Pirate Radio In Europe
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Pirate radio in Europe emerged as unlicensed radio broadcasting stations, often operating from offshore vessels or undisclosed land-based locations. The phenomenon began in the mid-20th century and became widespread in the 1960s and 1970s, gaining popularity in countries such as Denmark, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Offering alternative music and content across the
British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...
and continental Europe,
pirate radio Pirate radio is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license, whether an invalid license or no license at all. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are rec ...
challenged government control of the airwaves in the region until changes in legislation either legalised or shut down these stations. Despite suppression, pirate radio left a lasting cultural impact on European broadcasting.


Denmark

Radio Mercur Radio Mercur was a Danish offshore broadcasting commercial radio station. It started regular transmission on 2 August 1958 and ceased officially on 31 July 1962, followed by 3 days of transmissions from 13 to 15 August 1962. Later broadcasting ...
began transmission from the ''MV Cheeta'' on 2 August 1958. Danmarks Commercielle Radio (DCR) began transmission from the ''MV Lucky Star'' on 15 September 1961. DCR later united with Radio Mercur. Radio Mercur ended transmission in 1962 due to a Danish law prohibiting assistance to illegal broadcasting directed to a Danish audience. Pirat radio 69 was located in the activist house "Ungdomshuset" in
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
from 14 December 2006 to 1 March 2007. In 2012, Byens Radio started broadcasting in central, north and south Copenhagen with micro-powered radio equipment, inspired by Mbanna Kantako and his family from humanrightsradio.net in
Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its population was 114,394 at the 2020 United States census, which makes it the state's List of cities in Illinois, seventh-most populous cit ...
. The station went on a week-long break starting mid-February 2012 after a detection van was spotted near the broadcasting site. The left-wing activist website Modkraft.dk had evidence that Byens Radio broadcast from 31 December 2011. The police's detection van never got close enough to stop the actual broadcasting, but led the activist group behind the station to move the broadcasting site elsewhere in order to avoid eviction. By moving from one base to another several times, the broadcasters were never found. Many newspaper articles and web sites document its existence and some of the original broadcasting is represented online. Byens Radio resumed transmission on 4 November 2013.


France

The first wave of French pirate radio was a political movement based mainly within French territory, including Radio Verte, Radio Ivre, Radio Active and Radio Lorraine Coeur d'Acier. Most of these stations were short-lived; some, such as
Radio Verte Fessenheim Radio Dreyeckland is a radio station in Mulhouse, Alsace, France. Another station with the same name operates in Freiburg im Breisgau Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-la ...
, became licensed stations.''Écoutez la vraie différence ! radio verte Fessenheim, radio S.O.S. emploi-Longwy et les autres'', published 1997 by ''la Pensée sauvage'', editor Claude Collin, In January 1978, the
DST Daylight saving time (DST), also referred to as daylight savings time, daylight time (United States and Canada), or summer time (United Kingdom, European Union, and others), is the practice of advancing clocks to make better use of the long ...
arrested eleven people accused of radio piracy. In May, President
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing Valéry René Marie Georges Giscard d'Estaing (, ; ; 2 February 19262 December 2020), also known as simply Giscard or VGE, was a French politician who served as President of France from 1974 to 1981. After serving as Ministry of the Economy ...
asked the government to put an end to pirate radio stations. On 17 May, the Lecat law confirmed the monopoly of state radio stations and toughened the penalties for offenders. The socialist opposition supported the fight of free radio stations for freedom of expression without promising the end of the monopoly.
François Mitterrand François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...
was elected president in 1981; the law on audiovisual communication, passed on 29 July 1982, abolished the state monopoly and authorized free radio. In February 1983, 22 stations obtained authorization to broadcast in Paris. The High Authority for Audiovisual Communication was created in 1982, replaced in 1986 by the
National Commission for Communication and Liberties The National Commission for Communication and Liberties (''Commission nationale de la communication et des libertés'' or ''CNCL'') was a TV and radio regulatory body set up in France in 1986 as the successor to the Haute Autorité de la communica ...
(CNCL). The frequency authorizations issued by the CNCL in 1987 were the subject of several scandals, over the authorization of several commercial stations to the detriment of free radios and non-commercial associative radios, and the lack of transparency in the choice of frequencies. A small associative station, Radio Laser, one of the radio stations excluded, initiated a lawsuit against Radio Courtoisie for "active corruption" of the CNCL, and the members of the CNCL were at the same time prosecuted for "confiscation". Weakened by these controversies, the CNCL was replaced in 1989 by the Superior Council of the Audiovisual which gained increased competences, a greater independence of action over regulation and the allocation of frequencies, and better legal support to apply these decisions.


