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Jump ship to:
Quite an impressive endeavour to keep Caroline alive when you look back across the
list. However, the management have been accused by some of abandoning its ideals of free
radio and Loving Awareness by paying the RSL licence fees which may allegedly have then
funded Radiocommunications Agency raids on current pirate radio stations. Caroline has not
been the only organisation to arrange broadcasting events with an offshore flavour. Here
is a list of all the others through the same period of which I am aware:
| 13 August – 9 Sept. 1992 |
Offshore 1584 RSL, MV Galexy, 1½ miles off Walton, also
satellite |
| 18 July – 14 August 1997 |
Radio London RSL, MV Yeomen Rose, off Frinton, 1134 kHz MW |
| 4 – 31 July 1998 |
Radio London (Big L) RSL in Harlow on 87.7 FM |
| 19 Dec 1998 – 8 Jan 1999 |
Radio Atlantis RSL, Ross Revenge, off Sheerness on 1503 MW |
| 2 – 4 April 1999 |
Offshore 98, MV Morning Star (North Sea?), 279, 1566 &
6211kHz |
| 18 July – 14 August 1999 |
Radio England RSL, in Cheshunt, Herts on 1566 MW |
| 3 – 31 August 1999 |
Radio Northsea International RSL, LV18, off Holland-on-Sea,
1575 |
| 21 – 31 August 1999 |
Radio Veronica, off Holland on 1224 MW |
| 11 April – 8 May 2000 |
Radio Northsea International RSL, LV18, Harwich, 1575kHz + 'net |
| 1 – 28 August 2000 |
Radio London RSL, caravan on Clacton Pier, on 1143 kHz MW |
| 31 March – 27 April 2001 |
Radio Mi Amigo RSL, LV18/Mebo 3, Harwich, 1503 kHz MW |
| 3 – 30 June 2001 |
Radio Northsea International RSL, LV18, Harwich, 1503 kHz
MW |
| 4 – 31 August 2001 |
Radio London RSL from Clacton-on-Sea on 1134 kHz MW |
| 8 August - 5 September 2002 |
Radio Mi Amigo RSL, LV18, Harwich Harbour, 1503kHz MW |
| 10 - 17 April 2004 |
Pirate BBC Essex, LV18, Harwich, on 729, 765 & 1530kHz MW |
| 15 - 18 April 2004 |
Radio Noordzee International, special broadcast from Dutch
Radio 192 |
| 1 September - 23 November 2004 |
Super Station RSL, MV Communicator, Orkneys, 105.4FM & 'net |
| from 21 March 2005 |
Big L / Radio London International, test programmes on Sky
Digital |
| 26 March 2005 |
Pirate BBC Essex, Ross Revenge, 729, 765 & 1530MW + FM |
| 14 May 2005 to present |
Big L 1395 MW, studios Frinton-on-Sea, transmitter in
Netherlands |
| 4 - 14 August 2005 |
Pirate BBC Essex, LV18, Harwich, on 729, 765 & 1530kHz MW |
| 14 - 23 July 2007 |
Red Sands Radio RSL, Thames Estuary, 1278kHz MW |
| 4 - 14 August 2007 |
Pirate BBC Essex, LV18, Harwich, on 729, 765 & 1530kHz MW |
| 4 - 13 July 2008 |
Red Sands Radio RSL, Thames Estuary, 1278kHz MW |
| 9 - 14 August 2008 |
Pirate BBC Essex, LV18, Harwich, on 729, 765 & 1530kHz MW |
Such was the demand from listeners, whether it be backlash or nostalgia, and the
accompanying enthusiasm of broadcasters and sponsors, that the 1990s, especially the last
three years, saw this remarkable revival of offshore pirate broadcasting to the English
mainland. Except, that these projects were not pirates as such, broadcasting with Radio
Authority licences from within UK territorial waters – or even closer to home than
that!
Radio Caroline is the ‘odd man out’ (or should that be ‘odd Lady
out’?!?) here, it being a current, ongoing, and hopefully future project as a
‘cutting-edge’ commercial music station. The others of course are quite the
reverse, being nostalgia-based commemorations. The first such project was Offshore 1584,
from the MV Galexy. This ship’s name was not incorrectly spelt; rather a tribute to
its skipper – called Alex! Devised and organised by the Caroline Movement and Project
Galaxy, a Restricted Service Licence was operated for 28 days from the vessel previously
used to transport sightseeing anoraks out to catch a glimpse of the Ross Revenge, and the
Lazer 558’s MV Communicator. An offshore convention took place in Walton-on-the-Naze
within the broadcast dates.
(Offshore 1584 photographs by Alan Beech - click on photos to visit
Alan's website) |
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