Radio Scotland
Encyclopedia
Radio Scotland was an offshore pirate radio
station broadcasting on 1241 kHz mediumwave
(242 metres), created by Tommy Shields
in 1965. The station was located on the former lightship
M.V. Comet, which was anchored at various locations off the Scottish
coastline, usually outside territorial waters
.
The station began broadcasting on 31 December 1965 and featured DJs including Paul Young
, Richard Park
, and Jack McLaughlin with his irreverent ceilidh programme that promised to tickle the listener's "tartan tonsils." Its land-based headquarters, Radio Scotland House, was located at a (now demolished) building at Cranworth Street, Hillhead in Glasgow. (A two-minute walk from BBC's Scottish HQ). As well as being the station's administrative centre, Cranworth Street also allowed the creation of taped programmes - using 1/4" magnetic tape, which were taken out to the ship by tender and replayed as and when required.
The Comet was initially anchored off Dunbar on the east coast of Scotland and the station achieved strong coverage of Edinburgh
, but could not be received as clearly in Glasgow
. Shields decided to move the ship to Troon off the island of Arran on the West coast, but since it had no working engine this meant that it had to be towed all the way. Adding to the expense was the fact that the station remained on the air during the journey, meaning that it had to take a much longer route to remain outside British territorial waters.
The anchorages off the West coast of Scotland
were found to be within territorial waters and the company was fined £80 as a result, bringing about a move to offshore of Co Down, Northern Ireland
and the station changing its name to Radio Scotland and Ireland for a time, then Irish state broadcaster RTÉ claimed the station was causing adjacent channel interference to its Dublin transmitter (then on 1250 kHz). In addition, unfortunately but unsurprisingly, transmissions to the East of Scotland were much worse from this location, so Shields returned the ship to a new anchorage on the East coast off Fife Ness and the Isle of May. As well as giving the Eastern area of Scotland a strong signal, the "water run" from this position meant the signal didn't hit land until it reached Grangemouth in Stirlingshire, only about 20 miles (32 km) from Glasgow. So the Central Belt
at last had a listenable signal.
The station closed on August 14, 1967, when the Marine Offences Act 1967 legislation came into force. Shields had repeatedly lobbied the British Government to grant Radio Scotland exemption from the act and attempted to negotiate terms under which the station might continue to operate legally, but was always refused. One of his main arguments was that the station was broadcast into areas of Scotland where it was not possible to receive BBC radio services.
The majority of the crew and presenters were at a party in Glasgow to say farewell to Radio Scotland that night. It was left to Andy Main, electrical engineer and occasional late night DJ, to give the last transmission and put Radio Scotland off air.
Many of the Radio Scotland presenters went on to have careers on other radio stations, including BBC Radio 1
, Radio Caroline
, Radio Luxembourg
and BBC Radio Scotland
.http://www.rossrevenge.co.uk/scot/scot.htm
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 broadcasting on 1241 kHz mediumwave
Mediumwave
Medium wave is the part of the medium frequency radio band used mainly for AM radio broadcasting. For Europe the MW band ranges from 526.5 kHz to 1606.5 kHz...
(242 metres), created by Tommy Shields
Tommy Shields
Thomas Charles Shields is an American baseball player who played infielder in the Major Leagues from 1992-1993 for the Baltimore Orioles and Chicago Cubs.-References:...
in 1965. The station was located on the former lightship
Lightship
Lightship may refer to:* Lightvessel, a permanently moored ship that has light beacons mounted as navigational aids* Light displacement, a displacement figure that measures a ship complete in all respects, but without consumables, stores, cargo, crew, and effects*Lightship, a type of blimp operated...
M.V. Comet, which was anchored at various locations off the Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
coastline, usually outside territorial waters
Territorial waters
Territorial waters, or a territorial sea, as defined by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, is a belt of coastal waters extending at most from the baseline of a coastal state...
.
The station began broadcasting on 31 December 1965 and featured DJs including Paul Young
Paul Young (actor)
Paul Young is a Scottish television actor and presenter. He is the son of the actor John Young. Educated at George Heriot's School in Edinburgh....
, Richard Park
Richard Park (broadcaster)
Richard Park is a Scottish media personality and businessman, who is Executive Director of Global Radio. He was previously a media consultant and broadcaster in the UK and has also made appearances as the 'Headmaster' of BBC TV's Fame Academy programmes.-Professional career:Voted most influential...
, and Jack McLaughlin with his irreverent ceilidh programme that promised to tickle the listener's "tartan tonsils." Its land-based headquarters, Radio Scotland House, was located at a (now demolished) building at Cranworth Street, Hillhead in Glasgow. (A two-minute walk from BBC's Scottish HQ). As well as being the station's administrative centre, Cranworth Street also allowed the creation of taped programmes - using 1/4" magnetic tape, which were taken out to the ship by tender and replayed as and when required.
The Comet was initially anchored off Dunbar on the east coast of Scotland and the station achieved strong coverage of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, but could not be received as clearly in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
. Shields decided to move the ship to Troon off the island of Arran on the West coast, but since it had no working engine this meant that it had to be towed all the way. Adding to the expense was the fact that the station remained on the air during the journey, meaning that it had to take a much longer route to remain outside British territorial waters.
The anchorages off the West coast of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
were found to be within territorial waters and the company was fined £80 as a result, bringing about a move to offshore of Co Down, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
and the station changing its name to Radio Scotland and Ireland for a time, then Irish state broadcaster RTÉ claimed the station was causing adjacent channel interference to its Dublin transmitter (then on 1250 kHz). In addition, unfortunately but unsurprisingly, transmissions to the East of Scotland were much worse from this location, so Shields returned the ship to a new anchorage on the East coast off Fife Ness and the Isle of May. As well as giving the Eastern area of Scotland a strong signal, the "water run" from this position meant the signal didn't hit land until it reached Grangemouth in Stirlingshire, only about 20 miles (32 km) from Glasgow. So the Central Belt
Central Belt
The Central Belt of Scotland is a common term used to describe the area of highest population density within Scotland. Despite the name, it is not geographically central but is nevertheless situated at the 'waist' of Scotland on a conventional map and the term 'central' is used in many local...
at last had a listenable signal.
The station closed on August 14, 1967, when the Marine Offences Act 1967 legislation came into force. Shields had repeatedly lobbied the British Government to grant Radio Scotland exemption from the act and attempted to negotiate terms under which the station might continue to operate legally, but was always refused. One of his main arguments was that the station was broadcast into areas of Scotland where it was not possible to receive BBC radio services.
The majority of the crew and presenters were at a party in Glasgow to say farewell to Radio Scotland that night. It was left to Andy Main, electrical engineer and occasional late night DJ, to give the last transmission and put Radio Scotland off air.
Many of the Radio Scotland presenters went on to have careers on other radio stations, including BBC 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...
, Radio Caroline
Radio Caroline
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...
, 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 ....
and BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland is BBC Scotland's national English-language radio network. It broadcasts a wide variety of programming, including news, sport, light entertainment, music, the arts, comedy, drama, history and lifestyle...
.http://www.rossrevenge.co.uk/scot/scot.htm