Radio Caroline
Encyclopedia
Radio Caroline is an English radio station founded in 1964 by Ronan O'Rahilly
to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music
broadcasting in the United Kingdom
and the BBC
's radio broadcasting monopoly. Unlicensed by any government for the majority of its early life, it was considered a pirate radio
station.
Radio Caroline began test broadcasts during the evening of Good Friday, 27 March 1964, and commenced regular programming at noon the following day, on 28 March - Easter Saturday. It broadcast from a former Danish ferry, the , re-named MV Caroline and anchored three miles (5 km) off the coast of Felixstowe
, Suffolk
, England
, just outside British territorial waters. In April 1964, Radio Atlanta
began broadcasting from the MV Mi Amigo
, a former coaster
anchored off Harwich
, Essex
.
Both stations operated independently for several months but underwent a merger of the companies' sales operations. The Caroline moved to an anchorage off Ramsey
, Isle of Man
and broadcast as Radio Caroline North while the MV Mi Amigo remained off the coast of Essex broadcasting as Radio Caroline South. The British government considered both operations as pirate radio
stations.
Both ships remained under independent ownership until December 1965 when the owners of Radio Caroline North bought Radio Caroline South. In 1966 the British Postmaster General, Anthony Wedgwood Benn
, introduced a Bill to Parliament that outlawed unlicensed offshore broadcasting. This Bill became the Marine Offences Act and was enacted on 14 August 1967. The two Radio Caroline ships continued to broadcast with operations controlled from the Netherlands. In March 1968, both ships were towed to the Netherlands, because of unpaid bills, by the Wijsmuller tug company.
On Saturday 13 June 1970, Radio Northsea International (RNI) broadcasting from the MV Mebo II from an anchorage off the Essex coast rebranded itself as Radio Caroline International, with permission from Ronan O'Rahilly. This was during the last few days of the British general election campaign. Many of RNI's early DJs were ex-Caroline North or South. Caroline jingles were played, as well as political messages designed to encourage listeners to vote Conservative. Medium Wave transmissions of RNI from the Mebo II while off the British coast were subject to jamming
by the British Labour government, and the jamming continued while the station operated as Radio Caroline, including after the General Election, which the Conservatives won. As a result, the station reverted to its original name of RNI one week later on Saturday 20 June, and moved back across the North Sea to an anchorage off of Scheveningen on the Dutch coast. The jamming then finally ceased.
The Mi Amigo was auctioned in 1972 and bought for the price of 20,000 Dutch Guilders, while the Fredericia was scrapped. Mi Amigo was bought by a pirate radio enthusiast with the intention of turning it into an offshore radio museum, before being reacquired by Radio Caroline and anchored off the Netherlands coast close to the RNI and Radio Veronica
ships.. Radio Caroline began intermittently broadcasting, re-launched in 1973 as Radio Seagull, and resumed full-time broadcasting in February 1974. Dutch legislation, enacted in September 1974, closed most of the pirates and Caroline became an LP-based rock station. It moved to the English coast and regained a sizable audience in the UK and Europe. During this period most of the station's advertising revenue came from the sale of airtime to Dutch-language stations which time-shared its airtime. After several years of neglect and damage from grounding incidents, the Mi Amigo sank during severe storm in March 1980.
In 1981, Radio Caroline acquired and began converting the former Icelandic trawler into a radio ship, using it for broadcasts from August 1983. Once again, a partnership with a Dutch-language station proved fruitful. On 19 August 1989, the ship was raided and silenced by British and Netherlands authorities. Broadcasts resumed on 1 October of that year and continued on low/moderate power until fuel for the generator ran out on 6 November 1990. Although no longer broadcasting, the ship remained at sea with a skeleton crew until it finally ran aground on the Goodwin Sands in storms in November 1991. The ship was salvaged and continues to be used for special broadcasts.
Radio Caroline currently broadcasts 24 hours a day via the Eurobird 1
satellite at 28.5°E, via the Internet and by occasional Restricted Service Licence
. Radio Caroline broadcasts music from the 1960s to contemporary, with an emphasis on album-oriented rock
(AOR). The company also licenses other stations around the world to use the Radio Caroline name.
Radio Caroline was begun by Irish musician manager and businessman Ronan O'Rahilly
. O'Rahilly failed to obtain airplay on Radio Luxembourg
for Georgie Fame
's records because its airtime was committed to sponsored programmes promoting the major record labels; EMI
, Decca
, Pye
and Philips
.
Encouraged by the presence of the Scandinavian and Dutch pirates, Ronan O'Rahilly raised the capital to purchase a suitable vessel. In February 1964, O'Rahilly obtained the 702 ton former Danish passenger ferry, Fredericia, which was converted into a radio ship at the Irish port of Greenore
, owned by O'Rahilly's father. At the same time, Allan Crawford's Project Atlanta organisation was equipping the MV Mi Amigo at Greenore, where the two competed to be first on air.
Financial backing for the venture came from six investors, including Jocelyn Stevens
of Queen magazine
, with which Radio Caroline shared its first office. O'Rahilly named the station after Caroline Kennedy
, daughter of U.S. President John F. Kennedy
. On a fund-raising trip to the US, O'Rahilly saw Life
s photograph of Kennedy and his children in the Oval Office
. Caroline Kennedy was playing and disrupting the business of government, the image he wanted for his station. O'Rahilly's claims were re-examined; the photos of the three together exist and one of John Jr under the desk exists.
. The first programme, which was pre-recorded, was hosted by Chris Moore. Radio Caroline's first musical theme was Jimmy McGriff
's "Round Midnight", a jazz standard
composed by Thelonious Monk
. In March 1964, Birmingham
band The Fortunes
recorded the song Caroline, which later became the station's theme song. Round Midnight was confined to close down on Radio Caroline North after The World Tomorrow
programme. The station's slogan was Your all-day music station, and it initially broadcast from 6am-6pm, seven days a week.
Radio Caroline announced a wavelength of 199 metres,rhyming with the station's name, but was actually on 197.3 metres (1520 kHz).It has to be remembered that the tuning of radios of the day was purely by sight and sound - i.e. no exact digital readout. This allowed a leeway between the frequency used and the channel announced on air. Stations in the UK, at this time, announced the wavelength in metres, not the frequency in kilohertz. The station preferred using a "9" as the last digit, in order to rhyme with its name. The Dutch
offshore station Radio Veronica
was on 192 metres (1562 kHz). Radio Atlanta
broadcast on 201 metres (1495 kHz).
Radio Caroline's power was almost 20 kW
, achieved by linking two 10 kW Continental Electronics
transmitters together. Its broadcasting hours were between 6 am to 6 pm to avoid competition from Radio Luxembourg
. Later, after its 6 pm close-down, the station returned to the air after 8 pm and continued until after midnight. This was to avoid direct competition with popular television programmes. Most of Radio Caroline's pop music
programmes were aimed at housewives. Later in the day, children were targeted. Without serious competition, Radio Caroline quickly gained a daytime audience of several million listeners.
while the MV Caroline would broadcast as Radio Caroline North. MV Caroline sailed from Felixstowe around the coast of Great Britain to the Isle of Man, broadcasting as it went. The only deejays on board were Tom Lodge
and Jerry Leighton. MV Caroline arrived at its new anchorage on 13 July. The two stations were thus able to cover most of the British Isles. Later, some programmes were pre-recorded on land and broadcast simultaneously from both ships.
In October 1965, O'Rahilly bought Crawford's interest in the MV Mi Amigo and brought Tom Lodge
from Radio Caroline North to make programming changes and regain audience from Radio London
. Lodge hired a new group of deejays and introduced a free-form style of programming, which by August 1966 had succeeded, creating a total audience of 23 million people.
When Radio London
arrived off the coast of England, there was an unsuccessful attempt to merge the sales operation of this station with the Caroline organization before Radio London commenced transmissions.
. Presenters Tony Blackburn
, Tom Lodge
, Roger Day
, Simon Dee
, Tony Prince
, Spangles Muldoon
, Keith Skues
, Johnnie Walker
, Robbie Dale
, Dave Lee Travis
and Andy Archer became well-known. Some DJs from the USA
and Commonwealth
countries, such as Graham Webb, Tom Lodge
, Emperor Rosko
, Steve Young, Keith Hampshire
, Colin Nicol and Norman St John, were also heard. DJ Jack Spector, of the WMCA
"Good Guys" in New York, regularly recorded a programme for Radio Caroline. Syndicated shows from the US and prerecorded religious programmes were also broadcast. BBC Radio 2
newsreader Colin Berry
and Classic FM
's Nick Bailey started their careers reading the news on Radio Caroline South.
In mid September 1965, the crew and DJs on MV Mi Amigo were joined for the weekend by 1960s pop singer Sylvan Whittingham, who visited the ship to promote her single "We Don't Belong". Wittingham was unable to leave on the tender when a storm arose. She was the only singer to stay overnight and helped present programmes, make jingles and close the station down at night.
Mi Amigo runs aground On 20 January 1966, the MV Mi Amigo lost its anchor in a storm, drifted ran aground on the beach at Frinton-on-Sea. The crew and broadcasting staff were rescued unharmed, but the ship's hull was damaged and repairs were carried out at Zaandam
, Netherlands. Between 31 January and 1 May, Radio Caroline South broadcast from the vessel Cheeta II, owned by Britt Wadner of Swedish offshore station Radio Syd
, which was off the air because of pack ice in the Baltic Sea
. The Cheeta II was equipped for FM broadcasting, so it was fitted with the 10 kW transmitter from the Mi Amigo, feeding a makeshift antenna. The resulting signal was low-powered, but ensured that Caroline South's advertising revenue would continue.
The Mi Amigo returned to its Frinton-on-Sea anchorage with a redesigned antenna and a new 50 kW transmitter and attempted to resume broadcasting on 18 April, nominally on 259 metres to enable the same jingles as Radio Caroline North on 1169 kHz to be used, but actually 252 metres. The transmitter was initially too powerful for the antenna insulators. On 27 April, the Mi Amigo was fully operational.
Radio Caroline South's 259 metres signal was now near those of Radio London
on 266m (1133 kHz) and the BBC's Light Programme
on 247m (1214 kHz). Radio Caroline North subsequently moved to 257m (1169 kHz) but also called it 259.
began negotiations for Radio Caroline to take over Radio City, which broadcast from Shivering Sands Army Fort
, a Second World War marine fort off the Kent
coast. One of Radio Caroline's directors, Major Oliver Smedley
, formerly of Radio Atlanta, entered a partnership with Radio City's owner, Reginald Calvert
and installed a more powerful transmitter on the fort. However, according to Gerry Bishop's book Offshore Radio this transmitter was antiquated and failed to work. Smedley later withdrew from the deal.
On 20 June 1966, Smedley boarded the Shivering Sands fort with ten workmen to repossess a transmitter that Smedley had supplied, but had not been paid for. The next day, Calvert visited Smedley's home in Saffron Walden, Essex, to demand the departure of the raiders and the return of vital transmitter parts. During a violent struggle, Calvert was shot dead. Smedley's men occupied the fort until 22 June.
Smedley was charged with Calvert's murder on 18 July, but this was reduced to one of manslaughter. Smedley's trial opened on 11 October at Chemlsford Assizes, where the jury acquitted him.
, attempted to exclude the North Ship from the legislation, appealing to the European Court on the legality of the act being applied to the Isle of Man
. All the UK based offshore stations, with the exception of both Caroline ships, closed. The station moved its supply operation to the Netherlands
, which had not yet outlawed unlicensed offshore broadcasting.
When Marine Broadcasting Offences Act become law on 14 August 1967, Radio Caroline was renamed Radio Caroline International. Six weeks later, the BBC
introduced its new national pop station Radio 1
, modelled largely on the successful offshore station, Radio London
, and employed many of the ex-pirate DJs. The BBC Light
, Third
, and Home
programmes became Radios 2
, 3
and 4
respectively.
