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The Popular Music Heritage of the Dutch Pirates: Illegal Radio and Cultural Identity
To cite: Hoeven, A. van der. (2012). The popular music heritage of the Dutch pirates: illegal radio and cultural identity. Media, Culture & Society, 34(8), 927–943. The popular music heritage of the Dutch pirates: illegal radio and cultural identity Arno van der Hoeven Abstract This article explores how cultural identities are negotiated in relation to the heritage of illegal radio in the Netherlands. The term ‘pirate radio’ commonly refers to the offshore radio stations that were broadcasting during the 1960s. These stations introduced commercial radio and popular music genres like beat music, which were not played by public broadcasters at the time. In their wake, land-based pirates began broadcasting for local audiences. This study examines the identities that are constituted by the narrative of pirate radio. Drawing on in-depth interviews with archivists, fans and broadcasters, this article explores the connection between pirate radio, popular music heritage and cultural identity. Moreover, it considers how new technologies such as internet radio provide platforms to engage with this heritage and thus to maintain these local identities. To examine how the memories of pirate radio live on in the present a narrative approach to identity will be used. Corresponding author: Arno van der Hoeven, Erasmus Research Centre for Media, Communication and Culture, Erasmus University Rotterdam, W-L3-121, PO Box 1738, NL-3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Email: [email protected] Keywords cultural heritage, cultural identity, cultural memory, DIY heritage, offshore radio, pirate radio, popular music Introduction By illegally using radio frequencies which belong to licensed broadcasters, pirate stations in Europe (e.g. -
Caroline North Returns for 2017
Caroline North returns for 2017 DATELINE London and Douglas, Isle of Man 23 January 2017 Radio Caroline North returns this weekend (28/29 January 2017) online and on Manx Radio 1368 AM for the first of our broadcasts in 2017. We'll go back to the very early days of the station and hear how our first ship the Fredericia was found, along with new interviews that reveal how the finances were put in place to start the operation. And we'll hear from our founder Ronan O'Rahilly as to what he thought the station achieved. So join us this weekend live on board the Ross Revenge for Radio Caroline North. Your emails are always welcome at [email protected] Radio Caroline North on AM from the Isle of Man is sponsored by Tiptree, Preserves of Distinction. Caroline North Schedule Saturday 28th January 06:00 John Ellery 08.30 Chris Williams' Carnaby Street from Manx Radio 10:30 Kevin Turner 13:00 Chris Pearson 15:30 Johnny Lewis 18:00 Dave Foster 21:00 Barry James Sunday 29th January 00:00 Andrew Austin 03:00 Bill Rollins 06:00 Ray Clark 09:00 Kevin Turner 11:30 Johnny Lewis 14:00 Chris Pearson 16:30 Barry James 19:00 Dave Foster 21:00 Close Programmes subject to change ++++++++++++++++++++ Radio Day 2017 DATELINE Amsterdam 23 January 2017 Plans are being made for the next Radio Day in 2017. It will be held at The Entrepot, Harlingen Saturday 20th May 2017. See these pages for further information:- http://www.radioday.nl/ https://www.facebook.com/RadioDay-Harlingen-751177308383830/ +++++++++++++++++++++ Carl Conway DATELINE Dover 14th February 2017 Carl Conway, one of the first voices heard on Radio Caroline when the station launched in March 1964, has died at the age of 95. -
The Dutch Radio Day
The Dutch Radio Day It was in 1978 that Mike Baron and Nick Oakly from Music Radio Promotions asked as few people from the Netherlands, including Hans Knot, to cooperate in a special event called Zeezenders 20, which was held at Noordwijkerhout. Inspired by the Zeezenders 20 happening Rob Olthof from Amsterdam suggested that he, along with Hans, could organise small meetings for offshore radio fans. He made a beginning with the so- called ‘Movie Afternoons’. It was the time when private videos arose and so those 8mm movies, made by offshore radio anoraks, were screened and some discussions were launched. In 1980, Hans Verbaan of the Free Radio Campaign joined in and a group of interested people got together in a