Countdown to Closedowns

As mentioned, new legislation was due to come into effect at the turn of the year 1989. This had the effect of lots and lots of retrospective programming, with most stations looking back at thir own history and many others looking at the history of pirates in their area, or across the country.

Existing anorak shows were winding down. West National Radio 3's Anorak Show finished up on December 18th 1988, whilst Smile FM ran to Christmas Day. Smile FM's was a late starter - October - but even later still was a Saturday morning offering from Liberty 104, introduced at the start of December 1988. There were just three episodes as the station went off well ahead of schedule on Tuesday December 20th.

On Christmas Day, 'Station News' from Radio Dublin was used by Eamonn Cooke (listen below) to outline the station's plans post-legislation and to give his views on the situation.

*Note on the above recording. Massive interference has been stripped out in order to make listening easier, which also leads to other distortion effects. If you wish to listen to the original please progress to about the 150 minute mark on the file hosted by DX Archive.

And so, in defiance of the 1989 Act, Radio Dublin remained on air going in to the New Year, despite Gerry Marsden, the Station Manager on the night, running a closedown speech and shutting off. Taped programming kicked in straight away but despite the risks, live programming also resumed within hours.Thus began a running battle with the authorities who, over the weeks that followed, issued threats of - and carried out - raids and also looked to get the station's utilities turned off. 'Station News' offered Cooke a platform to keep listeners informed and to rally the troops, so to speak. This recording is from Sunday January 22nd 1989.

The new era made life more difficult for those who wished to report and reflect on contemporary pirate matters, ushering in, as it did, a need for secrecy, and although imprisonment and £20,000 fines didn't materialise the threat was still there, built within the legislative framework. A perfect example is this edition of 'Station News' with Joe Doyle filling in for Cooke in February 1990. Over the coming months and years Joe, as Station Manager, became more and more the public face of the station as Cooke had, what are now well-documented, personal issues in the background to deal with.

Joe was also the main face of the first regular-running anorak programme of the post-1988 era...

**Disclaimer: any historical feature on Irish radio is likely to feature Eamonn Cooke. His inclusion is solely on the basis of his role in the Irish radio landscape and in no way condones the vile acts he perpetrated. We wish to apologise for any distress or offence caused.

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