Ireland

Pirate radio in Ireland has a long history, with hundreds of pirate radio stations having operated within the country. Due to past lax enforcement of the rules, the lack of commercial radio until 1989, and the small physical size of the country, pirate radio stations proliferated for a number of years. A small number of stations also attempted television broadcasts although most of these ventures were short-lived.


Netherlands

Radio Veronica Radio Veronica was an offshore radio station that began broadcasting in 1960, and was on air for over fourteen years. It was set up by independent radio, TV and household electrical retailers in the Netherlands, to stimulate the sales of ra ...
began transmitting in Dutch in April 1960 on AM mediumwave (192 meter, 1562 kHz; later 538 meter, 557 kHz) from the '' MV Borkum Riff'', and after 1965 from the ''
MV Norderney MV ''Norderney'' was from November, 1964 until 31 August 1974 the transmission ship for offshore radio station Radio Veronica.Website University GroningeYears of Veronica visited 29 June 2012 History ''Norderney'' was built in 1949 as the ''MV ...
'', in international waters off the coast of
Scheveningen Scheveningen () is one of the eight districts of The Hague, Netherlands, as well as a subdistrict () of that city. Scheveningen is a modern seaside resort with a long, sandy beach, an esplanade, a pier, and a lighthouse. The beach is popular ...
, and soon became the most popular radio station in the Netherlands. Broadcasts were targeted to the Netherlands only, and transmitting power was deliberately kept moderate to avoid interference with international radio stations. Most broadcasts were recorded on shore in
Hilversum Hilversum () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland, Netherlands. Located in the heart of the Gooi, it is ...
. The station operated until August 1974, when the Dutch ratification of the Strasbourg treaty came into effect, after which Radio Veronica—then called VOO—became part of the regular Dutch broadcasting system. Radio Veronica is now an independent radio station. From 1964, Radio Noordzee and TV Noordzee transmitted in Dutch from
REM Island REM Island is a platform built in the Republic of Ireland and towed off the Dutch coast in 1964 as the pirate broadcasting home of ''Radio and TV Noordzee''. Both stations were dismantled by the Netherlands Armed Forces. It was 10 km (6 miles ...
, an artificial construction resembling an early offshore oil platform. It was built in
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
and towed into a position off the coast of the Netherlands, where it was assembled on site. The two stations were short lived and were forcibly closed by an air and sea attack by the
Dutch Armed Forces The Netherlands Armed Forces () are the military forces of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (mainland Netherlands in Europe and islands of the Dutch Caribbean). The armed forces consist of four service branches: the Royal Netherlands Navy (), the ...
. However, the funds solicited from the project by the REM island project were later used to launch a legitimate and fully licensed station in the Netherlands. In 1970, Radio Noordzee Internationaal (RNI) began broadcasting on AM, FM and international shortwave from the ''MV Mebo II'', originally anchored off the Netherlands. The ship moved for some time off the coast of south-eastern England, where it was jammed by a
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
transmitter, before returning to the Netherlands. The owners of the ''MV Mebo II'' eventually sold their offshore station to
Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
as a revolutionary radio station. In the end Libya blew the vessel up and sank it for target practice. Other pirate stations broadcasting to the Netherlands included Capital Radio (1970, aboard the ''MV King David''),
Radio Delmare Radio Delmare was a Dutch offshore pirate radio station that operated from 1978 to 1979. The project, led by Gerard van Dam, aimed to revive offshore broadcasting after the shutdown of Radio Veronica and Radio North Sea International. The team ...
(1978, aboard the ''MV Martina''),
Radio Monique Radio Monique was an offshore radio station broadcasting to the Netherlands and Belgium from the Radio Caroline ship, . Originally intended to broadcast in 1981 from a new radio ship called MV ''Magda Maria'' alongside a station to be called Ra ...
(1984-1987, aboard Radio Caroline's
MV Ross Revenge MV ''Ross Revenge'' is a radio ship, the home of Radio Caroline, as well as having supported Radio Monique and various religious broadcasters. Funded by the Icelandic government, she was constructed in Bremerhaven in 1960 and served as an Ic ...
), and Radio 558/819 (1988-1989, aboard the ''
MV Ross Revenge MV ''Ross Revenge'' is a radio ship, the home of Radio Caroline, as well as having supported Radio Monique and various religious broadcasters. Funded by the Icelandic government, she was constructed in Bremerhaven in 1960 and served as an Ic ...
''). There are still many Dutch pirate radio stations, mostly located in rural areas. It has been claimed that in 2011 approximately 50% of all European pirate stations are located in the East-Netherlands, especially in the provinces of Overijssel, Friesland and Drenthe, as well as western Brabant. Most of the pirate radio stations broadcast so-called "pirate music": traditional Dutch folk music combined with classic English, German and Polka. Most operate on FM, but some can be found on AM, particularly 1611 to 1700 kHz. Like many other European countries, another hotspot is the 48 meter-band on
Shortwave radio Shortwave radio is radio transmission using radio frequencies in the shortwave bands (SW). There is no official definition of the band range, but it always includes all of the High frequency, high frequency band (HF), which extends from 3 to 30& ...
, frequency 6200-6500 kHz.