Several justifications have been posited for the passage of the act, including:
On 3 March 1968, the radio ships, Mi Amigo and Caroline, were boarded and seized before the day's broadcasting began. They were towed to Amsterdam by a salvage company to secure unpaid bills for servicing by the Dutch tender company, Wijsmuller Co.
camapaign, broadcasting as Radio North Sea International
(RNI). RNI operated on mediumwave, shortwave and FM; its mediumwave transmission was jammed
by the UK Labour government and on 13 June, RNI changed its name to Radio Caroline International with co-operation from Ronan O'Rahilly. Radio Caroline lobbied against the Labour Party
, for the Conservative Party
and for the introduction of licensed commercial radio in the United Kingdom. Following the election, RNI resumed its original name but jamming continued under the newly elected Conservative government. It was not until RNI returned to its original anchorage off the Netherlands that the jamming ceased.
aircraft using Stratovision
technology. One aeroplane would circle over the North Sea
in international air space near the coastline of the United Kingdom
, while the other would remain on standby to take over duties. Presentations were made to US advertising agencies. These stories continued for some time and included details of co-operation by a former member of the Beatles
and a sign-on date given as 1 July; however, the station failed to appear.
It was later proven to be nothing more than a publicity stunt.
In 1972, MV Mi Amigo was bought for scrap at auction by enthusiast Gerald van Dam, who intended to use it as a free radio museum. O'Rahilly promised financial backing if van Dam could return the ship to broadcasting condition. The ship was anchored off the Dutch coastal resort of Scheveningen and serviced and operated from the Netherlands. The ship had restarted broadcasting as Radio 199, but soon became Radio Caroline with a Top 40 format. DJs Chris Carey, broadcasting as Spangles Muldoon
(who was also station manager), Roger 'Twiggy' Day
, Andy Archer, Paul Alexander
, Steve England
, Johnny Jason and Peter Chicago (real name Peter Murtha) manned the station.
In late 1972, Radio Caroline experienced financial difficulties. On 28 December, unpaid crew cut the Mi Amigos generator fuel line and departed. Later that day, the Dutch Royal Navy returned the crew and fighting broke out onboard. Two days later, Mi Amigo was towed to IJmuiden; the seizure is due to unpaid bills. Because of the Christmas holidays, no solicitors were available to issue a writ and the ship lay in Amsterdam Harbour until O'Rahilly arranged for it to be towed back to sea. The ship was further delayed when hull damage was found and quickly repaired before writs could be issued.
Between 11 and 20 April 1973, the ship broadcast programmes for Radio Veronica while the latter's ship, the Nordeney, was run aground in a storm. During summer 1973, it broadcast two separate stations in English and Dutch simultaneously, on 773 and 1187 kHz. Two aerials and twin transmitters were used for about six weeks until the aerial mast failed. To accommodate the second aerial, a second short mast, positioned just in front of the bridge, was employed as the other end for the main mast.
" stations in the USA, as this potentially very large radio audience was not catered for in Europe. This service was initially broadcast using the name Radio Seagull and was broadcast live from the ship's studio during the evening.
Since Radio Caroline could not find adequate advertising revenue it shared its nominal 259 metre wavelength, actually 1187 kHz or 253 metres, with Dutch language pop stations. The first of these was a Belgian station called Radio Atlantis
, owned by Belgian businessman Adriaan van Landschoot. Programmes were pre-recorded on land and broadcast between 6 am and 7 pm. Rough weather sometimes prevented new tapes from arriving on Mi Amigo and old pregrammes had to be repeated. When its contract with Radio Caroline ended, the crew of Radio Atlantis moved to their own ship, the .
Radio Seagull became Radio Caroline on 23 February 1974, retaining the album format. Throughout most of the 1970s, Radio Caroline could be heard only at night, calling itself "Europe's first and only album station".
magnate Sylvain Tack. The station's offices and studios were based on Spain
's Playa De Aro Costa Brava
resort, where it produced programmes for Dutch-speaking holidaymakers. Most of Radio Mi Amigo's output was pre-recorded and consisted of Europop
, Top 40, MOR and Dutch language
popular music presented by Belgian, Dutch and occasionally English DJs with frequent commercials. Because commercial radio was prohibited in Belgium at that time, Radio Mi Amigo had little competition and became popular in Belgium, the Netherlands and the UK. For the first few years, advertising space on the station was in high demand. When Radio Veronica
closed in 1974, some of its presenters moved to Radio Mi Amigo.
developed a cult following, combining his promotion of "Loving Awareness" with a professional style, humanity, deep knowledge of music and rich radio voice.
In 1974, O'Rahilly set up a pop group called The Loving Awareness Band, comprising John Turnbull (guitar) and Mick Gallagher (keyboards) both formerly of Skip Bifferty
and two session musicians, Norman Watt-Roy
(bass) and Charlie Charles (drums). In 1976, The Loving Awareness Band released their only album, Loving Awareness on More Love Records (ML001), a label set up by O'Rahilly. The album was later reissued on CD more than once, although the CD releases have been sourced from a mint vinyl pressing rather than the original master tapes.
The band broke up in 1977, Watt-Roy and Charles played on Ian Dury
's New Boots and Panties!! album, and Turnbull and Gallagher joined them on the Stiff
's tour, becoming The Blockheads.
. Mi Amigo was moved from the Dutch coast to the Knock Deep Channel, approximately 30 km from the British coast. After 31 August, pre-recorded shows for Radio Mi Amigo were delivered on cassettes
rather than reels of tape.
During an incident on 1 September, when a small motor launch experienced difficulties in rough seas, Radio Caroline broadcast appeals for help, giving the ship's position as 51°41′N 1°35′E. A coastguard vessel was sent to escort the launch back to shore, but the authorities were unhappy that Caroline listeners had jammed the emergency switchboards.
It was claimed that Radios Caroline and Mi Amigo were tendered from Spain. In practice, the Mi Amigo was tendered clandestinely from ports in Britain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Tenders and small boat owners were warned, and some prosecuted, for ferrying staff and provisions to the ship. Belgium had outlawed offshore radio in 1962 and its authorities prosecuted advertisers, cutting the station's revenue. Belgian courts sentenced Tack and some DJs to fines and jail terms in absentia — although the prison terms were later cancelled.
In December 1976, Radio Mi Amigo moved to 1562 kHz on the 50 kW transmitter, leaving Caroline on 1187 kHz 24 hours a day on the 10 kW. Radio Caroline's signal experienced greater night-time interference, and it was decided to move Caroline to a new frequency. On 3 March 1977, Caroline closed down, announcing that it would return six days later on 319 metres. To allow Radio Mi Amigo to continue broadcasting by day, the engineering work necessary for Caroline's move had to be carried out over 6 nights, after the 50 kW transmitter was switched off.
Caroline returned on 9 March on 953 kHz, actually 315 metres but announced as 319. This frequency produced very strong heterodyne
interference because the transmitter crystal was off-channel, and Caroline moved to the adjacent channel, 962 kHz (312 metres but still called 319) and Caroline's reception in the UK improved. Meanwhile Radio Mi Amigo experienced interference on 1562 kHz and announced another frequency change on 23 July 1977 from 1562 kHz, changing to 1412 kHz (212 m) two days later.
Finally, Radio Mi Amigo moved to 962 kHz on 1 December. Due to generator trouble, the two services could no longer be broadcast simultaneously, and Radio Caroline again broadcast at night with both stations using the 50 kW transmitter and Radio Caroline began to receive an increase in mail from Europe. At times, a 10 kW transmitter was used to save fuel and relieve stress on the generators. The 10 kW transmitters could be run on the Henschel generator beside the two main MAN units and also a Cummings on the aft deck behind the wheelhouse.
In late 1977, Radio Caroline began broadcasting sponsored evangelical programmes, and music programmes began at 9 p.m. On 20 October 1978, technical and financial problems put the Mi Amigo off the air. Unhappy at the loss of advertising revenue, Radio Mi Amigo terminated its contract with Caroline in November 1978 and broadcast from its own ship, the MV Magdalena, later that year, but this was short-lived. Broadcasting was in Dutch and English by day and in English at night, although for the first few months broadcasting finished at 10pm each evening. On 19 January 1979, the aging ship took in water and the lifeboat was called to evacuate the remaining crew members. Radio Caroline returned to the air on 15 April 1979. The first record played was Fool (If You Think It's Over), by Chris Rea
, dedicated to the British Home Office.
were rescued. The last broadcast from the Mi Amigo was by Stevie Gordon and Tom Anderson, as follows:
The crew of the Sheerness
lifeboat Helen Turnbull were commended for their part in the rescue of broadcasters Tom Anderson, Stevie Gordon, Nick Richards and Hans Verlaan from Mi Amigo while it was sinking in the Black Deep near Long Sand Bank. Having to manoeuvre the lifeboat alongside the stricken vessel thirteen times in high seas and a north easterly gale to carry out the rescue earned Coxswain Charles Bowry an RNLI silver medal. Each of his crew were awarded The Thanks of the Institution on vellum.
The Mi Amigos 160 feet (48.8 m) mast remained erect for a further six years.
factory fishing trawler used during the Anglo
-Iceland
ic Cod War
by Ross Fisheries. The ship had an antenna system radiating from a 300 feet (91.4 m) high mast, the tallest on any ship in the world. The ship left port in Spain, with an incomplete studio, to avoid legal entanglements. Radio Caroline began broadcasting from the ship on 19 August 1983, when unwanted mechanical sounds were heard on speech. The station was opened by DJ Tom Anderson, who had said "goodbye" from the sinking Mi Amigo in 1980.
The Ross Revenge is considerably larger than Mi Amigo and was fitted with more elaborate transmitting equipment. In 1983, two 5 kW RCA transmitters and a RCA 50 kW unit were on board. One 5 kW transmitter was initially regarded as not serviceable. When Radio Monique hired the main transmitter, spare parts were taken from a fourth transmitter to convert the 5 kW into a 10 kW unit, the RCA 5 and 10 kW transmitters having similar designs. The remaining 5 kW transmitter was later converted for short wave use.
Ronan O'Rahilly had wanted Radio Caroline to become an oldies
station. This was opposed by some DJs and crew who had worked on the Mi Amigo and the album format was retained along with presenters such as Andy Archer, Samantha Dubois
and Simon Barrett.
Officially, Radio Caroline was managed from offices in North America, with advertising sourced from the US and Canada. In practice, day-to-day servicing was carried out clandestinely from France and the UK. From the ship's anchorage in the Knock Deep the Mi Amigos mast could be seen on the horizon.
Four studios were on board, enabling the ship to transmit a number of other services. Radio Caroline tried out several frequencies, among them 963, 576, 585 (briefly), 558 (after Laser 558
closed) and later 819 kHz. European medium wave channels had been reallocated to exact multiples of nine. In the evenings on 963, some alternative music programmes were tried, including the reggae
-oriented "Jamming 963", and in 1986 and early 1987, a progressive and indie rock programme called Caroline Overdrive
was broadcast.
On 9 August 1985, an official vessel anchored 150 yards from the Ross Revenge. The UK [Department of Trade and Industry] (DTI) put a permanent watch on all movements of ships around the Ross Revenge and the MV Communicator, Laser 558
s ship. On 3 September 1985 at 24:00 hours the Dioptric Surveyor departed owing to a force nine storm.
countries.
In the evenings, Radio Caroline transmitted Dutch and American religious evangelist
broadcasters such as Johan Maasbach and Roy Masters on medium wave, and later on short wave, under the name Viewpoint 963/819, or World Mission Radio (WMR) on short wave.
In November 1985, the competitor offshore station, Laser 558, closed because of electrical problems and Caroline moved from 576 kHz to Laser's 558 kHz frequency, with a Top 40 music format similar to Laser's under the name Caroline 558. When Laser returned as Laser Hot Hits, it used Caroline's former and somewhat inferior frequency of 576.
hit southern England, causing loss of life and severe damage to buildings and trees. Unable to take shelter in territorial waters, the MV Ross Revenge weathered the storm in the North Sea.
The following day, Caroline was one of the few stations in the South East still broadcasting. However, the storm had severely weakened the mast, which collapsed in another storm some weeks later. Caroline quickly returned to the air using a makeshift aerial which gave a less powerful signal. This was eventually replaced by a twin-mast T-antenna. For several months only one transmitter could be used, leading to the loss of the crucial income-generating Radio Monique, although a substitute Dutch daytime service, Radio 558 (later Radio 819), was eventually established.
, spoke in defence of Radio Caroline in the House of Lords at Report Stage on the Broadcasting Act 1990
, saying "Why break a butterfly upon the wheel?" In an article written for the pressure group Charter 88, Steve McGann added:
During mid-August 1989, authorities in several European countries carried out co-ordinated raids on houses, recording studios and offices believed to be used by the Caroline organisation. On 18 August, a British government chartered ship pulled up alongside the Ross Revenge and requested permission to board in order to "discuss the future" of the Ross Revenge and the stations operating from it. This request, and one to cease transmissions on 819 kHz, were refused. A request to cease broadcasting on the short wave frequency 6215 kHz was complied with, and after several hours the British government chartered ship returned to port.
