Between 1956 and 1965 Radio Free Scotland (RFS) broadcast through the PAL audio channel of

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television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...

(then on VHF) after ''

God Save the Queen "God Save the King" is the national and/or royal anthem of the United Kingdom, most of the Commonwealth realms, their territories, and the British Crown Dependencies. The author of the tune is unknown and it may originate in plainchant, b ...

'' finished in the evening, and, later on, on 262 metres

medium wave Medium wave (MW) is the part of the medium frequency (MF) radio band used mainly for AM radio broadcasting. The spectrum provides about 120 channels with more limited sound quality than FM stations on the FM broadcast band. During the dayt ...

on the

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transm ...

. The station was the initiative of David Rollo, an electrical engineer who served as the

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from ...

(SNP)'s treasurer and head of broadcasting. He built a transmitter in the Townhead Cafe in

Kirkintilloch Kirkintilloch (; sco, Kirkintulloch; gd, Cair Cheann Tulaich) is a town and former barony burgh in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It lies on the Forth and Clyde Canal and on the south side of Strathkelvin, about northeast of central Glasgow. ...

with Alvaro Rossi. The first broadcast interrupted a BBC newscast when viewers in

Perth Perth is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth most populous city in Aust ...

were told to stay tuned following sign off. This "pirate" radio transmission opened with the provocative statement: "This is Radio Free Scotland proclaiming to the nation that the fight for independence is on in earnest". This roving station was heard for almost a month in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine, North Ayrshi ...

and Perth. The Scottish National Party (SNP) announced official backing for Radio Free Scotland because of the government ban on broadcasts by the Scottish and

Welsh nationalists Welsh nationalism ( cy, Cenedlaetholdeb Cymreig) emphasises and celebrates the distinctiveness of Welsh culture and Wales as a nation or country. Welsh nationalism may also include calls for further autonomy or self determination which includes ...

on the BBC. The BBC later paid for the right to re-broadcast some RFS material and the SNP and

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

gained the right, as other parties already had, to time on mainstream broadcasters. Leading figures in Radio Free Scotland included "Controller General", Gordon Wilson, who later became an MP (1974–1987) and was Chairman (Convener) of the SNP from 1979 to 1990. Douglas Henderson, also later an MP, was "Director of Programmes" between 1963 and 1965. Scotland's oldest woman when she died, Annie Knight, hosted the station in her living room during 1962. Gordon Wilson has written a book about the station, ''Pirates of the Air''. Radio Free Scotland was reborn online in 2007 after the blessing of William Wolfe and others from the original station was given to Presenter "Pax". The station was presented for the first run by Pax himself with occasional guests providing music and opinion relevant to Scottish independence. Every show still starts with opening words from the original broadcasts. Pax was diagnosed with cancer and went through several treatments for it and the show went off air for a while. After successful treatment the show was back on, this time with co-host Norrie and the double act was born. In late 2014 Pax was diagnosed with Gulf War Syndrome with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder presenting as the main symptom. His treatment continues. In 2013 the show was revamped again to include regular guests Nick Durie and Gordon S. Kerman giving their own views and insights along

Yes Scotland Yes Scotland was the organisation representing the parties, organisations, and individuals campaigning for a ''Yes'' vote in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. It was launched on 25 May 2012 and dissolved in late 2014 after Scotland voted ...

Edinburgh Pentlands co-ordinator Simon Hayter giving monthly updates both nationally and regionally for the Yes Scotland campaign. The station has an account on

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, although it has been inactive since December 2014.

References

External links

Details of book launch of Pirates of the Air - http://news.scotsman.com/politics/Pirates-of-the-Caledonian-Uncovering.6842505.jp
Radio Free Scotland Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/Radio.Free.Scotland {{Authority control Radio stations in Scotland Scottish independence Pirate radio stations in the United Kingdom Scottish National Party Defunct radio stations in the United Kingdom Radio stations established in 1956 Radio stations disestablished in 1965