadic hobby operations, appearing at night or at the weekend. This broadcast was a decisive step in the professionalisation of pirate radio in Dublin and led to full-time broadcasting by Radio Dublin at the beginning of 1978. Other stations soon followed and the rest is history. We’re very grateful to Kieran for sharing his memories of this unique broadcast:

Having listened to this recording that I made way back in 1977, many memories have flooded back! This recording was made at 53 Charleston Road, Ranelagh, Dublin 6, in the flat where I lived with my parents. It was also the address used as the contact details for the Free Radio Campaign – Ireland, the pirate radio club that I ran from April 1976 to March 1981.

First, 1977 was the year that I completed my Leaving Cert and this marathon broadcast occurred just after my 19th birthday! I recorded this broadcast from an old valve radio (you know the ones with the tubes that light up!) and the speaker output was wired to a cassette recorder. The radio was given to me by my maternal grandmother and it was connected to a long wire antenna that went out the bedroom window and ran along the full length of the wall of the long back garden at the rear of the flat in Charleston Road.

To be fair, the actual broadcast quality was a bit better than my recording here displays. Recording the entire weekend was a challenge for me, because I had never done an ‘aircheck’ recording before. Plus, I was constrained in the amount of cassette tape that I had to hand at that time and it was over an entire weekend, so I took a sample of each show.

Firstly, I was aware at this time that this was completely new territory for pirate radio. Previous to this, pirate radio stations were limited to broadcasting for short periods, mostly at weekend and at night time, as it was thought that you would be less likely to be raided by the dreaded Posts and Telegraphs and Gardaí. Secondly, because a pirate radio station had never before attempted a marathon broadcast like this, I was aware that Radio Dublin could have been raided at any time – and my hope was that if it were raided, I could possibly catch this event on tape. As it transpired, the broadcast went on uninterrupted and I’m sure that is what emboldened future pirate radio stations from then on.

The contract address used for Radio Dublin during this broadcast was 90 Ranelagh, Dublin 6 (I think Don Moore lived at that address). This was also the very first time that commercials had been broadcast on pirate radio. Featured on this recording is a commercial for the Band Centre, Harcourt Road, Dublin. They had a special offer that you could hire your complete Christmas disco for just £12! Another commercial featured was for Casanova’s Unisex Hair Stylist in 15 North Earl Street, Dublin. The commercial you hear for Sounds Alternative magazine, from Free Radio Campaign – Ireland (the radio club I ran), was on a pre-recorded cassette. In fact, it was one of the first commercials that was pre-recorded on Radio Dublin up to that point. All of the commercials at that time were all read live, over an instrumental bed.

The Alistair Mac show at 6pm was ground-breaking, because it was the first to feature music that was non-commercial and also album tracks. I think it pre-dates Dave Fanning for this type of show. Also featured was a link-up by telephone to a motor racing event that was being held in the Phoenix Park, Dublin. The Radio Dublin outside broadcast unit was a white Jaguar car owned by Eamonn Cooke, with the name Radio Dublin along the side. Again, another first for Irish pirate radio.

The presenters you hear on this recording are: John Paul, Jimmy St Leger, DJ Sylvie, Johnny Day, Alistair Mac, Sarge, Johnny Day and Kenneth Murphy (yes, that’s me using the DJ name that I had used previously on Capitol Radio (August – December 1975). Each show featured a stream of requests and the landline telephone was ringing constantly. Up to this point, it was unheard of that you could just call up a radio station and get your request read out and your favourite song played within 30 minutes or so. This was quite revolutionary at the time and went down very well, particularly with younger listeners. I often imagine that if Radio Dublin had been raided immediately during that marathon broadcast, then the course of radio here in Ireland may have taken a completely different turn.

Kieran Murray, June 2022

29th April 202629th April 2026

Test of Radio Dublin Channel 2 and station launch

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Radio Dublin Channel 2 was the first such offshoot service by an Irish pirate station, operating initially at weekends and then on a more full-time basis in parallel with the main station. Offering specialist output such as a rock show, country show and student programme, it was an alternative to the chart music focus of the original Channel 1, which continued to broadcast on 1188 kHz (253 metres). Channel 2 was initially on FM only but in recognition of the limited reach of that band at the time, soon added its own AM channel. One of the highlights of the Channel 2 service was the weekly FRC show presented by Gerard Roe, which updated anoraks about the pirate radio scene at home and abroad.

This recording begins with the first test broadcast of Radio Dublin Channel 2 on Saturday 26^th April 1980, with John Everest on 90.2 MHz FM, while Kevin Barrett continues on medium wave. The airchecked recording switches back and forth between AM and FM in the course of the evening, and John Everest announces that the official launch will take place the following weekend. Kevin Barrett says Radio Dublin is making history in local radio in Ireland, being the only station with two separate channels. However there are plenty of teething problems during the Channel 2 test, and a link-up between the two channels is barely audible.

