Tony King (Plunkett) and Declan King in the Sunshine Review from 1985 (courtesy DX Archive).
This is an excerpt from the Saturday afternoon sports programme on Sunshine Radio on 11th September 1982, as recorded by Leon Tipler on one of his regular visits to Dublin to document the Irish scene. It was made from 101 FM from 1550-1626 and features presenters Tony King (Plunkett) and Declan King. Tony had worked previously with other stations such as ARD. News is read by Cathy Cregan, another well-known voice of the time, and still a broadcaster today. The headlines include a story about Declan Flynn, the gay man who was murdered in Fairview Park two days previously. His death was a turning point in the campaign for LGBTQ+ rights in Ireland.
This recording is from the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection, donated to us by Steve England.
Early Sunshine compliments slip (courtesy of Ian Biggar).
This recording is of veteran English DJ Stevie Dunne (Stevie Gordon) on Sunshine Radio from 1410-1456 on 12th February 1981. Stevie did stints with the offshore stations Voice of Peace and Radio Caroline and was the last voice to be heard from the Mi Amigo before it sank in 1980. After coming to Dublin, he used the radio name Stevie Dunne to avoid confusion with another English DJ, Steve Gordon, who worked with Radio Leinster and also presented on Sunshine and Radio Nova on a stand-in basis. Stevie Dunne went on to work at Nova and South Coast Radio in Cork before moving to Scandinavia. He is currently Programme Director of Radio Seagull, which broadcasts on AM in the Netherlands.
There is co-channel interference on this recording, as it was made in Scotland by Ken Baird, some distance from the transmitter on 531 kHz. We thank John Breslin for the donation.
Declan Meehan in the Sunshine studio in 1981 (photo courtesy of Ian Biggar).
This early recording of Sunshine Radio features two big names in the radio business since the 1970s, Declan Meehan and Stevie Dunne (Stevie Gordon). Made from 531 kHz AM (announcing 539 metres) from 1323-1410 on 12th February 1981, Declan’s lunchtime programme includes the Call and Collect competition based on a car registration number and various adverts, including one for the Sands Hotel in Portmarnock where Sunshine was based. Declan is followed at 2pm by Stevie, who had previously worked at the offshore station Radio Caroline. He would go on to work in other Irish pirates such as Radio Nova and South Coast Radio in Cork. Listen here to an interview with Declan about his radio career from his time at Sunshine.
There is some co-channel interference on this recording as it was made in Scotland by Ken Baird, outside the core Sunshine AM area. Thanks to John Breslin for the donation.
Some of the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection held by Pirate.ie.
This is a bandscan of radio as heard on AM and FM in Dublin in August 1981 by Leon Tipler on one of his many visits in Dublin to document the local pirate scene. The scan gives a sense of the sheer volume of stations on AM and the less crowded FM band, where British stations could regularly be heard due to lack of congestion. We don’t have a precise date but part of the recording was made on a Sunday.
The bandscan begins on FM with Belfast station Downtown Radio’s closedown with a read- through of the next day’s schedule. This is followed by unidentified Irish and British stations on FM and céilí music on RTÉ Radio 1. Leon then switches to AM and tunes past foreign stations before settling on Radio City on 257 metres where Brian Harmon is signing off for the night. This is followed by classical music on what sounds like Radio 1 again. A live ad is read out by the DJ for the new Sunday Tribune newspaper on Sunshine Radio on AM and Leon then switches to Radio Nova on 88 FM. This is followed by exchanges from air traffic control, as was the norm on part of the FM band in those days.
Early Sunshine Radio sticker (courtesy DX Archive).
The scan then returns to AM and Radio Leinster on 738 kHz (406 metres) where Anna Craig is signing off at the end of her Sunday morning show. She is followed by Fr. Michael Culloty with a religious programme. The bandscan ends with more AM stations include ARD and part of the Disco Format show on Sunshine.
This recording is from the Leon Tipler Tapes Collection, donated by Steve England.
Tom Hardy (bottom right) with Robbie Robinson (L) and Stevie Dunne (undated, courtesy Pat Herbert).
Tom Hardy (RIP) worked in the offshore pirate Radio Caroline before coming to Sunshine Radio in Dublin in 1981. He was also a DJ on Radio Nova and its offshoot KISS FM as well as the other KISS FM in Monaghan in 1988, before going on to licensed radio in the 1990s. Tom died in 2022.
A rusty sign for Tamango’s at the current White Sands Hotel in Portmarnock (photo by John Walsh).
This recording from 1829-1856 on Tuesday 20th July 1982 features Tom on Sunshine Radio. As well as presenting an eclectic mix of music, he reads news headlines and a gig guide. The commercial break includes an ad for Tamango’s nightclub, located next door to Sunshine at the Sands Hotel in Portmarnock. A very young Cathy Cregan, one of Sunshine’s newsreaders, is also heard voicing an ad.
We thank Paul Buckle for this donation. An interview with Tom Hardy is available here.