The following day James Murphy, an investigator for the UK Office of Official Solicitor
acting on behalf of the UK Department of Trade and Industry joined colleagues and counterparts from the Netherlands Radio Regulatory Authority to carry out an armed raid on the Ross Revenge in which vital equipment was damaged or confiscated.
It was claimed that Caroline's use of a marine supplementary distress and calling frequency 6215 kHz for the transmission of paid-for religious programmes, called World Mission Radio, was causing interference to maritime communications. Caroline had been warned about this by officials and offshore-radio fans.
Part of the raid was broadcast live before officials disabled the transmitters. Dutch nationals aboard were arrested and returned to the Netherlands, together with most of the broadcasting equipment. Non-Dutch staff were not arrested but were given the option of staying on the ship or returning to the Netherlands - most chose to stay on board.
The legality of the raid is under question; Caroline claimed that the boarding of the ship and removal or destruction of equipment was an act of piracy
on the high seas under international maritime law. The Dutch claimed that as the ship's Panamanian registration had lapsed in 1987, it was not under legal protection from any country and that its transmissions were a breach of international radio regulations which since 1982 have prohibited broadcasting from outside national territories. Several years after the raid some of the seized items were returned to the station.
were donated and programming returned to normal.
In June 1990, Spectrum Radio
, a new multi-ethnic community radio
station for London, was allocated 558 kHz. Caroline's signal caused more interference to Spectrum's than vice versa. Caroline broadcast regular apologies to Spectrum and its listeners but refused to vacate the channel. Spectrum threatened to sue the Radio Authority, which then allowed Spectrum to temporarily broadcast on 990 kHz alongside 558 kHz. Eventually, Caroline left 558 kHz and moved to 819. On 5 November 1990, a lack of fuel and supplies forced the station to cease broadcasting. The final song played was Pilot of the Airwaves by Charlie Dore
. Although most of the broadcasting staff had left, some volunteers remained on board for a year as caretakers whilst fresh funding and equipment were sought.
In November 1991, the ship lost its anchor in stormy weather and drifted onto the Goodwin Sands
in the English Channel. The crew were rescued by RAF
helicopter. The Ross Revenge was later salvaged and brought into harbour in Dover, ending 27 years of Radio Caroline's unlicensed, offshore radio broadcasting career.
, where a volunteer crew repair and maintain it. The ship has working radio studios, from which both Caroline and BBC Essex
have occasionally broadcast.
Former offshore broadcasters who continue to broadcast on the station are: Roger Mathews, Nigel Harris
, Martin Fisher, Marc Jacobs, Johnny Lewis, Doug Wood, Dave Foster, Cliff Osbourne, Bob Lawrence, Jeremy Chartham and Ad Roberts. Evangelical programmes and sponsored specialist music shows are broadcast. During Easter 2008, the station broadcast live for three days from the Ross Revenge, featuring ten presenters who had worked on the Mi Amigo in the late 1970s: Roger Mathews, Mike Stevens, Bob Lawrence, Brian Martin, Martin Fisher, Cliff Osbourne, Jeremy Chartham, Marc Jacobs, Ad Roberts, Dick Verheul and Kees Borrell.
(RSL) broadcasts took place from the Ross Revenge during the 1990s, with the ship anchored off Clacton, in London's Canary Wharf
, Southend Pier
and off the Isle of Sheppey
in Kent
.
One RSL broadcast ran from 7 August until 3 September 2004, with the ship moored at the cruise liner terminal jetty at Tilbury in Essex
. They even commemorated the 40th anniversary of Radio Caroline and promoted the station's legal internet and satellite programmes. The medium wave frequency was 235 metres (1278 kHz) and the programmes were sent through ISDN landline to their Maidstone studio and streamed via the internet and broadcast on satellite. The supermarket chain Asda
and English Heritage
were amongst the backers for this event.
The station has subsequently broadcast on 531 kHz AM from the Ross Revenge during some bank holiday
weekends, beginning on 28–31 August 2009 and 28–30 August 2010, which coincided within a few days with the 50th anniversary of the ship's first voyage.
in the late 1990s, the station began broadcasting via satellites Astra 19.2°E
and Eurobird 1
, covering Western Europe
. These analogue transmissions ceased and a full digital service from Astra 28.2°E
started in February 2003.
In 2002, Caroline began broadcasting on the WorldSpace satellite radio system, continuing until the Worldspace operation went bankrupt and re-organised its operations.
On 12 June 2006, the station purchased an EPG
slot on Sky channel 0199. No subscription or viewing card was required. This service was removed on 1 July 2011 after failing to renegotiate costs with Sky and deciding not pursue a Freesat
EPG slot. Surveys performed in 2008 and 2010 into the audience's listening habits showed that a small percentage listened via Sky, and that satellite listening had dropped by 9% since the 2008 results, while on-line listening had increased by around 40%. Radio Caroline still broadcasts on satellite but requires manual tuning.
The station has also been streamed on the Internet for some years, and in 2011 joined the Radioplayer UK project, an internet service formed by the BBC, Global Radio and the Guardian Media Group that supplies a listen live feed of UK radio stations across the world.
presented an Early Day Motion
to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom calling for OFCOM
to allow Radio Caroline to broadcast as a licensed medium wave station to its "traditional heartland of the south east".
The full text of the EDM is as follows:
, broadcasting on the northern Netherlands cable networks and largely independent of UK Caroline. Brouwer intended to obtain an AM frequency from the Netherlands authorities in 2003 when its medium wave frequencies were reallocated. However, Dutch Caroline failed to secure a high power AM frequency and the cable network service was discontinued because of lack of funds. The Dutch Radio Caroline then changed its name to "Radio Seagull" and now broadcasts on 1602 kHz every evening and the internet, presenting a progressive rock format. From November 2009, Radio Seagull can be heard periodically on 558 kHz in London.
and Tom Anderson are among the presenters.
cable
service in Dublin, Galway
and Waterford
.
to broadcast as part of the national DAB system in Italy
where it can be heard in Rome
, Milan
, Turin
, Bologna
, Florence
and Naples
. Its programming is a mix of Caroline's UK-produced material and locally produced material.
, a NZBC station, originally 3XC, later 3ZC, broadcast as Radio Caroline until 1995. The name was taken from "Caroline Bay", a popular recreation area nearby.
In Palmerston
, an organisation using the Caroline name, based in Tenerife, Spain, acquired a stake in Radio Puketapu in 2008, and was seeking wavelengths in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.
Ronan O'Rahilly
Ronan O'Rahilly is an Irish businessman best known for the creation of the offshore radio station, Radio Caroline.O'Rahilly's parents owned the private port of Greenore in Carlingford Lough, County Louth...
to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
broadcasting in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's radio broadcasting monopoly. Unlicensed by any government for the majority of its early life, it was considered a pirate radio
Pirate radio
Pirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. The term is most commonly used to describe illegal broadcasting for entertainment or political purposes, but is also sometimes used for illegal two-way radio operation...
station.
Radio Caroline began test broadcasts during the evening of Good Friday, 27 March 1964, and commenced regular programming at noon the following day, on 28 March - Easter Saturday. It broadcast from a former Danish ferry, the , re-named MV Caroline and anchored three miles (5 km) off the coast of Felixstowe
Felixstowe
Felixstowe is a seaside town on the North Sea coast of Suffolk, England. The town gives its name to the nearby Port of Felixstowe, which is the largest container port in the United Kingdom and is owned by Hutchinson Ports UK...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, just outside British territorial waters. In April 1964, Radio Atlanta
Radio Atlanta
Radio Atlanta named after Atlanta, Texas, was an offshore commercial station that operated briefly from 12 May 1964 to 2 July 1964 from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
began broadcasting from the MV Mi Amigo
MV Mi Amigo
The Mi Amigo was originally a three masted cargo schooner, that later gained international recognition as an offshore radio station.She was built as the schooner Margarethe for German owners. A sale in 1927 saw her renamed Olga and she was lengthened in 1936...
, a former coaster
Coastal trading vessel
Coastal trading vessels, also known as coasters, are shallow-hulled ships used for trade between locations on the same island or continent. Their shallow hulls mean that they can get through reefs where deeper-hulled sea-going ships usually cannot....
anchored off Harwich
Harwich
Harwich is a town in Essex, England and one of the Haven ports, located on the coast with the North Sea to the east. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the northeast, Ipswich to the northwest, Colchester to the southwest and Clacton-on-Sea to the south...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
.
Both stations operated independently for several months but underwent a merger of the companies' sales operations. The Caroline moved to an anchorage off Ramsey
Ramsey, Isle of Man
Ramsey is a town in the north of the Isle of Man. It is the second largest town on the island after Douglas. Its population is 7,309 according to the 2006 census . It has one of the biggest harbours on the island, and has a prominent derelict pier, called the Queen's Pier. It was formerly one of...
, Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
and broadcast as Radio Caroline North while the MV Mi Amigo remained off the coast of Essex broadcasting as Radio Caroline South. The British government considered both operations as pirate radio
UK pirate radio
UK pirate radio was popular in the 1960s and experienced another surge of interest in the 1980s. There are currently an estimated 150 pirate radio stations in the UK...
stations.
Both ships remained under independent ownership until December 1965 when the owners of Radio Caroline North bought Radio Caroline South. In 1966 the British Postmaster General, Anthony Wedgwood Benn
Tony Benn
Anthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC is a British Labour Party politician and a former MP and Cabinet Minister.His successful campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963...
, introduced a Bill to Parliament that outlawed unlicensed offshore broadcasting. This Bill became the Marine Offences Act and was enacted on 14 August 1967. The two Radio Caroline ships continued to broadcast with operations controlled from the Netherlands. In March 1968, both ships were towed to the Netherlands, because of unpaid bills, by the Wijsmuller tug company.
On Saturday 13 June 1970, Radio Northsea International (RNI) broadcasting from the MV Mebo II from an anchorage off the Essex coast rebranded itself as Radio Caroline International, with permission from Ronan O'Rahilly. This was during the last few days of the British general election campaign. Many of RNI's early DJs were ex-Caroline North or South. Caroline jingles were played, as well as political messages designed to encourage listeners to vote Conservative. Medium Wave transmissions of RNI from the Mebo II while off the British coast were subject to jamming
Radio jamming
Radio jamming is the transmission of radio signals that disrupt communications by decreasing the signal to noise ratio. Unintentional jamming occurs when an operator transmits on a busy frequency without first checking whether it is in use, or without being able to hear stations using the frequency...
by the British Labour government, and the jamming continued while the station operated as Radio Caroline, including after the General Election, which the Conservatives won. As a result, the station reverted to its original name of RNI one week later on Saturday 20 June, and moved back across the North Sea to an anchorage off of Scheveningen on the Dutch coast. The jamming then finally ceased.
The Mi Amigo was auctioned in 1972 and bought for the price of 20,000 Dutch Guilders, while the Fredericia was scrapped. Mi Amigo was bought by a pirate radio enthusiast with the intention of turning it into an offshore radio museum, before being reacquired by Radio Caroline and anchored off the Netherlands coast close to the RNI and Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica was an offshore radio station that began broadcasting in 1960, and broadcast from offshore for over fourteen years. It was set up by independent radio, TV and household electrical retailers in the Netherlands to stimulate the sales of radio receivers by providing an alternative to...
ships.. Radio Caroline began intermittently broadcasting, re-launched in 1973 as Radio Seagull, and resumed full-time broadcasting in February 1974. Dutch legislation, enacted in September 1974, closed most of the pirates and Caroline became an LP-based rock station. It moved to the English coast and regained a sizable audience in the UK and Europe. During this period most of the station's advertising revenue came from the sale of airtime to Dutch-language stations which time-shared its airtime. After several years of neglect and damage from grounding incidents, the Mi Amigo sank during severe storm in March 1980.
In 1981, Radio Caroline acquired and began converting the former Icelandic trawler into a radio ship, using it for broadcasts from August 1983. Once again, a partnership with a Dutch-language station proved fruitful. On 19 August 1989, the ship was raided and silenced by British and Netherlands authorities. Broadcasts resumed on 1 October of that year and continued on low/moderate power until fuel for the generator ran out on 6 November 1990. Although no longer broadcasting, the ship remained at sea with a skeleton crew until it finally ran aground on the Goodwin Sands in storms in November 1991. The ship was salvaged and continues to be used for special broadcasts.