The test transmission is followed by the launch of Channel 2 a week later which begins with a few words from station owner Eamonn Cooke, followed by Martin Cullinane, who would later use the name Bob Conway on RTÉ 2FM. Teething problems continue with variable audio and bleed-through from Channel 1, which was a perennial problem on the parallel services. The airchecked recording begins shortly after 1600 and continues until the inaugural broadcast finishes at 1800. There is some uncertainty over the date of the launch due to confusing information on the cassette label, but it appears to have been on Saturday 3^rd May 1980. The recording ends with the familiar Radio Dublin signature tune and jingles. Thanks to Ian Biggar for the donation.

Radio Dublin closed down permanently in 2002 following Eamonn Cooke’s conviction for sexually abusing children. He was jailed in 2003 and again in 2007 and died in 2016 while on temporary release. If you require support with this issue, you can contact the organisation One in Four.

25th March 202623rd March 2026

Lunchtime on Radio Dublin in 1978

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In January 1978, Radio Dublin began a full daytime schedule, a change that shook up the Dublin radio scene and ushered in a new era of increased competition and rising standards. This recording was made around lunchtime and features DJ Sylvia with good tunes, an album of the week feature and live-read adverts. The iconic 253 jingle is aired a few times and Sylvia is followed by DJ Lee in the afternoon slot.

The recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection and was made from 1187 kHz, announcing 253 metres, between 1342-1403 sometime in 1978.

25th February 202622nd February 2026

Politics on late-night talk show on Radio Dublin

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Pirate stations often became embroiled in politics not just because they were broadcasting without licences but also due to the unregulated nature of the radio scene. One issue that caused friction was Section 31 of the Broadcasting Act that prohibited broadcast interviews with spokespersons for Sinn Féin and the IRA. Although RTÉ implemented the law strictly, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) opposed it on the grounds of media censorship. As they operated outside the law anyway, some pirate stations ignored Section 31 and occasionally paid the consequences. For instance, in 1982 the Radio Leinster presenter Gavin Duffy announced that he would interview Gerry Adams and other senior Sinn Féin figures. The station received a warning from the Department of Posts and Telegraphs and Duffy was fired. Another consequence was that politicians who appeared on the pirates were blacklisted by RTÉ, depriving themselves of coverage at election time. In a direct challenge to Section 31, temporary pirate stations supporting Sinn Féin or H-Block candidates also popped up from time to time.

This recording of a late-night talk show on Radio Dublin was made a few days before the general election on 17^th February 1987 and is an example of how rules about balance in political coverage often did not apply to the pirates. Presenter Pat Jennings – himself a member of the NUJ – states that he is opposed to the broadcasting ban and interviews Paul Davidson (Tony Donlon, RIP) of Anoraks Ireland about how it plays out in the pirate world. There are also live calls from listeners giving their views on the election and in studio are former H-Block candidate Tony O’Hara and Dublin City Councillor Seán Dublin Bay Rockall Loftus. The owner of Radio Dublin, Eamon Cooke, was well known for his republican sympathies and the station was one of a handful that did not broadcast a minute’s silence in November 1987 after the IRA bombed the war memorial ceremony in Enniskillen.

The label states that the recording was made from 105 FM on Saturday 14^th February 1987 between 0045-0133, but it sounds like there are a few edits. The tape is from the Anoraks Ireland Collection.

29th October 202526th October 2025

Pirate Pioneers: early test transmission on Radio Dublin

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This is a rare early recording of Radio Dublin (1966-2002) featuring the legendary Don Moore (RIP) on a test transmission in 1975. By this time, the Dublin pirate scene was quiet following a raid on Radio Empathy in 1974 and Radio Dublin had been off the air for a year. By 1975, pirate activity had shifted to shortwave, believed to be of less interest to the authorities than medium wave, and Dr Don was operating Radio Westside (later Westside Radio International). However, both he and Prince Terry (Roger Lloyd) were determined to put Radio Dublin back on medium wave and began testing with a new transmitter in October, covering the northside of the city on 30 watts. That summer, Capitol Radio had appeared on 1358 kHz (announcing 220 metres) and with the return of regular weekend broadcasts by Radio Dublin, the new activity ultimately paved the way for the rapid expansion of pirate radio in the late 1970s and 1980s.

In this short recording, Dr Don sends best wishes to Capitol Radio on 220 metres and also mentions that another shortwave pirate, Radio Valleri would return soon. Don signs off by saying that he will shortly be testing on his own shortwave station, Radio Westside. We estimate the date of this untimed recording to be Sunday 12^th October 1985. It was made by Gary Hogg from 1183 kHz (off-channel, announcing 253 metres). Thanks to Ian Biggar for the donation.