From the afternoon of December 18th 1982, this is Radio West, the Mullingar-based pirate radio station with the Chris Jennings Show.
Don Allen
Radio Retro: archiving Irish Radio Recordings in collaboration with DX Archive
John Clarke on air on Radio Nova’s sister station Kiss FM, recorded off 102.7MHz from 2.50pm on January 12th 1984. Ken Hammond is on news duties.
This is a recording of Jim Liddane’s oldies programme on Big L Radio Limerick from January 13th 1984.
This Radio Retro recording is by kind courtesy of Michael Richardson
This is Steve Marshall on WKLR (West Cork Local Radio) from January 16th 1984. The recording starts just after 2pm.
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts since 2002
This is a recording of West Cork Local Radio with Keith York from January 18th 1984. It starts at 5.15pm.
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts since 2002
From January 19th 1984 this is Radio Nova with Colm Hayes from 10.20am. He’s followed by John Clarke from midday.
This recording was made in Scotland by Ken Baird so understandably suffers from interference. It is, however, of huge historical interest. See newspaper cuttings…
Colm Hayes
Note: around ten minutes is lost in the above recording from around the hour mark…
John Clarke
This recording is by very kind courtesy of Ken Baird / DX Archive
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts since 2002
This is Radio Nova from January 23rd 1984.
We join Declan Meehan’s Brekkie Trekkie with Bob Gallico from 7.30am.
The iconic duo are followed by Colm Hayes at 9am.
And then it’s John Clarke from midday.
7.30am Declan & Bob
9am Colm Hayes
Midday John Clarke
This recording was made in Leeds by Gary Hogg, some 250 miles from the transmission site. The local ILR station Radio Aire was on the next channel of 828kHz, hence the splattering across 819kHz. As this was January there was also foreign interference, hence the hum, especially during the breakfast show. Even so, the signal was listenable.
There had been rumours of another raid this week, as the station had brought its 50kW transmitter on line. RTÉ had also started a sustained jamming campaign against the station a few days earlier. As an aside they had also been jamming South Coast Radio and ERI broadcasts in Cork.
This recording is by very kind courtesy of Gary Hogg
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts since 2002
Radio Nova off 819kHz on January 25th 1984. Starting at 7.11am and running through to 1.15pm, this is a straight 6 hours recording featuring the iconic pairing of Declan Meehan & Bob Gallico, then Colm Hayes from 9am, followed by John Clarke from midday.
It is interesting to note that this recording was made in Leeds by Gary Hogg of DX Archive.
From 3am on February 6th 1984, this is Lawrence John on air for Radio Nova.
From February 1984 this is a recording of Peter Madison on air from 8am for West Cork Local Radio
Hugh O’Brien covering the afternoon shift for Radio Nova on March 10th 1984. This recording starts at 4.26pm.
A recording of Robbie Dale on his morning show on Dublin superpirate Sunshine Radio from April 9th 1984
A full morning’s recording from April 26th 1984 – an eventful day in the history of Sunshine Radio.
Following weeks of an RTÉ jamming campaign on the station’s FM frequencies, the day before this broadcast a jammer was turned on to the MW frequency. It didn’t last long as the semi-state broadcaster managed to jam their own stations as well.
However, this was a whole new day…which starts at 6.50am with David Lyons at the mic.
From 9am Robbie Dale oversees some dramatic developments.
With the situation now very desperate Andy Rua takes to the air at midday.
From May 7th 1984 this is programming from Dublin station Radio Nova recorded off 88.2MHz. The four recordings span much of the day from early morning through late evening.
First, from 7am, Bob Gallico is reading the news leading into his shared programme with Declan Meehan.
Following them Colm Hayes is on air from 9am.
Later in the day we catch the last hour and 10 minutes of Greg Gaughran’s afternoon programme.
Then from 7pm the ever-popular Jason Maine takes over for the evening broadcast.
These Radio Nova recordings are courtesy of DX Archive
These recordings were made at a time when RTÉ were engaged in a jamming campaign against the Dublin superpirates Radio Nova and Sunshine Radio. Nova’s studios had been relocated to the transmitter site at Nova Park in Rathfarnham because the microwave links from the previous studio location at Herbert Street were being targetted. To make things more difficult for RTÉ, Radio Nova were also broadcasting on 102.7MHz (in addition to 88.2MHz) and had two MW transmitters in action as well on 729kHz and 819kHz. Nova sister station Kiss FM had been broadcasting on 102.7MHz but it had been closed in January as a result of the jamming.
From July 9th 1984, this is Declan Meehan and Bob Gallico on the Dekki Wekki Brekki Trekki for Radio Nova.
The recording is off 738kHz and starts at 6.15am.
Following them, there’s about 20 minutes of Colm Hayes’ show from 9am.
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts in collaboration with Gary Hogg
This is Don Allen’s Breakfast Show on Mullingar-based pirate Radio West from July 1984. The recording was taken off 765kHz and starts at 7.30am. Don is pictured in the Radio West studio.
Phillip McGovern follows Don at 10am.
Don Allen
P McGovern
This Radio West broadcast has been added with kind courtesy of Ian Biggar
Photo is thanks to Jess Codd
Radio Retro: archiving Irish Radio Recordings since 2002
Tap on the name for more from Radio West; Don Allen; or Phillip McGovern
This recording is of Declan Meehan and Bob Gallico on the Deckie Wekkie Brekkie Trekkie for Radio Nova on July 11th 1984, starting at 7.10am.
