Raidió Luimní Archives - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

29th July 202629th July 2026

Highlights of Radio West Anoraks Show (1986 & 1987)

The weekly Radio West Anoraks’ Show from Mullingar was essential listening for radio enthusiasts far and near. Fronted by station boss Shaun Coyne, it was unscripted and unpredictable and relied heavily on juicy gossip and rumours about the pirate radio scene. Shaun was joined by another presenter each week – including the late Don Allen – but the second person often struggled to get a word in.

This recording contains highlights of the Anoraks’ Show from 1986 and 1987, with a focus on stations outside Dublin, in particular the west and southwest. It captures the rivalry and volatility in the pirate radio world as well as the continued dominance of AM outside Dublin well into the 1980s. The list of snippets is as follows:

2^nd November 1986: Limerick information from a contributor.

16^th November 1986: Limerick information from William Leahy, who went on to a career in RTÉ radio.

30^th November 1986: Galway information from Noel Dooley.

27^th November 1986: Raidió Luimní as heard on 1125 kHz when Radio Carousel was temporarily off the air.

7^th December 1986: Paul Davidson of Anoraks Ireland with information from Limerick, Tipperary and Cork.

7^th December 1986: Sligo information from James Headd.

1^st February 1987: Further Limerick information from William Leahy.

1^st February 1987: Further Galway information from Noel Dooley.

12^th April 1987: Paul Davidson of Anoraks Ireland with information from around the country.

10^th May 1987: Information about Tipperary (Nenagh) from a contributor.

10^th May 1987: Joe Cashin from Kilkenny with local information.

10^th May 1987: Galway and Mayo information from a contributor.

17^th May 1987: Promo for interview with Owen Barry (Larkin) from Zee 103, who went on to work in Century Radio and Downtown Radio in Belfast.

24^th May 1987: Owen Barry (Larkin) from Zee 103.

24^th May 1987: Don Allen jokes about a statute being put up in honour of Heady Eddie (Eddie Caffrey), pioneer of pirate radio in Co. Louth.

24^th May 1987: Nigel Gordon with Kildare information (Naas).

Undated 1987: Interview with Scottish anorak Jock Wilson of Radio Stella International who wishes to broadcast on shortwave from the Republic of Ireland.

26^th July 1987: Keith York from Galway about Coast 103.

26^th July 1987: David Baker from KLAS in Dublin about his recent short stint on offshore station Radio Caroline.

The recordings were made from 702 kHz AM in Scotland by Ian Biggar. DX groundwave reception by day meant variable audio quality due to the distance from Mullingar.

13th May 202213th May 2022

John ‘the Man’ Frawley on Raidió Luimní

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John ‘the Man’ Frawley was among the best known and most popular of Ireland’s pirate radio presenters, running the unique station Raidió Luimní from Limerick City for ten years from 1978-1988. He began broadcasting with Radio Limerick Weekly Echo (RLWE) in 1978 but left after a few months to set up his own station in Catherine Street, later moving into a derelict building in Lower Shannon Street. There was a hole in the roof, which was said to be useful for John the Man’s weather forecasts! When the station moved to a tiny shed near the old City Theatre, John persuaded a Christian brother to allow him run a wire across Sexton Street to the tall school building which was an ideal spot for his aerial. After a few more moves, the station’s final premises was at the corner of Gerald Griffin Street and Williams Street. Raidió Luimní closed in the early hours of 24^th December 1988, a week ahead of the deadline for the pirates to leave the airwaves.

This broadcast is from Monday 7^th November 1988 towards the end of the station’s existence and features the inimitable style of John’s morning Snap, Crackle and Pop programme, including his own weather forecast based on what he could see from the studio. The Master Butcher downstairs gets a mention and John’s voice is heard on most of the adverts. There’s also the popular daily call to the ‘dressing gown brigade’ to get out of bed. Paul Davidson of Anoraks Ireland is in studio during the recording and John comments on the gap to be left by the pirates at the end of 1988. He also reads the death notices, including one of Raidió Luimní presenter Larry Foxy O’Brien, for whom the station had closed for a few days as a mark of respect. Death notices are commonplace on local radio today, but the tradition was started by Raidió Luimní.