Sweden

From the early 1950s until 31 May 1952, a station called Black Peter was run by the brothers John and Gunnar Figaro from their home in Lomsjö, a small village in southern Lappland. They were suspected of transmitting information from espionage, resulting in a major hunt. From 1958, Skånes Radio Mercur, later renamed Radio Syd, broadcast from the ''MV Cheeta'' and later the ''MV Cheeta II'', which was also used at various times by TV Syd and Radio Caroline South, while the ship was anchored off south-east England. Radio Syd was shut down in January 1966, and its owner, Britt Wadner, moved to
Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...
, where she launched a land-based Radio Syd in May 1970 using the antenna from ''Cheeta II''. In 1961,
Radio Nord Radio Nord was a Swedish offshore commercial station that operated briefly from 8 March 1961 to 30 June 1962 from a ship anchored in international waters of the Baltic Sea off Stockholm, Sweden. While the station was dubbed as a pirate radio s ...
began broadcasting in Swedish from the ''MV Bon Jour'' (later renamed ''Magda Maria'' and ''Mi Amigo''). This station was the behind-the-scenes creation of American
Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...
broadcast pioneer
Gordon McLendon Gordon Barton McLendon (June 8, 1921 – September 14, 1986Texas State Historical AssociationMcClendon, Gordon Barton/ref>) was an American radio broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Maverick of Radio", McLendon is widely credited for perfecting, during ...
and
Clint Murchison Clinton Williams Murchison Jr. (September 12, 1923 – March 30, 1987) was an American businessman and founder of the Dallas Cowboys football team. A son of Clint Murchison Sr., who made his first fortune in oil exploration and became notorious ...
, owner of the
Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
, both from
Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
. As the ''MV Mi Amigo'', this radio ship would later be used to transmit under the names of Radio 199, Radio Veronica, Radio Atlantis, Radio Seagull, Radio Mi Amigo, and Radio Caroline.


United Kingdom

Pirate radio has been a popular and enduring
radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3  hertz (Hz) and 300  gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...
medium in the UK since the 1960s, despite expansions in licensed
broadcasting Broadcasting is the data distribution, distribution of sound, audio audiovisual content to dispersed audiences via a electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), ...
, and the advent of both
digital radio Digital radio is the use of digital technology to transmit or receive across the radio spectrum. Digital transmission by radio waves includes digital broadcasting, and especially digital audio radio services. This should not be confused with In ...
and
internet radio Internet radio, also known as online radio, web radio, net radio, streaming radio, e-radio and IP radio, is a digital audio service transmitted via the Internet. Broadcasting on the Internet is usually referred to as webcasting since it is not ...
. Although it peaked throughout the 1960s and again during the 1980s/1990s, it remains in existence today. Having moved from transmitting from
ship A ship is a large watercraft, vessel that travels the world's oceans and other Waterway, navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally disti ...
s at
sea A sea is a large body of salt water. There are particular seas and the sea. The sea commonly refers to the ocean, the interconnected body of seawaters that spans most of Earth. Particular seas are either marginal seas, second-order section ...
to
tower block A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdiction. ...
s across British towns and cities, in 2009 the UK broadcasting regulator
Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, internet, telecommunications and mail, postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-rang ...
estimated more than 150
pirate radio Pirate radio is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license, whether an invalid license or no license at all. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are rec ...
stations were still operating.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pirate Radio In Europe
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
Radio in Europe