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts in collaboration with Gary Hogg
This is a recording of Hugh Hardy’s Country Call programme on Radio Carousel in Dundalk, Co Louth from midday on July 12th 1984.
Radio Retro – archiving Irish Radio broadcasts since 2002
This recording is with thanks to Kieran Murray
From July 13th 1984, this is Declan Meehan’s last show for Dublin superpirate Radio Nova before departing for Capital Radio.
Recorded off 738kHz, we join the show at 8.10am. Bob Gallico reads the news and does his usual inserts. And there’s a short snippet of Colm Hayes, who follows at 9am.
Lawrence John on the early Saturday morning shift for Radio Nova. The date for this 6am recording is July 14th 1984.
The morning show from Dublin station Radio Nova with Colm Hayes and Bob Gallico on a day that Ireland shook – literally!
Bernadette Jameson:- I was amused to hear my voice in an ad break in that recording, advertising Paul Penders natural hair and skin care. Googled them, found they are still going, so I ordered stuff. Must be the longest reaction to a radio ad ever!
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts in collaboration with DX Archive
A short excerpt from a test transmission from July 29th 1984.
Announcer is unknown – if you know who it is please get in touch.
Dublin pirate Radio Annabel from July 29th 1984.
This recording features a closedown announcement from Bobby Howard
This recording from July 29th 1984 starts at 9.20pm with a short (edited) snippet of Dave Peters on air.
This recording from August 29th 1984 features a short clip of Mark Wesley on air from 4.28pm for one of the lesser-known Dublin pirate stations.
This is Mark Wesley on air on Radio Zodiac for his afternoon show on August 30th 1984 between 3pm and 6pm. The Dublin hobbyist station was based in Castleknock in north Dublin and was a MW only outfit.
For this recording of Mark’s show we have an ‘as broadcast’ version running for the final hour (with some minor edits)…
…and also an airchecked version of the full three hours.
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcats since 2002
This recording is by kind courtesy of Ciarán Brannelly
From a Sunday morning in September 1984 this is a recording of Chris Barry from 9.30am, followed by Greg Gaughran at 10am, on Radio Nova. Bernie Jameson reads the news.
First from 9.30am…Chris Barry followed by Bernie Jameson on the News at 10
Then Greg Gaughran frm 10.03am…
Alternatively you can listen to the whole recording in airchecked format
Friday September 28th 1984. The question posed to listeners of Radio Nova was: “What would you do with £5,000?”
To win, you had to be the 50th caller once the station had played three particular songs in a row. The promos had been running for weeks but this day was the last day it could possibly happen, and it had to happen before 7pm.
First in these recordings, from 11.30am, John Clarke gives some clues to when it would happen. There are large gaps in the recordings so his show is split into three parts.
Following John, there’s Greg Gaughran’s show from 2pm – split into twp parts due to a large gap in the recording.
There’s a choice of listening with the music stripped out or to hear the output exactly as broadcast (it becomes very important to realise it is exactly a broadcast).
First from 11.25am…this is John Clarke either as broadcast or airchecked
Staying with John Clarke from 12.45pm, again either as broadcast or airchecked
Finally John Clarke with the last 15 minutes of his show – as broadcast or airchecked
From 2pm this is Greg Gaughran as broadcast or airchecked
We rejoin Greg Gaughran from 4pm, again as broadcast or airchecked
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts in collaboration with Gary Hogg
This is a recording of Jim Liddane’s oldies programme on Big L Radio Limerick from October 7th 1984.
This Radio Retro recording is by kind courtesy of Michael Richardson
From October 28th 1984 this is a recording of Ger Sweeney on Raidió Luimní. It was taken from 96FM in Limerick and starts at 5pm.
Listen as broadcast
Listen airchecked
Ger had this to say on our social media channels:
Had a sneaky listen and @BenSweeneyF1 tells me I was 17 when that was recorded. Wow… Not too shabby for a young fella!! Thanks for posting. Will listen to the whole lot later.
Radio Retro: archiving Irish radio broadcasts since 2002
This Raidió Luimní archive is from the recordings of Dave Small
This (edited) recording features the Free Radio Campaign programme with Ger Roe starting at 5pm on November 11th 1984.
From December 1984, this is Jim Liddane’s American Oldies programme on Big L Radio Limerick.
This Radio Retro recording is by kind courtesy of Michael Richardson
This is a short recording of Cavan pirate station Breffni Radio from December 23rd 1984. It has a few edits but is worth a listen.
Christmas Day 1984 on Radio Nova. First, we have Denis Murray from 10.45am and he’s followed by Tony Allan (right), along with an assortment of guests, from 2pm.
10:45 Denis Murray
14:00 Tony Allan
Cavan Community Radio welcomes in 1985 in this recording that starts just before midnight.
From April 29th 1984 this is a short recording of Kieran Phillips on the Dublin-based SW pirate Radio Mi Amigo from 11.35am.
In it Kieran reports to their international listeners about RTÉ’s jamming campaign against Sunshine Radio in the previous midweek.
This Radio Mi Amigo International recording is with thanks to Ger Roe