Radio Caroline currently broadcasts 24 hours a day via the Eurobird 1
Eurobird 1
Eurobird 1 is a Eutelsat operated Eurobird satellite, used primarily for digital television. It is located at 28.5° east in the Clarke Belt, just within the range of most satellite dishes pointed at SES Astra's Astra 2A, 2B and 2D at 28.2° east...
satellite at 28.5°E, via the Internet and by occasional Restricted Service Licence
Restricted Service Licence
A UK Restricted Service Licence , is typically granted to radio stations and television stations broadcasting within the UK to serve a local community or a special event...
. Radio Caroline broadcasts music from the 1960s to contemporary, with an emphasis on album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Music played:Most radio formats are based on a select, tight rotation of hit singles...
(AOR). The company also licenses other stations around the world to use the Radio Caroline name.
Radio Caroline origins
Ronan O'Rahilly
Ronan O'Rahilly is an Irish businessman best known for the creation of the offshore radio station, Radio Caroline.O'Rahilly's parents owned the private port of Greenore in Carlingford Lough, County Louth...
. O'Rahilly failed to obtain airplay on Radio Luxembourg
Radio Luxembourg (English)
Radio Luxembourg is a commercial broadcaster in many languages from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It is nowadays known in most non-English languages as RTL ....
for Georgie Fame
Georgie Fame
Georgie Fame is a British rhythm and blues and jazz singer and keyboard player. The one-time rock and roll tour musician, who had a string of 1960s hits, is still a popular performer, often working with contemporaries such as Van Morrison and Bill Wyman.-Early life:Fame took piano lessons from the...
's records because its airtime was committed to sponsored programmes promoting the major record labels; EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
, Decca
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
, Pye
Pye Records
Pye Records was a British record label. In its first incarnation, perhaps Pye's best known artists were Lonnie Donegan , Petula Clark , The Searchers , The Kinks , Sandie Shaw and Brotherhood of Man...
and Philips
Philips Records
Philips Records is a record label that was founded by Dutch electronics company Philips. It was started by "Philips Phonographische Industrie" in 1950. Recordings were made with popular artists of various nationalities and also with classical artists from Germany, France and Holland. Philips also...
.
Encouraged by the presence of the Scandinavian and Dutch pirates, Ronan O'Rahilly raised the capital to purchase a suitable vessel. In February 1964, O'Rahilly obtained the 702 ton former Danish passenger ferry, Fredericia, which was converted into a radio ship at the Irish port of Greenore
Greenore
Greenore is a small town, townland and deep water port on Carlingford Lough in County Louth, Ireland. The population of Greenore and the surrounding rural area was 898 in the 2002 Irish census....
, owned by O'Rahilly's father. At the same time, Allan Crawford's Project Atlanta organisation was equipping the MV Mi Amigo at Greenore, where the two competed to be first on air.
Financial backing for the venture came from six investors, including Jocelyn Stevens
Jocelyn Stevens
Sir Jocelyn Stevens, CVO is the former publisher of Queen Magazine; a financier of the first British pirate radio station Radio Caroline; newspaper editor for major London dailies and former chairman of English Heritage.-Career:...
of Queen magazine
Queen (magazine)
Queen magazine was a British society publication established by Samuel Beeton in 1861. In 1958, the magazine was sold to Jocelyn Stevens, who dropped the prefix "The" and used it as his vehicle to represent the younger side of the British Establishment, sometimes referred to as the "Chelsea Set"...
, with which Radio Caroline shared its first office. O'Rahilly named the station after Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Bouvier Kennedy is an American author and attorney. She is a member of the influential Kennedy family and the only surviving child of U.S. President John F...
, daughter of U.S. President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
. On a fund-raising trip to the US, O'Rahilly saw Life
Life (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
s photograph of Kennedy and his children in the Oval Office
Oval Office
The Oval Office, located in the West Wing of the White House, is the official office of the President of the United States.The room features three large south-facing windows behind the president's desk, and a fireplace at the north end...
. Caroline Kennedy was playing and disrupting the business of government, the image he wanted for his station. O'Rahilly's claims were re-examined; the photos of the three together exist and one of John Jr under the desk exists.
First transmissions
The Fredericia was re-named MV Caroline and was ancored off Felixtowe, where it began test transmissions on Friday, 27 March 1964. On Saturday, 28 March, it began regular programming at noon on 197 metres (1520 kHz, announced as 199 metres) with the official opening being conducted by Simon DeeSimon Dee
Cyril Nicholas Henty-Dodd , better known by his stage name Simon Dee, was a British television interviewer and radio disc jockey who hosted a twice-weekly BBC TV chat show, Dee Time in the late 1960s...
. The first programme, which was pre-recorded, was hosted by Chris Moore. Radio Caroline's first musical theme was Jimmy McGriff
Jimmy McGriff
James Harrell McGriff was an American hard bop and soul-jazz organist and organ trio bandleader who developed a distinctive style of playing the Hammond B-3 organ.-Early years and influences:...
's "Round Midnight", a jazz standard
Jazz standard
Jazz standards are musical compositions which are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list of jazz standards, and the list of songs deemed to be...
composed by Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Sphere Monk was an American jazz pianist and composer considered "one of the giants of American music". Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight, No Chaser"...
. In March 1964, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
band The Fortunes
The Fortunes
The Fortunes are an English harmony beat group. Formed in Birmingham, The Fortunes first came to prominence and international acclaim in 1965, when "You've Got Your Troubles" broke into the US and UK Top 10s...
recorded the song Caroline, which later became the station's theme song. Round Midnight was confined to close down on Radio Caroline North after The World Tomorrow
The World Tomorrow
The World Tomorrow is a now-defunct radio and television half-hour program which had been sponsored by the Radio Church of God which ran from 1934 to 1994...
programme. The station's slogan was Your all-day music station, and it initially broadcast from 6am-6pm, seven days a week.
Radio Caroline announced a wavelength of 199 metres,rhyming with the station's name, but was actually on 197.3 metres (1520 kHz).It has to be remembered that the tuning of radios of the day was purely by sight and sound - i.e. no exact digital readout. This allowed a leeway between the frequency used and the channel announced on air. Stations in the UK, at this time, announced the wavelength in metres, not the frequency in kilohertz. The station preferred using a "9" as the last digit, in order to rhyme with its name. The Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
offshore station Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica was an offshore radio station that began broadcasting in 1960, and broadcast from offshore for over fourteen years. It was set up by independent radio, TV and household electrical retailers in the Netherlands to stimulate the sales of radio receivers by providing an alternative to...
was on 192 metres (1562 kHz). Radio Atlanta
Radio Atlanta
Radio Atlanta named after Atlanta, Texas, was an offshore commercial station that operated briefly from 12 May 1964 to 2 July 1964 from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
broadcast on 201 metres (1495 kHz).
Radio Caroline's power was almost 20 kW
Kw
kw or KW may refer to:* Kuwait, ISO 3166-1 country code** .kw, the country code top level domain for Kuwait* Kilowatt* Self-ionization of water Kw* Cornish language's ISO 639 code* Kitchener–Waterloo, Ontario, Canada...
, achieved by linking two 10 kW Continental Electronics
Continental Electronics
Continental Electronics is a major American manufacturer of broadcast and military radio transmitters, based in Dallas, Texas. Although Continental today is best known for its FM, shortwave, and military VLF transmitters, Continental is most significant historically for its line of mediumwave ...
transmitters together. Its broadcasting hours were between 6 am to 6 pm to avoid competition from Radio Luxembourg
Radio Luxembourg (English)
Radio Luxembourg is a commercial broadcaster in many languages from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It is nowadays known in most non-English languages as RTL ....
. Later, after its 6 pm close-down, the station returned to the air after 8 pm and continued until after midnight. This was to avoid direct competition with popular television programmes. Most of Radio Caroline's pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
programmes were aimed at housewives. Later in the day, children were targeted. Without serious competition, Radio Caroline quickly gained a daytime audience of several million listeners.
Merger with Radio Atlanta
On 2 July 1964, Radio Atlanta and Radio Caroline's companies, Project Atlanta and Planet Productions Ltd., announced that the stations were to be merged, with Crawford and O'Rahilly as joint managing directors. At 8pm that day, Radio Atlanta closed. Radio Atlanta was re-branded Radio Caroline South and MV Mi Amigo remained off Frinton-on-SeaFrinton-on-Sea
Frinton-on-Sea is a small seaside town in the Tendring District of Essex, England. It is part of the Parish of Frinton and Walton.-History:...
while the MV Caroline would broadcast as Radio Caroline North. MV Caroline sailed from Felixstowe around the coast of Great Britain to the Isle of Man, broadcasting as it went. The only deejays on board were Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge is an English author and radio broadcaster.-Early life:Lodge was a figure in British radio of the 1960s. He was a disc jockey on Radio Caroline. Caroline and other pirates forced the government to deregulate radio, hitherto a monopoly of the BBC...
and Jerry Leighton. MV Caroline arrived at its new anchorage on 13 July. The two stations were thus able to cover most of the British Isles. Later, some programmes were pre-recorded on land and broadcast simultaneously from both ships.
In October 1965, O'Rahilly bought Crawford's interest in the MV Mi Amigo and brought Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge is an English author and radio broadcaster.-Early life:Lodge was a figure in British radio of the 1960s. He was a disc jockey on Radio Caroline. Caroline and other pirates forced the government to deregulate radio, hitherto a monopoly of the BBC...
from Radio Caroline North to make programming changes and regain audience from Radio London
Wonderful Radio London
Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 offshore commercial station that operated from 16 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
. Lodge hired a new group of deejays and introduced a free-form style of programming, which by August 1966 had succeeded, creating a total audience of 23 million people.
When Radio London
Wonderful Radio London
Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 offshore commercial station that operated from 16 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
arrived off the coast of England, there was an unsuccessful attempt to merge the sales operation of this station with the Caroline organization before Radio London commenced transmissions.
Broadcasting personnel
Radio Caroline's first programme, broadcast on 28 March 1964, was presented by Chris MooreChristopher Moore (DJ)
Christopher Moore was a key figure in the British rock music radio revolution of the 1960s.Moore was the presenter of the first programme broadcast by the offshore pirate radio ship Radio Caroline on Easter Sunday, 1964. At its peak the station had 23 million listeners.-References:...
. Presenters Tony Blackburn
Tony Blackburn
Tony Blackburn is an English disc jockey, who broadcast on the "pirate" stations Radio Caroline and Radio London in the 1960s and was the first disc jockey to broadcast on BBC Radio 1 in 1967. In 2002 he was the winner of the ITV reality TV programme I'm a Celebrity.....
, Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge is an English author and radio broadcaster.-Early life:Lodge was a figure in British radio of the 1960s. He was a disc jockey on Radio Caroline. Caroline and other pirates forced the government to deregulate radio, hitherto a monopoly of the BBC...
, Roger Day
Roger Day
Broadcaster Roger "Twiggy" Day Real name Roger Thomas currently presents on six BBC Local Radio stations across southern England.-Early career:...
, Simon Dee
Simon Dee
Cyril Nicholas Henty-Dodd , better known by his stage name Simon Dee, was a British television interviewer and radio disc jockey who hosted a twice-weekly BBC TV chat show, Dee Time in the late 1960s...
, Tony Prince
Tony Prince
Tony Prince is a British radio disc jockey and businessman, remembered for programmes on Radio Caroline and Radio Luxembourg in the 1960s and 1970s....
, Spangles Muldoon
Spangles Muldoon
Spangles Muldoon, real name Chris Cary, was a radio broadcaster best known for his work on British offshore radio station Radio Caroline. Cary was a key figure in the British rock music radio revolution of the 1960s. He was born in Chester, U.K., on 5 October 1946 and died on 29 February 2008, in...
, Keith Skues
Keith Skues
Keith Skues MBE is a British radio personality. He is nicknamed "Cardboard Shoes".Skues was born in Timperley, Cheshire. His broadcasting career began on the British Forces Network in Cologne, Germany in 1958. This was followed by overseas tours to Kuwait, Kenya and Aden...
