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People Involved with Newstalk with a Pirate Past

  • 06-10-2023 6:13pm
    #1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,299 ✭✭✭Declan A Walsh


    Listening to Alan Cantwell reading the news this evening reminded me that there are some on Newstalk who went through the pirate scene. If you are wondering, Alan was a presenter during the second of the 1980s on Dublin alternative-inclined pirate Capitol/Nitesky Radio. He used the name Dave Carney. He was more the Capitol side, i,e. slightly more mainstream thrown in the mix!

    Others that come to mind:

    John Duggan: 1990s Dublin pirate Coast FM which had a mix of AOR and alternative rock. I believe it was inspired somewhat by the aforementioned Capitol above. I think he may have turned up on its successor Spectrum.

    Richie McCormack: he joined alternative rock pirate Phantom in the early '00s, which was itself a successor to Spectrum. Coast, Spectrum and Phantom were all operated by Simon Maher of 8Radio.Com fame.

    Bernie Jamieson (if she is still connected to Newstalk): various 1980s Dublin pirates including superpirate Radio Nova.

    John Keogh (Head of News?): 1980s pirates including Heartbeat FM

    Bill Hughes (has been a contributor): Dublin superpirate Sunshine Radio.

    Aidan Cooney, now with Q102< was with Newstalk when it was a Dublin only station. He had extensive pirate experience from the late 1970s up to the late 1980s.

    Mark Cagney did some presenting on Newstalk in the last few years. He started with Cork pirates o=in the 1970s.

    That's off the top of my head. Any more examples -past or present?



Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 724 ✭✭✭TheBMG


    Not strictly Newstalk but the legendary Teena Gates is still on their unbranded syndicated local service. Usually heard at the weekends.



  • Posts: 0 Crosby Red Tether


    Pirate newsreaders, it’s quite something when you think of it as a concept…



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 12,198 ✭✭✭✭the_amazing_raisin


    It's very interesting considering nowadays there's any number of YouTubers doing news channels which range from well balanced and professionally produced to totally biased and unhinged

    1980s - You can't let just anyone present the news!

    2023 - You want your own news channel, sure! Here's a free green screen so you can project a CG news studio in the background

    Post edited by Boards.ie: Mike on

    "The internet never fails to misremember" - Sebastian Ruiz, aka Frost



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 724 ✭✭✭TheBMG


    News on the aaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrr!



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 12,198 ✭✭✭✭the_amazing_raisin


    I still struggle with the idea of pirate radio

    I get the idea that you can't just broadcast at whatever frequency you want as it could cause issues

    The thing I can't wrap my head around is that the best way available for someone to bring some punk rock and non De Valera approved news to the masses was to setup a radio transmitter and illegally broadcast across the countryside

    Nowadays you can just use Twitter to say whatever you want (unfortunately)

    "The internet never fails to misremember" - Sebastian Ruiz, aka Frost



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  • Posts: 0 Crosby Red Tether


    It’s remarkable actually when you look across Europe in general, broadcasting used to be extremely tightly controlled, usually by public service broadcasters that grew up very much like RTE.

    Ireland just made a half arsed effort to actually enforce its draconian laws, so a thriving commercial sector grew in a bit of limbo between being illegal and being tolerated.

    If you consider say the French market, Europe 1 radio, the French equivalent of Newstalk or 5Live used to broadcast from Saarbruken in Germany and a lot of broadcasting became from RTL (Radio Luxembourg) and TMC (Télé Monte-Carlo) and so on all to get around extremely tight broadcast regulations.

    Austria had effectively no commercial broadcasters until 1995!! The EU had to force the issue to end an absolute monopoly by ORF.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,299 ✭✭✭Declan A Walsh


    Another name is Adrian Kennedy, who has been acting as a newsreader and a stand-in presenter. He was associated with the well-known 1980s pirate BLB (Bray Local Broadcasting) from Bray, Co. Wicklow.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,342 ✭✭✭Antenna


    Stuart Clark of Hot Press magazine who has been a music news contributor/reviewer on Newstalk - he moved to Ireland originally to work in pirate radio in 1982, initially arriving in Co. Waterford, and later in Limerick:




  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,299 ✭✭✭Declan A Walsh


    Along the way, he also did a stint on offshore pirate Radio Caroline during the mid 1980s .



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,744 ✭✭✭Infoanon


    When Sunshine and Nova launched RTE were obviously concerned by the commercial impact , those in power however were far more concerned with Sunshine and Novas hourly news updates !, a new concept in Irish broadcasting at the time.

    Magic 103 , Dublins talk led station , had its transmissions monitored by the special branch ! ,

    When Capital 104 (now FM104) launched they had a clip from a 'left' wing politician which upset then minister for communications Ray Burke , 'we gave them a licence to stop this ' , and later that day Burke enforced the 20% talk rule which they had a short term exemption from....

    Different times !



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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,686 ✭✭✭RINO87


    I think I have heard Bernie Jameson reading news from clips I have heard of Century also. I'm too young (just) to remember it in real time!



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,299 ✭✭✭Declan A Walsh


    Yes, Bernie Jameson has turned up on various commercial stations after her time with the pirates. She also read the news on Century's successor Today FM (originally Radio Ireland) and indeed semi-national station 4FM/Classic Hits. As well as the commercial sector, Bernie was a presenter on almost national Christian station Spirit Radio and has been a long standing presenter on Christmas FM, harking back to her origins as a radio deejay! She would have crossed paths previously in her pirate days with at least one of the latter's principals Paul Shepherd (Radio Dublin Channel 2 and ABC Radio).



  • Posts: 0 Crosby Red Tether


    She’s definitely one of the most distinctive news voices on Irish commercial radio.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 29,904 ✭✭✭✭AndrewJRenko


    Just curious - who was the politician who irked Rambo Burke?



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