The Anorak Hour - The History of Offshore Radio

Not surprisingly, given the type of programme under review, there were probably hundreds of one-off specials as well as failed, very short-lived, start up attempts. We will not be focusing on all of them - nor could we - but we will highlight some of the more memorable and worthy ones. The best examples of these would be an informed, presenter-led, retrospective on a narrower-defined show.

You'd be hard pushed to find a better example than an 'anorak hour' commemorating fifteen years since the introduction of the Marine Offences Act by the British government in August 1967, which had the immediate effect of wiping out the offshore stations overnight. And if you're looking for a presenter, then who better than Peter Madison, whose first-hand knowledge and experience of the period made him the perfect presenter.

The example in question was broadcast by Capitol Radio, based on the south side of Dublin, in 1982. Peter brought the listener on a whimsical, whirlwind tour of the various offshore stations that all (well mostly) met their demise on that fateful day. His unique style lit up the radio dial in an entertaining way, without losing sight of the facts.

Broadcst from 11pm on August 14th, as part of Peter's wider golden oldies show, the Anorak Hour lasted for, well, an hour, although it pushed beyond midnight as that is the time when the Act kicked in fifteen years earlier.

Madison was less better known, certainly to Irish radio listeners, as Peter MacDougall, who briefly broadcast on Radio City in the 1960s as “Mac Peters” before later working under the Peter Madison name on BBC local radio and many Irish pirates.

From August 14th 1982, this is The Anorak Hour with Peter Madison on Capitol Radio, Dublin. *Audio hosted and by kind courtesy of DX Archive (dxarchive.com)

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