small building in Scheveningen harbour on quite a regular basis. These movie afternoons sometimes took place twice a year and it came to a point that there were more people than available chairs. Therefore some bigger locations in cities like Amsterdam, Haarlem, Utrecht and again Amsterdam had to be found. In 1984, the first guests were interviewed including Simon Barrett, Juul Geleick and Tom Mulder. In the meantime, the organising team was growing with Piet Treffers and Tom de Munck joining in. From the late eighties, more people from abroad - most of all Germany and Belgium - attended the event each year. During the nineties, more and more deejays and technicians from former offshore radio stations visited the Radio Days to be interviewed. Our team had been joined by Jelle Boonstra, who did a marvellous job within the Radio Day organisation during a period of 15 years. -
A Very Warm Welcome to This Christmas 2019 Edition of the Hans Knot International Radio Report. Who Ever Thought That This Repor
A very warm welcome to this Christmas 2019 edition of the Hans Knot International Radio Report. Who ever thought that this report would still be published after so many years. Still many people around the world want to share memories, discuss subjects concerning radio and have their photographs digitalized for sharing. First of all I want to wish you and your relatives a very happy Christmas and all best wishes possible for 2020. Of course there was a lot of response on the early November report and in this one there is a selection of these responses starting with the one from Ian Johnston who wrote: ‘An excellent read as usual Hans! On one point concerning newspaper advertising - I was with Radio Scotland 242 and also writing for a newspaper group. Obviously I mention 242 a lot in my articles and asked the editor if he had any objections. His reply was that since the station came on air the newspaper advertising had increased because the advertisers liked to print "As heard on Radio Scotland”!’ Yes Ian profit on both sides was a logical thing although newspapers in the Netherlands were not always happy with the popularity of the offshore radio stations. Next is Robb Eden, who we know from RNI and Caroline. ‘Sincere thanks for yet another action packed newsletter. Referring to your article from Mr. Bollier I believe that all the DJ's and crew who worked on the ship will confirm that we had access to all areas of the ship. In fact, considering that MEBO Ltd. -
RMAI Newsletter English DEC 2020
Newsletter Wednesday, December 23, 2020 MI AMIGO studio in Lint: THE MAGIC OF RADIO! converted into a studio / Offshore Days Wonderland - Live fom Antwerp broadcast center The 'Great Media Studio' in Lint near Antwerp is normally Eric Hofman's workplace and home of his live Mi Amigo weekend shows. Now it is specially adapted to accommodate 'Offshore Days Wonderland’, a week-long live radio broadcast event between Christmas and December 31. From here, the 2 daily radio shows of Eric, Lion Keezer and other Mi Amigo DJs and their guests will be broadcast live. From 27 to 31 December, the Radio Mi Amigo DJs will bring back the warmth and atmosphere of the holidays to your radio in the best of Offshore -Free Radio- tradition, Live from a specially equipped studio in Lint, near Antwerp as well as from remote studio’s in 3 countries. A heartwarming, wonderful five-day international radio broadcast event full of surprises. A ‘must-hear’ for every Offshore Radio fan. Rediscover The Magic of ‘Free’ Radio! The transmitters in Kall, Germany Via dedicated streams, remote studios With many of the original offshore radio- and Mi Amigo DJs, such as: in 3 countries are connected to its Johan Vermeer, Theo van de Velde, Maurice Bokkebroek, Ferry large broadcast mixing console, Eden, Marc Jacobs, Frans van der Drift, Lion Keezer, Eric including the studios of Marc Jacobs Hofman, Paul Newman, Bob Noakes, Steve Foster and guests. in Groningen and Frans van der Drift in Rotterdam, Holland. Mi Amigo DJs unable to travel due to Corona, will appear as guests via online connections. -
The Pirates and Pop Music Radio