, Johnnie Walker
Johnnie Walker (DJ)
Johnnie Walker MBE is a popular British veteran radio disc jockey and broadcaster....
, Robbie Dale
Robbie Dale
Robbie Dale 'The Admiral' was born in Littleborough, Lancashire, England on 21 April 1940.Dale was one of the DJs on the offshore pirate radio ship Radio Caroline on 14 August 1967 with Johnnie Walker, when the Marine Broadcasting Offences Act came into effect. At its peak, the station had 23...
, Dave Lee Travis
Dave Lee Travis
Dave Lee Travis , also known professionally as DLT and the Hairy Cornflake, is a British radio presenter, best known for his career on BBC Radio 1.-Early life:...
and Andy Archer became well-known. Some DJs from the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
countries, such as Graham Webb, Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge
Tom Lodge is an English author and radio broadcaster.-Early life:Lodge was a figure in British radio of the 1960s. He was a disc jockey on Radio Caroline. Caroline and other pirates forced the government to deregulate radio, hitherto a monopoly of the BBC...
, Emperor Rosko
Emperor Rosko
Mike Pasternak, better known by his stage name of Emperor Rosko is a well known pop radio presenter.Born Michael Joseph Pasternak, he is the son of Hollywood film producer Joe Pasternak. He was influenced in his career choice by KYA Radio Los Angeles DJs Lord Tim Hudson and Wolfman Jack...
, Steve Young, Keith Hampshire
Keith Hampshire
Keith Hampshire is an English-born Canadian popular singer of the 1970s, famous in Canada for three top ten hits , and the successful television show Music Machine...
, Colin Nicol and Norman St John, were also heard. DJ Jack Spector, of the WMCA
WMCA
WMCA, 570 AM, is a radio station in New York City, most known for its "Good Guys" Top 40 era in the 1960s. It is currently owned by Salem Communications and plays a Christian radio format...
"Good Guys" in New York, regularly recorded a programme for Radio Caroline. Syndicated shows from the US and prerecorded religious programmes were also broadcast. BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
newsreader Colin Berry
Colin Berry
Colin Berry is a British radio disc jockey/presenter and newsreader, best known for his many years at BBC Radio 2.Colin started his radio career reading news on Radio Caroline in 1965....
and Classic FM
Classic FM (UK)
Classic FM, one of the United Kingdom's three Independent National Radio stations, broadcasts classical music in a popular and accessible style.-Overview:...
's Nick Bailey started their careers reading the news on Radio Caroline South.
Mi Amigo runs aground On 20 January 1966, the MV Mi Amigo lost its anchor in a storm, drifted ran aground on the beach at Frinton-on-Sea. The crew and broadcasting staff were rescued unharmed, but the ship's hull was damaged and repairs were carried out at Zaandam
Zaandam
Zaandam is a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the main city of the municipality of Zaanstad, and received city rights in 1811...
, Netherlands. Between 31 January and 1 May, Radio Caroline South broadcast from the vessel Cheeta II, owned by Britt Wadner of Swedish offshore station Radio Syd
Radio Syd
Radio Syd was a Swedish pirate radio station. It began life as Skånes Radio Mercur, the first "pirate radio" in Sweden, and started to broadcast in December 1958.- History :...
, which was off the air because of pack ice in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. The Cheeta II was equipped for FM broadcasting, so it was fitted with the 10 kW transmitter from the Mi Amigo, feeding a makeshift antenna. The resulting signal was low-powered, but ensured that Caroline South's advertising revenue would continue.
The Mi Amigo returned to its Frinton-on-Sea anchorage with a redesigned antenna and a new 50 kW transmitter and attempted to resume broadcasting on 18 April, nominally on 259 metres to enable the same jingles as Radio Caroline North on 1169 kHz to be used, but actually 252 metres. The transmitter was initially too powerful for the antenna insulators. On 27 April, the Mi Amigo was fully operational.
Radio Caroline South's 259 metres signal was now near those of Radio London
Wonderful Radio London
Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 offshore commercial station that operated from 16 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
on 266m (1133 kHz) and the BBC's Light Programme
BBC Light Programme
The Light Programme was a BBC radio station which broadcast mainstream light entertainment and music from 1945 until 1967, when it was rebranded as BBC Radio 2...
on 247m (1214 kHz). Radio Caroline North subsequently moved to 257m (1169 kHz) but also called it 259.
Radio City affair
In October 1965, Radio Caroline and Radio CityRadio City (pirate radio station)
Radio City was a British pirate radio station that broadcast from Shivering Sands Army Fort, one of the abandoned Second World War Maunsell Sea Forts in the Thames Estuary.- Origins :...
began negotiations for Radio Caroline to take over Radio City, which broadcast from Shivering Sands Army Fort
Shivering Sands Army Fort
Shivering Sands Army Fort [U7] was a Maunsell army fort built near the Thames estuary for anti-aircraft defence. It is made up of several once interconnected towers north of Herne Bay and is 9.2 miles from the nearest land. They can be viewed from Shoeburyness East Beach on clear, cloudless summer...
, a Second World War marine fort off the Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
coast. One of Radio Caroline's directors, Major Oliver Smedley
Oliver Smedley
Major Oliver Smedley MC was a British businessman involved in classical liberal politics and pirate radio. He was acquitted of the murder of a business rival on the grounds of self-defence.-Military:...
, formerly of Radio Atlanta, entered a partnership with Radio City's owner, Reginald Calvert
Reginald Calvert
Reginald Calvert was the manager of The Fortunes pop group and singer Screaming Lord Sutch, and the owner of offshore pirate radio station Radio City....
and installed a more powerful transmitter on the fort. However, according to Gerry Bishop's book Offshore Radio this transmitter was antiquated and failed to work. Smedley later withdrew from the deal.
On 20 June 1966, Smedley boarded the Shivering Sands fort with ten workmen to repossess a transmitter that Smedley had supplied, but had not been paid for. The next day, Calvert visited Smedley's home in Saffron Walden, Essex, to demand the departure of the raiders and the return of vital transmitter parts. During a violent struggle, Calvert was shot dead. Smedley's men occupied the fort until 22 June.
Smedley was charged with Calvert's murder on 18 July, but this was reduced to one of manslaughter. Smedley's trial opened on 11 October at Chemlsford Assizes, where the jury acquitted him.
Legislation
In 1967, the UK Government enacted the Marine, &c., Broadcasting (Offences) Act 1967, outlawing advertising on or supplying an unlicensed offshore radio station from the UK. The Manx parliament, the TynwaldTynwald
The Tynwald , or more formally, the High Court of Tynwald is the legislature of the Isle of Man. It is claimed to be the oldest continuous parliamentary body in the world, consisting of the directly elected House of Keys and the indirectly chosen Legislative Council.The Houses sit jointly, for...
, attempted to exclude the North Ship from the legislation, appealing to the European Court on the legality of the act being applied to the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
. All the UK based offshore stations, with the exception of both Caroline ships, closed. The station moved its supply operation to the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, which had not yet outlawed unlicensed offshore broadcasting.
When Marine Broadcasting Offences Act become law on 14 August 1967, Radio Caroline was renamed Radio Caroline International. Six weeks later, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
introduced its new national pop station Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
, modelled largely on the successful offshore station, Radio London
Wonderful Radio London
Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 offshore commercial station that operated from 16 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
, and employed many of the ex-pirate DJs. The BBC Light
BBC Light Programme
The Light Programme was a BBC radio station which broadcast mainstream light entertainment and music from 1945 until 1967, when it was rebranded as BBC Radio 2...
, Third
BBC Third Programme
The BBC Third Programme was a national radio network broadcast by the BBC. The network first went on air on 29 September 1946 and became one of the leading cultural and intellectual forces in Britain, playing a crucial role in disseminating the arts...
, and Home
BBC Home Service
The BBC Home Service was a British national radio station which broadcast from 1939 until 1967.-Development:Between the 1920s and the outbreak of The Second World War, the BBC had developed two nationwide radio services, the BBC National Programme and the BBC Regional Programme...
programmes became Radios 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
, 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
and 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
respectively.
Several justifications have been posited for the passage of the act, including:
- the pirate ships were a danger because of RF interference to emergency shipping channels,
- the act was adopted for the benefit of the recording industry,
- the UK authorities could not accept the existence of an entity that was not subject to their control.
On 3 March 1968, the radio ships, Mi Amigo and Caroline, were boarded and seized before the day's broadcasting began. They were towed to Amsterdam by a salvage company to secure unpaid bills for servicing by the Dutch tender company, Wijsmuller Co.
1970: Radio North Sea International
In 24 March 1970, a radio ship named anchored off the east coast of England during the UK general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
camapaign, broadcasting as Radio North Sea International
Radio North Sea International
Radio North Sea International also known as Radio Nordsee International in German and Radio Noordzee Internationaal in Dutch, was a European offshore radio station, run by the Swiss firm Mebo Telecommunications, jointly owned by Swiss engineer, Edwin Bollier, and his business partner, Erwin Meister...
(RNI). RNI operated on mediumwave, shortwave and FM; its mediumwave transmission was jammed
Radio jamming
Radio jamming is the transmission of radio signals that disrupt communications by decreasing the signal to noise ratio. Unintentional jamming occurs when an operator transmits on a busy frequency without first checking whether it is in use, or without being able to hear stations using the frequency...
by the UK Labour government and on 13 June, RNI changed its name to Radio Caroline International with co-operation from Ronan O'Rahilly. Radio Caroline lobbied against the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, for the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
and for the introduction of licensed commercial radio in the United Kingdom. Following the election, RNI resumed its original name but jamming continued under the newly elected Conservative government. It was not until RNI returned to its original anchorage off the Netherlands that the jamming ceased.
Caroline Television
News stories appeared in the European press announcing the start of Caroline Television from two Super ConstellationLockheed Constellation
The Lockheed Constellation was a propeller-driven airliner powered by four 18-cylinder radial Wright R-3350 engines. It was built by Lockheed between 1943 and 1958 at its Burbank, California, USA, facility. A total of 856 aircraft were produced in numerous models, all distinguished by a...
aircraft using Stratovision
Stratovision
Stratovision was an airborne television transmission relay system from aircraft flying at high altitudes. In 1945 the Glenn L. Martin Co. and Westinghouse Electric Corporation advocated television coverage of small towns and rural areas as well as the large metropolitan centers by fourteen aircraft...
technology. One aeroplane would circle over the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
in international air space near the coastline of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, while the other would remain on standby to take over duties. Presentations were made to US advertising agencies. These stories continued for some time and included details of co-operation by a former member of the Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
and a sign-on date given as 1 July; however, the station failed to appear.
It was later proven to be nothing more than a publicity stunt.
1972-1980: Mi Amigo rescued
In 1972, MV Mi Amigo was bought for scrap at auction by enthusiast Gerald van Dam, who intended to use it as a free radio museum. O'Rahilly promised financial backing if van Dam could return the ship to broadcasting condition. The ship was anchored off the Dutch coastal resort of Scheveningen and serviced and operated from the Netherlands. The ship had restarted broadcasting as Radio 199, but soon became Radio Caroline with a Top 40 format. DJs Chris Carey, broadcasting as Spangles Muldoon
Spangles Muldoon
Spangles Muldoon, real name Chris Cary, was a radio broadcaster best known for his work on British offshore radio station Radio Caroline. Cary was a key figure in the British rock music radio revolution of the 1960s. He was born in Chester, U.K., on 5 October 1946 and died on 29 February 2008, in...
(who was also station manager), Roger 'Twiggy' Day
Roger Day
Broadcaster Roger "Twiggy" Day Real name Roger Thomas currently presents on six BBC Local Radio stations across southern England.-Early career:...
, Andy Archer, Paul Alexander
Paul Rusling
Paul Rusling is an East Yorkshire public house and restaurant owner, disc jockey and former radio and publishing entrepreneur who has also identified himself during radio programmes as Paul Alexander.-Life:...
, Steve England
Steve England
Steve England has spent over 35 years in radio production and at present runs a jingle production company in Leek, Staffordshire, which was established in 1997...
, Johnny Jason and Peter Chicago (real name Peter Murtha) manned the station.
In late 1972, Radio Caroline experienced financial difficulties. On 28 December, unpaid crew cut the Mi Amigos generator fuel line and departed. Later that day, the Dutch Royal Navy returned the crew and fighting broke out onboard. Two days later, Mi Amigo was towed to IJmuiden; the seizure is due to unpaid bills. Because of the Christmas holidays, no solicitors were available to issue a writ and the ship lay in Amsterdam Harbour until O'Rahilly arranged for it to be towed back to sea. The ship was further delayed when hull damage was found and quickly repaired before writs could be issued.
