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Early Cork series: Sunday shows on Radio City

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Early Cork series: Sunday shows on Radio City
Radio City studio in 1981 (courtesy DX Archive).

This recording features a selection of Sunday programmes on Cork pirate Radio City from the spring of 1981. Up first is John Rice signing off at the end of his show, followed by Pete Andrews (O’Neill) with the Radio City Top 50 and then Susan James (O’Connor) with the Groove Galaxy. The last segment is from a Sunday morning show presented by John Mariner, possibly from another date. 

This airchecked recording was made from 95.7 FM from around 1400 on 22nd March 1981. Audio quality is generally good but there is some distortion and wobble due to cassette degradation. Thanks to Lilian O’Donoghue for the donation.

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Early Cork series: Sunday romantic hour on Radio City

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Early Cork series: Sunday romantic hour on Radio City
Susan James (O’Connor) in 1980 (courtesy Lilian O’Donoghue).

This is another example of Sunday programming on Cork pirate Radio City from 1981. On air is Susan James (O’Connor) with the Groove Line, a mixture of slow classic and chart tunes. There are also some adverts for local businesses. Susan is followed by Ronnie Gibson with contemporary album music.

The recording was made from 95.7 FM on Sunday 8th March 1981 from 1900-2005. Thanks to Lilian O’Donoghue for the donation.

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Early Cork series: Various show on Radio City

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Early Cork series: Various show on Radio City
L-R: Eric Hansen (John Creedon) and Alan Reid (Henry Condon, RIP) at Radio City (courtesy Lilian O’Donoghue)

This recording of Cork pirate Radio City features a variety of presenters and shows from its schedule in spring 1981. First up is Pete Andrews (O’Neill) who reads out a listener’s letter and previews various programmes coming up over the weekend. He is followed by Susan James and Karl Johnson (Dan Noonan). Of interest towards the end is Eric Hansen who under his real name of John Creedon continues to broadcast on RTÉ to this day.

The dates are unclear but we estimate the recording to be from 31st January and 1st and 2nd February 1981. The tape was made from 95.7 FM and although 104 FM is also mentioned, Radio City’s AM transmitter was off the air at the time. Thanks to Lilian O’Donoghue for the donation.

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Susan James spins the hits on CBC

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Susan James spins the hits on CBC
CBC DJs Joe Horgan, Barry Jones, Noel Evans, John Dolan, Gratton Woods, Luke Ward and Steve Taylor (courtesy Lillian O’Donoghue).

This is a recording of Susan James (O’Connor) on CBC on Friday 3rd August 1979 from 2009-2051. The station was on 1394 kHz at the time, announcing 230 metres. As well as spinning the latest hits and her favourite classics, Susan reads a live advert for Seán Jennings’ carpet shop and plugs Tom Duffy’s circus and other local events. It’s a lively, upbeat show from a woman DJ, a rarity in the pirate era. Unfortunately Susan isn’t in the group photo above, which was taken in August 1979.

Thanks to John Breslin for the donation.