Page 23 - Zone Magazine Issue 007

Pirate radio in Ireland has had a long history, with hundreds of radio stations having operated from within the country. Due to past lax enforcement of the rules, the lack of commercial radio until 1989, and the small physical size of the country, pirate radio has proliferated up to recent years. They were tolerated to a point by the government which only occasionally raided them in an effort to show compliance with Irish law, although the national broadcaster, RTÉ, took a harsher approach, including radio jamming.
Whilst the number of recorded pirate radio stations was in the hundreds, only a few have been notable enough to be remembered. This is because at different stages, pirate stations were the mainstay of radio listenership, particularly in Dublin.
Unlike other countries, Irish pirate stations were almost always on land, with publicly available phone numbers and addresses, advertising and known presenters. A recent government crackdown now means Ireland has one of the most hardline anti-pirate policies in Europe, and few major stations survive, with exceptions such as Power FM, so Zone went to find out more at an undisclosed location.....