Between 11 and 20 April 1973, the ship broadcast programmes for Radio Veronica while the latter's ship, the Nordeney, was run aground in a storm. During summer 1973, it broadcast two separate stations in English and Dutch simultaneously, on 773 and 1187 kHz. Two aerials and twin transmitters were used for about six weeks until the aerial mast failed. To accommodate the second aerial, a second short mast, positioned just in front of the bridge, was employed as the other end for the main mast.
Radio Atlantis and Radio Seagull
Around this time, O'Rahilly decided that Caroline should adopt an album format similar to that found on "FM progressive rockProgressive rock (radio format)
Progressive rock is a radio station programming format that prospered in the late 1960s and 1970s, in which the disc jockeys are given wide latitude in what they may play, similar to the freeform format but with the proviso that some kind of rock music is almost always what is played...
" stations in the USA, as this potentially very large radio audience was not catered for in Europe. This service was initially broadcast using the name Radio Seagull and was broadcast live from the ship's studio during the evening.
Since Radio Caroline could not find adequate advertising revenue it shared its nominal 259 metre wavelength, actually 1187 kHz or 253 metres, with Dutch language pop stations. The first of these was a Belgian station called Radio Atlantis
Radio Atlantis
Radio Atlantis was a Belgian-owned offshore pirate radio station which operated between 1973 and 1974 from the coast of The Netherlands. Belgium had passed a law outlawing offshore broadcasting in 1962, but because its neighbour The Netherlands had not yet passed a similar law, there was nothing...
, owned by Belgian businessman Adriaan van Landschoot. Programmes were pre-recorded on land and broadcast between 6 am and 7 pm. Rough weather sometimes prevented new tapes from arriving on Mi Amigo and old pregrammes had to be repeated. When its contract with Radio Caroline ended, the crew of Radio Atlantis moved to their own ship, the .
Radio Seagull became Radio Caroline on 23 February 1974, retaining the album format. Throughout most of the 1970s, Radio Caroline could be heard only at night, calling itself "Europe's first and only album station".
Radio Mi Amigo
Another Belgian station, Radio Mi Amigo, was launched on 1 January 1974. Radio Mi Amigo was run by Belgian businessman and Suzy WafflesWaffle
A waffle is a batter- or dough-based cake cooked in a waffle iron patterned to give a distinctive and characteristic shape. There are many variations based on the type and shape of the iron and the recipe used....
magnate Sylvain Tack. The station's offices and studios were based on Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
's Playa De Aro Costa Brava
Costa Brava
The Costa Brava is a coastal region of northeastern Catalonia, Spain, in the comarques of Alt Empordà, Baix Empordà and Selva, in the province of Girona. Costa is the Catalan and Spanish word for 'coast', and Brava means 'rugged' or 'wild'...
resort, where it produced programmes for Dutch-speaking holidaymakers. Most of Radio Mi Amigo's output was pre-recorded and consisted of Europop
Europop
Europop refers to a style of pop music that first developed in today's form in Europe, throughout the late 1970s. Europop topped the charts throughout the 1980s and ’90s...
, Top 40, MOR and Dutch language
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
popular music presented by Belgian, Dutch and occasionally English DJs with frequent commercials. Because commercial radio was prohibited in Belgium at that time, Radio Mi Amigo had little competition and became popular in Belgium, the Netherlands and the UK. For the first few years, advertising space on the station was in high demand. When Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica was an offshore radio station that began broadcasting in 1960, and broadcast from offshore for over fourteen years. It was set up by independent radio, TV and household electrical retailers in the Netherlands to stimulate the sales of radio receivers by providing an alternative to...
closed in 1974, some of its presenters moved to Radio Mi Amigo.
Loving Awareness
Caroline's album format meant that, although the station served a market gap, its audience was smaller than in the 1960s. Caroline also promoted O'Rahilly's concept of Loving Awareness (LA), a far-eastern inspired philosophy of love and peace. Some DJs were embarrassed at the idea of promoting this on air, but some were fascinated by the challenge of promoting an abstract concept. Disc jockey Tony AllanTony Allan
Tony Allan was a British broadcaster and voice over artist. He broadcast almost exclusively on pirate radio stations and was highly regarded for his professionalism, his distinctive voice and clear diction, and for his ability to produce highly professional commercials and...
developed a cult following, combining his promotion of "Loving Awareness" with a professional style, humanity, deep knowledge of music and rich radio voice.
In 1974, O'Rahilly set up a pop group called The Loving Awareness Band, comprising John Turnbull (guitar) and Mick Gallagher (keyboards) both formerly of Skip Bifferty
Skip Bifferty
Skip Bifferty was an English psychedelic rock band formed in early 1966. The band featured future members of Ian Dury and The Blockheads.-History:...
and two session musicians, Norman Watt-Roy
Norman Watt-Roy
Norman Watt-Roy is the bassist for The Blockheads, previously known as Ian Dury & the Blockheads.In November 1954 the Watt-Roy family, including Norman, his older brother Garth and his sister, moved to England...
(bass) and Charlie Charles (drums). In 1976, The Loving Awareness Band released their only album, Loving Awareness on More Love Records (ML001), a label set up by O'Rahilly. The album was later reissued on CD more than once, although the CD releases have been sourced from a mint vinyl pressing rather than the original master tapes.
The band broke up in 1977, Watt-Roy and Charles played on Ian Dury
Ian Dury
Ian Robins Dury was an English rock and roll singer, lyricist, bandleader and actor who initially rose to fame during the late 1970s, during the punk and New Wave era of rock music...
's New Boots and Panties!! album, and Turnbull and Gallagher joined them on the Stiff
Stiff Records
Stiff Records is a record label created in London in 1976, by entrepreneurs Dave Robinson and Andrew Jakeman , and active until 1985. It was reactivated in 2007....
's tour, becoming The Blockheads.
Dutch legislation
In 1974 the Dutch government enacted legislation to prohibit unlicensed offshore radio, which came into effect on 1 September. Radio Caroline continued broadcasting, moving its headquarters and servicing operation to SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. Mi Amigo was moved from the Dutch coast to the Knock Deep Channel, approximately 30 km from the British coast. After 31 August, pre-recorded shows for Radio Mi Amigo were delivered on cassettes
Compact Cassette
The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel...
rather than reels of tape.
During an incident on 1 September, when a small motor launch experienced difficulties in rough seas, Radio Caroline broadcast appeals for help, giving the ship's position as 51°41′N 1°35′E. A coastguard vessel was sent to escort the launch back to shore, but the authorities were unhappy that Caroline listeners had jammed the emergency switchboards.
It was claimed that Radios Caroline and Mi Amigo were tendered from Spain. In practice, the Mi Amigo was tendered clandestinely from ports in Britain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Tenders and small boat owners were warned, and some prosecuted, for ferrying staff and provisions to the ship. Belgium had outlawed offshore radio in 1962 and its authorities prosecuted advertisers, cutting the station's revenue. Belgian courts sentenced Tack and some DJs to fines and jail terms in absentia — although the prison terms were later cancelled.
Wavelength changes
The two stations experimented with several different broadcast frequencies. After a short test on 773 kHz in late 1975, in May 1976, Radio Caroline began a daytime service on 1562 kHz (192 m) using a 10 kW transmitter, while its existing overnight service continued to share the 50 kW transmitter with Radio Mi Amigo's daytime programming on 1187 kHz (253 metres, announced as 259).In December 1976, Radio Mi Amigo moved to 1562 kHz on the 50 kW transmitter, leaving Caroline on 1187 kHz 24 hours a day on the 10 kW. Radio Caroline's signal experienced greater night-time interference, and it was decided to move Caroline to a new frequency. On 3 March 1977, Caroline closed down, announcing that it would return six days later on 319 metres. To allow Radio Mi Amigo to continue broadcasting by day, the engineering work necessary for Caroline's move had to be carried out over 6 nights, after the 50 kW transmitter was switched off.
Caroline returned on 9 March on 953 kHz, actually 315 metres but announced as 319. This frequency produced very strong heterodyne
Heterodyne
Heterodyning is a radio signal processing technique invented in 1901 by Canadian inventor-engineer Reginald Fessenden where high frequency signals are converted to lower frequencies by combining two frequencies. Heterodyning is useful for frequency shifting information of interest into a useful...
interference because the transmitter crystal was off-channel, and Caroline moved to the adjacent channel, 962 kHz (312 metres but still called 319) and Caroline's reception in the UK improved. Meanwhile Radio Mi Amigo experienced interference on 1562 kHz and announced another frequency change on 23 July 1977 from 1562 kHz, changing to 1412 kHz (212 m) two days later.
Finally, Radio Mi Amigo moved to 962 kHz on 1 December. Due to generator trouble, the two services could no longer be broadcast simultaneously, and Radio Caroline again broadcast at night with both stations using the 50 kW transmitter and Radio Caroline began to receive an increase in mail from Europe. At times, a 10 kW transmitter was used to save fuel and relieve stress on the generators. The 10 kW transmitters could be run on the Henschel generator beside the two main MAN units and also a Cummings on the aft deck behind the wheelhouse.
In late 1977, Radio Caroline began broadcasting sponsored evangelical programmes, and music programmes began at 9 p.m. On 20 October 1978, technical and financial problems put the Mi Amigo off the air. Unhappy at the loss of advertising revenue, Radio Mi Amigo terminated its contract with Caroline in November 1978 and broadcast from its own ship, the MV Magdalena, later that year, but this was short-lived. Broadcasting was in Dutch and English by day and in English at night, although for the first few months broadcasting finished at 10pm each evening. On 19 January 1979, the aging ship took in water and the lifeboat was called to evacuate the remaining crew members. Radio Caroline returned to the air on 15 April 1979. The first record played was Fool (If You Think It's Over), by Chris Rea
Chris Rea
Chris Rea is an English singer-songwriter, recognisable for his distinctive, husky voice and slide guitar playing. The British Hit Singles & Albums stated that Rea was "one of the most popular UK singer-songwriters of the late 1980s. He was already a major European star by the time he finally...
, dedicated to the British Home Office.
Mi Amigo sinks
Just after midnight GMT on 20 March 1980, the Mi Amigo foundered in a severe storm after losing its anchor and drifting for several miles. It began taking in water and the crew were rescued by lifeboat. The generator was left running to power the pumps but could not manage the inflow of water and the Mi Amigo sank ten minutes later. Three British nationals, a Dutchman and their canary, named Wilson after the former Labour Prime Minister, Harold WilsonHarold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
were rescued. The last broadcast from the Mi Amigo was by Stevie Gordon and Tom Anderson, as follows:
Well, we're sorry to tell you that due to the severe weather conditions and the fact that we are shipping quite a lot of water, we are closing down, and the crew are at this stage leaving the ship. Obviously, we hope to be back with you as soon as possible, but just for the moment we would like to say goodbye. "It's not a very good occasion really, we have to hurry this because the lifeboat is standing by. We're not leaving and disappearing, we're going onto the lifeboat hoping that the pumps can take it, if they can, we'll be back, if not, well we really don't like to say it. I'm sure we'll be back one way or another. For the moment from all of us, goodbye and God Bless."
The crew of the Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
lifeboat Helen Turnbull were commended for their part in the rescue of broadcasters Tom Anderson, Stevie Gordon, Nick Richards and Hans Verlaan from Mi Amigo while it was sinking in the Black Deep near Long Sand Bank. Having to manoeuvre the lifeboat alongside the stricken vessel thirteen times in high seas and a north easterly gale to carry out the rescue earned Coxswain Charles Bowry an RNLI silver medal. Each of his crew were awarded The Thanks of the Institution on vellum.
The Mi Amigos 160 feet (48.8 m) mast remained erect for a further six years.
1983-1991: MV Ross Revenge
MV Ross Revenge
The station re-commenced broadcasting in August 1983 from its new radio ship, the MV Ross Revenge, an ex-North SeaNorth Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
factory fishing trawler used during the Anglo
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
ic Cod War
Cod War
The Cod Wars, also called the Icelandic Cod Wars , were a series of confrontations in the 1950s and 1970s between the United Kingdom and Iceland regarding fishing rights in the North Atlantic....
by Ross Fisheries. The ship had an antenna system radiating from a 300 feet (91.4 m) high mast, the tallest on any ship in the world. The ship left port in Spain, with an incomplete studio, to avoid legal entanglements. Radio Caroline began broadcasting from the ship on 19 August 1983, when unwanted mechanical sounds were heard on speech. The station was opened by DJ Tom Anderson, who had said "goodbye" from the sinking Mi Amigo in 1980.
