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The 1980s were therefore the heyday of pirate radio in Ireland. The 1988 Act effectively limited future pirate radio stations by making it illegal to advertise or support them with stiff penalties.
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It was a great success and offered secure employment to many pirate radio stars who have since thrived and been joined by younger broadcasters over the decades in a flourishing local radio industry. This led to a new Radio and Television Act in 1988 which paved the way, with the cooperation of nearly all pirate radio stations, to a new era in independent local radio in Ireland which commenced in 1989. Many politicians, including future Taoisigh and ministers, were guests on these stations interviewed by well organised news departments. The outcry and public protest which galvanised the country in 1983, when Radio Nova and Sunshine were raided, lead to a position where successive Irish governments refrained from action and tacitly accepted the super pirates. These commercial radio stations and others such as Radio West in Mullingar, Coast 103 FM in Galway and WLR in Waterford changed the landscape of radio in Ireland. In 1988 it, along with stations such as Sunshine and Q102 run by Mike Hogan (who was the first Managing Director of Dublin ILR franchise holder Capital Radio in 1989) and owned by nightclub impresario Pierre Doyle, had annual sales revenues in millions of pounds. The station boasted an extensive marketing and sales department which produced no fewer than six future local radio managing directors or chief executives throughout Ireland under the legalised regime after 1989. In Cork, Radio ERI had a consistent reach in excess of 50% with a reach of 63% recorded in 1986/87, an unprecedented listenership figure.
SNOWFLAKE PRO PIRATE PROFESSIONAL
Professional market research conducted in the 1980s by reputable market research companies such as Lansdowne Research, Irish Marketing Surveys and Behaviours and Attitudes showed that these radio stations consistently led RTE in terms of reach and market share. Radio Nova in Dublin, launched as a 'clutter-free' radio station, was arguably the catalyst for a sea change in radio in Ireland. These were pirate radio stations run for the first time on a commercial basis with the critical support of Ireland's advertising industry based in Dublin. This was followed by the arrival in 1982 of South Coast Radio, ABC Tramore and Radio ERI in Cork. It was commercial music radio at a time when state broadcaster RTÉ struggled to capture the youth market. Pirate radio reached its height of popularity in Ireland in the 1980s after Sunshine Radio and Radio Nova were launched in Dublin.
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While the number of recorded pirate radio stations was in the hundreds, only a few have been notable enough to be remembered. In 1940, for example, Mayo man Jack Sean McNeela died on hunger strike in Arbour Hill Military Detention Barracks after 55 days protesting his arrest for operating a pro IRA pirate radio station. Pirate radio in Ireland has its origins in the early and mid-20th century. ( November 2020) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources.