Sunshine Radio Archives - Page 5 of 12 - Irish Pirate Radio Audio Archive

8th September 20218th September 2021

Robbie Robinson closes 3rd Sunshine charity auction

This is the final section of the 3^rd annual Sunshine Radio charity auction in aid of the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC). Station owner Robbie Robinson (RIP) auctions one of that year’s big prizes, a holiday to Portugal donated by Joe Walsh Tours. He then calls the founder of the CRC Lady Valerie Goulding to tell her that Sunshine has raised over £22,000 that year. As the letter above indicates, by 1985 the auction had brought in over £100,000 for the CRC, a considerable amount for the time and evidence of Sunshine’s commitment to charitable causes.

Another item of interest in this recording is a advert placed by the Association of Independent Broadcasters in Ireland, a group formed by some of the commercial pirate stations to represent the sector. News at 9pm is read by Caroline Callaghan.

This recording was made from 2054-2132 on 11^th April 1983. It is from the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection, donated by Steve England.

6th September 20218th September 2021

Live on-air bidding at Sunshine’s 3rd charity auction

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The third Sunshine Radio charity auction for the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC) was held in 1983 and continued to build on the success of earlier years. This is the final part of the first day’s 12-hour auction programme, presented by the late Robbie Robinson. There is live on-air bidding for the Sunshine Extravaganza, an evening gala concert with music, food and drink, all profits from which went to the CRC. News is read by Emer Dolan (Woodfull). Within a month, Sunshine would be put off the air when the station was raided by the authorities in a crackdown on pirate radio.

The recording was made from 2053-2139 on 9^th April 1983. It is from the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection, donated to us by Steve England.

3rd September 20218th September 2021

Robbie Robinson on the Sunshine charity auction

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The annual auction for the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC) in Dublin was a staple in the Sunshine Radio calender, raising over £100,000 for the charity in the station’s first five years from 1980-1985. In this recording, station boss Robbie Robinson (RIP) directs proceedings with the help of Greg Merriman and other studio guests. Items for auction include teddy bears, tickets to see Emmylou Harris, a home alarm system, an IBM computer and an Opel Kadett car. Listeners are also invited to bid to attend the Sunshine Extravaganza, an annual meal and show that followed the auction. News is ready by Patsy McGarry.

This recording was made from 101 FM from 1220-1305 on 28th April 1984. It is from the Skywave Tapes Collection. Skywave Radio International was a shortwave station broadcasting from Baldoyle in northeast Dublin.

2nd September 20211st September 2021

Robbie Robinson 1940-2021

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The death of Robbie Robinson (aka Dale) yesterday at the age of 81 marked the passing of one of the giants of pirate radio since the 1960s and of Irish pirate radio in the 1980s. The owner of Sunshine Radio, one of the country’s most successful and popular stations, Robbie was widely tipped to get one of the Dublin licences in 1989 but it was not to be. Many former pirates lost out in the lean new era of independent radio but the rejection of Sunshine’s application was arguably the biggest shock of all.

‘Desiderata’, the title track of a 1971 album by Les Crane, is a poem deeply associated with Sunshine Radio because it was used as a reflection at the end of broadcasting every night. A generation of radio listeners in Dublin and beyond will remember listening to ‘Desiderata’ under the covers as their favourite station bade them good night. We present it here as a poignant tribute to a man whose dedication and imagination changed the direction of Irish radio.

Click here to listen to all of our recordings of Robbie Robinson. May he rest in peace.

21st August 202117th August 2021

Alternative listening with the Sunshine Cake

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The Sunshine Cake was a specialist programme broadcast by Sunshine Radio on Sunday mornings from 1985 on its FM frequency only, as an alternative to the station’s regular output on AM. It was a good example of the creativity of some of the pirates in using the existing technology to serve a broader audience, and also a reminder that niche programming was not only done by RTÉ.

In a feature in the Sunshine Review of 1985, presenter Justin McKenna wrote: ‘The idea for the Sunshine Cake was hatched when it became obvious that there was not one single programme on Irish radio which catered for the over 30 listener who enjoyed a wide range of music’. The Sunshine Cake included classical, jazz, blues and comedy slots and gained a regular audience around Dublin. In an interesting commentary on the continued dominance of AM radio in 1985, McCarthy wrote: ‘It’s been gratifying to note that a lot of the younger audience, who I would have expected to move down to the medium wave band, have stayed with FM and listened to the Cake’.

This recording was made from 101 FM from 1025-1122 on Sunday 31^st March 1985. It includes the comedy slot and a diverse musical mix, a cinema review with Paul Vincent and a voice competition.

This recording is from the Skywave Tapes Collection. Skywave Radio International broadcast a shortwave station in the 1980s from Baldoyle in northeast Dublin.