The Ross Revenge is considerably larger than Mi Amigo and was fitted with more elaborate transmitting equipment. In 1983, two 5 kW RCA transmitters and a RCA 50 kW unit were on board. One 5 kW transmitter was initially regarded as not serviceable. When Radio Monique hired the main transmitter, spare parts were taken from a fourth transmitter to convert the 5 kW into a 10 kW unit, the RCA 5 and 10 kW transmitters having similar designs. The remaining 5 kW transmitter was later converted for short wave use.
Ronan O'Rahilly had wanted Radio Caroline to become an oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
station. This was opposed by some DJs and crew who had worked on the Mi Amigo and the album format was retained along with presenters such as Andy Archer, Samantha Dubois
Samantha Dubois
Samantha Dubois was a radio presenter on Radio Caroline during the 1970s and again in 1984. She was born in Holland but learned to speak English from time spent growing up in New Zealand in the 1960s, this gave her a unique and instantly recognisable accent...
and Simon Barrett.
Officially, Radio Caroline was managed from offices in North America, with advertising sourced from the US and Canada. In practice, day-to-day servicing was carried out clandestinely from France and the UK. From the ship's anchorage in the Knock Deep the Mi Amigos mast could be seen on the horizon.
Four studios were on board, enabling the ship to transmit a number of other services. Radio Caroline tried out several frequencies, among them 963, 576, 585 (briefly), 558 (after Laser 558
Laser 558
Laser 558 was an offshore pirate radio station launched in May 1984 by a consortium of British and American business and broadcasting executives, some of whom have never been named. Laser 558 used disc jockeys recruited from the USA. The station was aboard the ship the MV Communicator in...
closed) and later 819 kHz. European medium wave channels had been reallocated to exact multiples of nine. In the evenings on 963, some alternative music programmes were tried, including the reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
-oriented "Jamming 963", and in 1986 and early 1987, a progressive and indie rock programme called Caroline Overdrive
Caroline Overdrive
Caroline Overdrive was a programming strand which ran on Radio Caroline in 1986–1987.-Background:After Caroline's return to the air in 1983 from the MV Ross Revenge, the station played an eclectic mixture of chart hits, album tracks and golden oldies, but by 1985 the station faced competition...
was broadcast.
On 9 August 1985, an official vessel anchored 150 yards from the Ross Revenge. The UK [Department of Trade and Industry] (DTI) put a permanent watch on all movements of ships around the Ross Revenge and the MV Communicator, Laser 558
Laser 558
Laser 558 was an offshore pirate radio station launched in May 1984 by a consortium of British and American business and broadcasting executives, some of whom have never been named. Laser 558 used disc jockeys recruited from the USA. The station was aboard the ship the MV Communicator in...
s ship. On 3 September 1985 at 24:00 hours the Dioptric Surveyor departed owing to a force nine storm.
Radio Monique
From December 1984 the Ross Revenge broadcast Radio Monique, consisting of recorded and live Dutch language programmes of a Dutch music radio production company using the 50 kW transmitter during daytime. These programmes featured mainly pop and Euro-Pop style music and were aimed at the mainstream Dutch audience. Radio Monique was popular throughout the BeneluxBenelux
The Benelux is an economic union in Western Europe comprising three neighbouring countries, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. These countries are located in northwestern Europe between France and Germany...
countries.
In the evenings, Radio Caroline transmitted Dutch and American religious evangelist
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
broadcasters such as Johan Maasbach and Roy Masters on medium wave, and later on short wave, under the name Viewpoint 963/819, or World Mission Radio (WMR) on short wave.
In November 1985, the competitor offshore station, Laser 558, closed because of electrical problems and Caroline moved from 576 kHz to Laser's 558 kHz frequency, with a Top 40 music format similar to Laser's under the name Caroline 558. When Laser returned as Laser Hot Hits, it used Caroline's former and somewhat inferior frequency of 576.
The mast collapses
In 1987, the British Government passed the Territorial Sea Act which extended the UK maritime limit from three to twelve nautical miles (22 km). To remain in international waters, the ship moved to a new, less-sheltered anchorage. Initially this was a minor inconvenience as the 300 feet (91.4 m) mast was thought sturdy enough to cope. However, in October a massive stormGreat Storm of 1987
The Great Storm of 1987 occurred on the night of 15/16 October 1987, when an unusually strong weather system caused winds to hit much of southern England and northern France...
hit southern England, causing loss of life and severe damage to buildings and trees. Unable to take shelter in territorial waters, the MV Ross Revenge weathered the storm in the North Sea.
The following day, Caroline was one of the few stations in the South East still broadcasting. However, the storm had severely weakened the mast, which collapsed in another storm some weeks later. Caroline quickly returned to the air using a makeshift aerial which gave a less powerful signal. This was eventually replaced by a twin-mast T-antenna. For several months only one transmitter could be used, leading to the loss of the crucial income-generating Radio Monique, although a substitute Dutch daytime service, Radio 558 (later Radio 819), was eventually established.
1989 Anglo-Dutch raid
The UK government amended the 1967 anti-offshore broadcasting law to permit the boarding and silencing of stations operating in international waters if their signals can be received in the UK, even if their vessels were foreign registered and operated. Lord Annan, author of the 1977 Report of the Committee on the Future of BroadcastingAnnan Committee
The Annan Committee on the future of broadcasting was established in April 1974 to discuss the United Kingdom broadcasting industry, including new technologies and their funding, the role and funding of the BBC, Independent Broadcasting Authority and programme standards.In February 1977 the...
, spoke in defence of Radio Caroline in the House of Lords at Report Stage on the Broadcasting Act 1990
Broadcasting Act 1990
The Broadcasting Act 1990 is a law of the British parliament, often regarded by both its supporters and its critics as a quintessential example of Thatcherism. The aim of the Act was to reform the entire structure of British broadcasting; British television, in particular, had earlier been...
, saying "Why break a butterfly upon the wheel?" In an article written for the pressure group Charter 88, Steve McGann added:
"Whether Caroline was right to maintain her defiance for so many years is irrelevant. Her story illustrates how uniquely dangerous government regards an independent voice transmitted over unrestricted airwaves and to what ends it will go to silence it."This legislation remains in force.
During mid-August 1989, authorities in several European countries carried out co-ordinated raids on houses, recording studios and offices believed to be used by the Caroline organisation. On 18 August, a British government chartered ship pulled up alongside the Ross Revenge and requested permission to board in order to "discuss the future" of the Ross Revenge and the stations operating from it. This request, and one to cease transmissions on 819 kHz, were refused. A request to cease broadcasting on the short wave frequency 6215 kHz was complied with, and after several hours the British government chartered ship returned to port.
The following day James Murphy, an investigator for the UK Office of Official Solicitor
Official Solicitor
The Office of the Official Solicitor is a part of the Ministry of Justice of the Government of the United Kingdom. The Official Solicitor acts for people who, because they lack mental capacity and cannot properly manage their own affairs, are unable to represent themselves and no other suitable...
acting on behalf of the UK Department of Trade and Industry joined colleagues and counterparts from the Netherlands Radio Regulatory Authority to carry out an armed raid on the Ross Revenge in which vital equipment was damaged or confiscated.
It was claimed that Caroline's use of a marine supplementary distress and calling frequency 6215 kHz for the transmission of paid-for religious programmes, called World Mission Radio, was causing interference to maritime communications. Caroline had been warned about this by officials and offshore-radio fans.
Part of the raid was broadcast live before officials disabled the transmitters. Dutch nationals aboard were arrested and returned to the Netherlands, together with most of the broadcasting equipment. Non-Dutch staff were not arrested but were given the option of staying on the ship or returning to the Netherlands - most chose to stay on board.
The legality of the raid is under question; Caroline claimed that the boarding of the ship and removal or destruction of equipment was an act of piracy
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
on the high seas under international maritime law. The Dutch claimed that as the ship's Panamanian registration had lapsed in 1987, it was not under legal protection from any country and that its transmissions were a breach of international radio regulations which since 1982 have prohibited broadcasting from outside national territories. Several years after the raid some of the seized items were returned to the station.
1990-1991: After the raid
On 1 October 1989, Radio Caroline re-commenced broadcasting from the Ross Revenge using makeshift equipment and very low power, in order to retain the 558 kHz frequency. Engineer Peter Chicago had hidden transmitter parts during the raid and retuned one 5 kW transmitter, previously used on short-wave, to 558 kHz. Over the following months, Caroline's signal quality improved as transmitting valvesVacuum tube
In electronics, a vacuum tube, electron tube , or thermionic valve , reduced to simply "tube" or "valve" in everyday parlance, is a device that relies on the flow of electric current through a vacuum...
were donated and programming returned to normal.
In June 1990, Spectrum Radio
Spectrum Radio
Spectrum Radio is the United Kingdom’s only Multiethnic Commercial Radio station, with programmes from 24 ethnic groups. It is based in the Battersea district of London...
, a new multi-ethnic community radio
Community radio
Community radio is a type of radio service, that offers a third model of radio broadcasting beyond commercial broadcasting and public broadcasting. Community stations can serve geographic communities and communities of interest...
station for London, was allocated 558 kHz. Caroline's signal caused more interference to Spectrum's than vice versa. Caroline broadcast regular apologies to Spectrum and its listeners but refused to vacate the channel. Spectrum threatened to sue the Radio Authority, which then allowed Spectrum to temporarily broadcast on 990 kHz alongside 558 kHz. Eventually, Caroline left 558 kHz and moved to 819. On 5 November 1990, a lack of fuel and supplies forced the station to cease broadcasting. The final song played was Pilot of the Airwaves by Charlie Dore
Charlie Dore
Charlie Dore is an English singer-songwriter and actress.-Career:Although best known as one of the UK's most respected singer-songwriters, Dore has a multi-faceted career that includes acting in film, TV and radio, comedy-improvisation and composition for film and TV...
. Although most of the broadcasting staff had left, some volunteers remained on board for a year as caretakers whilst fresh funding and equipment were sought.
In November 1991, the ship lost its anchor in stormy weather and drifted onto the Goodwin Sands
Goodwin Sands
The Goodwin Sands is a 10-mile-long sand bank in the English Channel, lying six miles east off Deal in Kent, England. The Brake Bank lying shorewards is part of the same geological unit. As the shoals lie close to major shipping channels, more than 2,000 ships are believed to have been wrecked...
in the English Channel. The crew were rescued by RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
helicopter. The Ross Revenge was later salvaged and brought into harbour in Dover, ending 27 years of Radio Caroline's unlicensed, offshore radio broadcasting career.
1991 - present: Licensed Support Group era
Following the 1990 near shipwrecking of the Ross Revenge and its subsequent harbouring off the south-east coast of England, the ship has been maintained by a group of enthusiasts called the Caroline Support Group, originally called the Ross Revenge Support Group. From 2007, following numerous moves, the Ross Revenge has been docked at TilburyPort of Tilbury
The Port of Tilbury is located on the River Thames at Tilbury in Essex, England. It is the principal port for London; as well as being the main United Kingdom port for handling the importation of paper. There are extensive facilities for containers, grain, and other bulk cargoes. There are also...
, where a volunteer crew repair and maintain it. The ship has working radio studios, from which both Caroline and BBC Essex
BBC Essex
BBC Essex is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Essex. It broadcasts from its studios on New London Road in Chelmsford on 103.5 and 95.3 FM, and on 729 , 765 , and 1530 AM. It is also available on DAB and live streaming via the internet.-History:BBC Essex launched on 5...
have occasionally broadcast.
Former offshore broadcasters who continue to broadcast on the station are: Roger Mathews, Nigel Harris
Nigel MacArthur
Nigel MacArthur, also known as Stuart Russell and Nigel Harris, is a freelance broadcaster in Kent on Radio Caroline, EKR and KMFM.-Career:...
