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The Bell Presents Radio Caroline at 50!
On 28 March 2014, the most enduring and well-known pirate radio station, Radio Caroline, celebrated its 50th birthday. For the next two weeks, the Music Machine heard on the Bell, www.the-bell.net, will ensure this famous lady celebrates her birthday in style!
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 monopoly, Caroline was a pirate radio station which only became formally illegal in 1967.
The Radio Caroline name was used to broadcast from international waters, using five different ships owned by three different owners, from 1964 to 1990, and via satellite from 1998 to 2013. Radio Caroline currently broadcasts 24 hours a day via the Internet and by occasional Restricted Service Licence.
Caroline faced not only the challenging conditions of broadcasting from a rough sea but also the might of successive governments. She angered legitimate broadcasters and survived numerous mutinies, raiders and a hurricane. She even returned when the original ship, the Mi Amigo, slipped to a watery grave.
The Radio Caroline story is in two parts. The memories of Caroline broadcasters are set against a backdrop of music to denote the period being discussed. You will also hear jingles and show clips to give you a sense of how Caroline sounded and the format differences as the years unfolded.
Many hours have been spent over the past few weeks cleaning up the sound on old Caroline recordings, particularly those from the 60's and 70's, and I very much hope you enjoy the programmes. Whether you've known about Caroline for a while, or you are unsure of her history, I hope you will learn something new.
Part 1 of Caroline at 50, ("A Life on the Medium Wave"), will air Saturday 5 April at 2 PM Eastern, 7 PM UK. Part 2, ("Fool if you Think It's Over"), will air on 12 April at the same time. I'll take you from 1964 right up to the 50th birthday celebrations which took place in Essex on 28 March 2014.
At The Bell, we're very glad to bring these shows to you to celebrate what undoubtedly is a magnificent achievement! If you are a fan of British radio this is a Must Listen!