John the Man died prematurely in 1989, before the licensed stations got up and running. According to his obituary published in The Limerick Tribune on 17^th June 1989, John ‘became an articulate and amusing radio personality in the pirate days. He portrayed the Limerick jargon and way of life to a tee … There will never be another John Frawley and the freedom that he and his presenters were allowed on pirate radio is now sadly a thing of the past’.

This recording was made from 103.05 FM. Part 1 above runs from 0907-0953 and part 2 below from 0954-1040.

Part 2 from 0953

Thanks to Eddie Bohan and Liam Byrne for assistance with images. The recording is from the Anoraks Ireland Tapes Collection, donated by Paul Davidson.

24th December 202114th November 2023

Closedown of Raidió Luimní, Christmas Eve 1988

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When it closed just before Christmas in 1988, Raidió Luimní brought ten unique and memorable years of broadcasting to a close. While many Limerick stations came and went, Raidió Luimní was a constant presence in the city throughout the pirate era and had a huge following due largely to the unconventional style of its owner, John ‘the Man’ Frawley. It also had listeners well beyond Limerick city, thanks to an efficient Irish-made transmitter on 1125 kHz.

The station closed down a week earlier than other the pirates at the end of 1988, leaving the air at 0130 on Christmas Eve. This recording is of the final half-hour of the station with Alf de Lacy who says a long goodbye to Raidió Luimní listeners and staff and even thanks local Gardaí for their hard work over Christmas! A few bars of Denis Allen’s song ‘Limerick, You’re a Lady’ are played and then the national anthem brings Raidió Luimní to the end of its colourful life.

The recording was made from 103 FM from 0100-0130 on 24^th December 1988. We thank John Breslin for the donation. You can listen here to John the Man’s final show.

A comprehensive overview of the 1988 closedowns is available on the Radiowaves site.

23rd December 202124th December 2021

John the Man bids farewell on Raidió Luimní

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Raidió Luimní was one of the longest-serving pirates in the country, broadcasting from Limerick City from 1978 to 1988. It had a large following of loyal listeners in counties Limerick, Tipperary and Clare due to the eccentric broadcasting style of its owner, the late John ‘the Man’ Frawley. Raidió Luimní was a community station with a difference featuring all sorts of local characters and unusual programming. It was also one of the first stations to feature death notices, a tradition that continues on local radio today.

This is part of John the Man’s final show on 23^rd December 1988, the station’s last day of broadcasting. There are letters and requests from loyal listeners who are sad to see Raidió Luimní close and an emotional farewell from one of the more memorable pirate broadcasters of the 1980s.

The recording made from 1033-1118 from 103 FM and is kindly donated by John Breslin.

20th May 202120th May 2021

Pirate.ie in three minutes

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This three-minute clip gives a sense of the variety of content in the Pirate.ie archive. It covers stations big and small, in Dublin and elsewhere, playing mainstream pop or featuring specialist programming. The first segment features Ireland’s best-known pirate Radio Nova and its ‘Dublin Today’ programme on 30^th August 1983, the day of the giveaway.

The second segment is from the Irish Christian Broadcasting Service from 3^rd September 1983, just four days before a divisive referendum about inserting a ban on abortion into the Irish constitution. The presenter announces an interview with a US campaigner.

The third segment features a promo for community radio broadcast in 1987 on Bray Local Broadcasting south of Dublin. Among the voices is the then Minister for Communications, the late Jim Mitchell, whose party did not favour community radio. BLB was a leading member of the National Association of Community Broadcasters.

The next segment is a jingle for Boyneside Radio (1978-1988) based in Co. Louth which became a regional station covering an area stretching from Belfast to Dublin. The station had transmitters along the border and an opt-out service aimed at Northern Ireland.

The next segment features one of Ireland’s best-known pirate broadcasters, the late John ‘the Man’ Frawley opening Raidió Luimní on 20^th April 1983. The station broadcast from Limerick for ten years from 1978-1988 and the popular Frawley had listeners over a wide area. He begins by greeting listeners in Irish.

Finally we hear the late Bob Gallico reading the news on New Year’s Day 1988 on Energy 103, a popular professional station that emerged from the ashes of Radio Nova in 1986.