, Martin Fisher, Marc Jacobs, Johnny Lewis, Doug Wood, Dave Foster, Cliff Osbourne, Bob Lawrence, Jeremy Chartham and Ad Roberts. Evangelical programmes and sponsored specialist music shows are broadcast. During Easter 2008, the station broadcast live for three days from the Ross Revenge, featuring ten presenters who had worked on the Mi Amigo in the late 1970s: Roger Mathews, Mike Stevens, Bob Lawrence, Brian Martin, Martin Fisher, Cliff Osbourne, Jeremy Chartham, Marc Jacobs, Ad Roberts, Dick Verheul and Kees Borrell.
Restricted Service Licenses
Radio Caroline was off the air for most of the 1990s, except for occasional low-power broadcasts of one month's duration. Some of these licensed 28-day Restricted Service LicenceRestricted Service Licence
A UK Restricted Service Licence , is typically granted to radio stations and television stations broadcasting within the UK to serve a local community or a special event...
(RSL) broadcasts took place from the Ross Revenge during the 1990s, with the ship anchored off Clacton, in London's Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
, Southend Pier
Southend Pier
Southend Pier is a major landmark in Southend-on-Sea. Extending into the Thames Estuary, it is the longest pleasure pier in the world. Sir John Betjeman once said that "the Pier is Southend, Southend is the Pier". The pier is a Grade II listed building....
and off the Isle of Sheppey
Isle of Sheppey
The Isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England in the Thames Estuary, some to the east of London. It has an area of . The island forms part of the local government district of Swale...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
.
One RSL broadcast ran from 7 August until 3 September 2004, with the ship moored at the cruise liner terminal jetty at Tilbury in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. They even commemorated the 40th anniversary of Radio Caroline and promoted the station's legal internet and satellite programmes. The medium wave frequency was 235 metres (1278 kHz) and the programmes were sent through ISDN landline to their Maidstone studio and streamed via the internet and broadcast on satellite. The supermarket chain Asda
Asda
Asda Stores Ltd is a British supermarket chain which retails food, clothing, general merchandise, toys and financial services. It also has a mobile telephone network, , Asda Mobile...
and English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
were amongst the backers for this event.
The station has subsequently broadcast on 531 kHz AM from the Ross Revenge during some bank holiday
Bank Holiday
A bank holiday is a public holiday in the United Kingdom or a colloquialism for public holiday in Ireland. There is no automatic right to time off on these days, although the majority of the population is granted time off work or extra pay for working on these days, depending on their contract...
weekends, beginning on 28–31 August 2009 and 28–30 August 2010, which coincided within a few days with the 50th anniversary of the ship's first voyage.
Satellite and Internet broadcasting
Using land-based studios leased from EKR in KentKent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
in the late 1990s, the station began broadcasting via satellites Astra 19.2°E
Astra 19.2°E
Astra 19.2°E is the name for the group of communications satellites co-located at the 19.2°East orbital position in the Clarke Belt that are owned and operated by SES Astra, a subsidiary of SES based in Betzdorf, Luxembourg....
and Eurobird 1
Eurobird 1
Eurobird 1 is a Eutelsat operated Eurobird satellite, used primarily for digital television. It is located at 28.5° east in the Clarke Belt, just within the range of most satellite dishes pointed at SES Astra's Astra 2A, 2B and 2D at 28.2° east...
, covering Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
. These analogue transmissions ceased and a full digital service from Astra 28.2°E
Astra 28.2°E
Astra 28.2°E is the name for the group of Astra communications satellites co-located at the 28.2° East position in the Clarke Belt that are owned and operated by SES based in Betzdorf, Luxembourg...
started in February 2003.
In 2002, Caroline began broadcasting on the WorldSpace satellite radio system, continuing until the Worldspace operation went bankrupt and re-organised its operations.
On 12 June 2006, the station purchased an EPG
Electronic program guide
Electronic program guides and interactive program guides provide users of television, radio, and other media applications with continuously updated menus displaying broadcast programming or scheduling information for current and upcoming programming...
slot on Sky channel 0199. No subscription or viewing card was required. This service was removed on 1 July 2011 after failing to renegotiate costs with Sky and deciding not pursue a Freesat
Freesat
Freesat is a free-to-air digital satellite television joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc, serving the United Kingdom. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008...
EPG slot. Surveys performed in 2008 and 2010 into the audience's listening habits showed that a small percentage listened via Sky, and that satellite listening had dropped by 9% since the 2008 results, while on-line listening had increased by around 40%. Radio Caroline still broadcasts on satellite but requires manual tuning.
The station has also been streamed on the Internet for some years, and in 2011 joined the Radioplayer UK project, an internet service formed by the BBC, Global Radio and the Guardian Media Group that supplies a listen live feed of UK radio stations across the world.
Medium Wave campaign
In December 2010, Chatham & Aylesford MP Tracey CrouchTracey Crouch
Tracey Elizabeth Anne Crouch is a British Conservative Party politician. She is Member of Parliament for Chatham and Aylesford, having won the seat at the 2010 election.-Education:...
presented an Early Day Motion
Early day motion
An Early Day Motion , in the Westminster system, is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by Members of Parliament for debate "on an early day" . Controversial EDMs are not signed by Government Ministers, PPS or the Speaker of the House of Commons and very few are debated on the floor...
to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom calling for OFCOM
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
to allow Radio Caroline to broadcast as a licensed medium wave station to its "traditional heartland of the south east".
The full text of the EDM is as follows:
That this House expresses its disappointment that, having pioneered commercial radio in the UK and for the past decade being a fully licensed broadcaster, Radio Caroline, a cornerstone of British radio history, has been denied by OFCOM the opportunity to secure a medium wave frequency from which to broadcast; regrets that as a result its devoted listeners are confined to listening to Radio Caroline via the internet and unable to enjoy its musical offerings in transit; and calls on OFCOM to exhaust all avenues in making the provisions available for Radio Caroline to celebrate its 50th birthday in 2014 by broadcasting on a medium wave frequency which, it appears, is unwanted by both BBC and commercial operators as a broadcast platform."
The Netherlands
In January 2002, a Dutch Caroline-fan called Sietse Brouwer launched a Netherlands-based Radio Caroline in HarlingenHarlingen, Netherlands
Harlingen is a municipality and a city in the northern Netherlands, in the province of Friesland at the Wadden Sea. Harlingen is an old town with a long history of fishing and shipping....
, broadcasting on the northern Netherlands cable networks and largely independent of UK Caroline. Brouwer intended to obtain an AM frequency from the Netherlands authorities in 2003 when its medium wave frequencies were reallocated. However, Dutch Caroline failed to secure a high power AM frequency and the cable network service was discontinued because of lack of funds. The Dutch Radio Caroline then changed its name to "Radio Seagull" and now broadcasts on 1602 kHz every evening and the internet, presenting a progressive rock format. From November 2009, Radio Seagull can be heard periodically on 558 kHz in London.
Spain
In Spain, a station broadcast during the summer 2009 on 102.7 MHz in the Costa Blanca from studios in Benidorm. The station had some success but stopped broadcasting due to lack of funding. Broadcasters included Tony Christian, Pawl "Hound Dog" Shanley, Dave Fox, Simon West, Dale Richardson and Peter D.Mediterranean Riviera
The British Radio Caroline has a broadcasting partner on the French and Italian Mediterranean Rivieras. Presented under the name Caroline South, this operation provides weekend evening programmes for Radio Caroline which are also broadcast on local FM radio stations on the Riviera. Veteran Caroline DJs Grant BensonGrant Benson
Grant Benson is a British-born broadcaster and music consultant who currently works forRadio Number One in Milan, Italy....
and Tom Anderson are among the presenters.
Ireland
Radio Caroline is broadcast in the Republic of Ireland on channel 927 on the UPC IrelandUPC Ireland
UPC Ireland is Liberty Global Europe's telecommunications operation in Ireland. UPC Ireland is the largest digital cable television provider within the Republic of Ireland. As of September 2010 the company offers broadband internet, digital television and digital telephony to over 531,000 customers...
cable
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
service in Dublin, Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
and Waterford
Waterford
Waterford is a city in the South-East Region of Ireland. It is the oldest city in the country and fifth largest by population. Waterford City Council is the local government authority for the city and its immediate hinterland...
.
Italy
In spring 2004, Radio Caroline contracted with RTL 102.5RTL 102.5
RTL 102.5 is a private Italian radio station. Despite its name, this radio station is not endorsed or affiliated with RTL Group.It has been the first Italian radio station using the format Contemporary hit radio, which involves the broadcasting of greatest hits only.The RTL 102.5 group includes...
to broadcast as part of the national DAB system in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
where it can be heard in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
and Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
. Its programming is a mix of Caroline's UK-produced material and locally produced material.
New Zealand
In TimaruTimaru
TimaruUrban AreaPopulation:27,200Extent:Former Timaru City CouncilTerritorial AuthorityName:Timaru District CouncilPopulation:42,867 Land area:2,736.54 km² Mayor:Janie AnnearWebsite:...
, a NZBC station, originally 3XC, later 3ZC, broadcast as Radio Caroline until 1995. The name was taken from "Caroline Bay", a popular recreation area nearby.
In Palmerston
Palmerston, New Zealand
The town of Palmerston, in New Zealand's South Island lies 50 kilometres to the north of the city of Dunedin. It is the largest town in the Waihemo Ward of the Waitaki District with a population of 890 residents...
, an organisation using the Caroline name, based in Tenerife, Spain, acquired a stake in Radio Puketapu in 2008, and was seeking wavelengths in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.
See also
- Pirate radio in the United Kingdom
- Marine, &c., Broadcasting (Offences) Act 1967 - The UK legislation aimed at offshore radio, enacted August 1967.
Further reading
- Radio Caroline, by Venmore Rowland, John - Landmark Press, UK, 1967 - The original book about Radio Caroline.
- When Pirates Ruled The Waves, by Harris, PaulPaul Harris (author)Paul Harris was an author and publisher, based in Scotland. His first work was When Pirates Ruled the Waves, which ran to 4 editions within a short space of time between 1968 and 1970...
- Impulse Publications, UK, 1968. - History of Radio Nord, by Kotschack, Jack - Forlags AB, Sweden (Swedish), English version published in 1970 by Impulse Publications, UK.
- From International Waters, by Leonard, Mike - Forest Press, Heswall, UK, 1996 ISBN 0-9527684-0-2 - An encyclopedia about the history of offshore broadcasting until 1996.
- The Beat Fleet: The story behind the 60's 'pirate' radio stations, by Leonard, Mike - Forest Press, Heswall, UK, 2004 ISBN 0952768410.
- Last of the Pirates, by Noakes, Bob - Paul Harris Publishing, Edinburgh, 1984, ISBN 0-86228-092-3 - This book is written by an engineer and DJ who worked on the MV Mi Amigo during the last phase of life prior to sinking.
- Butterfly upon the Wheel, by Moore, Peter - Offshore Echo's, London, UK, 1992, ISSN 0150 2794 - Written by the station manager, this book recounts the adventures and struggles to keep Radio Caroline on the air.
- Records at Sea - The Story of the Ross Revenge, by Weston, Mike - Radio Caroline Sales, UK, 2002 - A detailed history of the MV Ross RevengeRoss RevengeThe MV Ross Revenge is a radio ship, formerly the home of Radio Caroline, as well as having supported Radio Monique and various religious broadcasters. She was constructed in Bremerhaven in 1960, and initially served as a commercial trawler, notably taking part in the cod wars of the 1970s...
. - Walker, Johnnie. The Autobiography. Penguin Books, London, 2007. ISBN 978-0-141-02428-8.
- Ships in Troubled Waters, by Harris, Nigel - MyWayPublishing, UK, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9563996-0-1 - This book details the author's long history with Radio Caroline.
- Shiprocked - Life On The Waves With Radio Caroline, by Conway, Steve - Liberties Press, Dublin, 2009 ISBN 978-1-905483-62-4 - This book tells the story of Steve ConwaySteve ConwaySteve Conway is an Irish broadcaster and writer, formerly of the offshore pirate station Radio Caroline and most recently a presenter on the Dublin indie rock station Phantom 105.2....
's career with Radio Caroline in the late 1980s.
External links
Video
- RADIO CAROLINE, RAMSEY HARBOUR 15/08/1967 & 28/08/1964 from Border TV archive
- RADIO CAROLINE INTERVIEW 07/08/1967 w/ Postmaster General Edward Short, from Border TV archive
- The attack in 1989
- A Day in the Life - broadcasting offshore from the M.V. Ross Revenge