SELLING THE SIXTIES Was pirate radio in the sixties a non-stop psychedelic party – an offshore discothèque that never closed? Or was there more to it than hip radicalism and floating jukeboxes? From the mavericks in the Kings Road and the clubs ofSohotothemultinationaladvertisers andbigbusiness boardrooms Selling the Sixties examines the boom of pirate broadcasting in Britain. Using two contrasting models of unauthorized broadcasting, Radios Caroline and London, Robert Chapman situates offshore radio in its social and political context. In doing so, he challenges many of the myths which have grown up around the phenomenon. The pirates’ own story is framed within an examination of commercial precedents in Europe and America, the BBC’s initial reluctance to embrace pop culture, and the Corporation’s eventual assimilation of pirate programming into its own pop service, Radio One. Selling the Sixties utilizes previously unseen evidence from the pirates’ own archives, revealing interviews with those directly involved, and rare audio material from the period. This fascinating look at the relationship between unauthorized broadcasting and the growth of pop culture will appeal not only to students of communications, mass media, and cultural studies but to all those with an enthusiasm for radio history, pop, and the sixties. Robert Chapman’s broadcasting experience includes BBC local radio in Bristol and Northampton. He has also contributed archive material to Radios One and Four. He is currently Lecturer and Researcher in the Department of Performing Arts and Media Studies at Salford College of Technology. Selling the Sixties THE PIRATES AND POP MUSIC RADIO ROBERT CHAPMAN London and New York First published 1992 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge a division of Routledge, Chapman and Hall, Inc. -
Radio Mi Amigo DJ Peter Van Dam Has Died
Radio Mi Amigo DJ Peter van Dam has died DATELINE 6th January 2018 Peter van Dam - described as the great godfather of Flemish pop radio, has died at the age of 65. Best remembered for his programmes on Radio Mi Amigo, Peter also worked on other offshore stations - Radio 199, Radio Caroline and Radio Atlantis. After offshore radio Peter worked on many land-based radio stations including TROS, AVRO, KRO, Radio 10 Gold, Hilversum 3, VTM, MaevaFM, Radio Contact, Radio 192 and Radio Flandria (where he was launch Programme Director). Colleague Eric Hofman paid tribute to Peter and his contribution to Flemish radio - "The first time we met was in Vilvoorde when we became colleagues. He was a great guy, with a huge personality, both in the studio and outside. A man with a phenomenal sense of humour, a lightning-fast thinker, a genius radio maker and top disc-jockey. The only Belgian who became a DJ at Hilversum 3 in prime time and the only Belgian to present the Pinkpop Festival - a whole honour. The name Peter van Dam remains inextricably linked to the golden age of radio which he presented in his inimitable, unique style. Peter is synonymous with Radio Atlantis, Caroline, Hilversum 3, but primarily Radio Mi Amigo, where he first broadcast live on board the MV Mi Amigo and later recorded programmes in Spain. Greece also became acquainted with his enormous radio talent and experience, where he helped to promote Karpathos FM from the bottom to the top of the ratings. For me Peter van Dam is the best Belgian deejay ever. -
REFLECTIONS on the REM ISLAND PROJECT in the First Years of The
REFLECTIONS ON THE REM ISLAND PROJECT In the first years of the sixties of last century the NTS, Nederlandse Televisie Stichting (Foundation Dutch Television), which was the umbrella organisation for the Public Broadcasting Societies in the Netherlands, had to inform the partners within the Eurovision about the developments happening on the High Seas with the offshore radio stations, often mentioned wrongly ‘the pirates’. I want to highlight two of those to show how the members of the board thought about ‘The REM island project’. Let’s first go back to 1963. Since 1960 the offshore radio station Radio Veronica had been operating from a ship moored off the Dutch coast. With its partly light music programmes and commercials, it had proved a great financial success. So far the Dutch government had not taken action whatsoever against this activity, which in the Netherlands was partly regarded as illicit. Many times in the Dutch newspapers articles were published and mentioned that soon action could be taken against Veronica. Several reasons were given amongst the most interfering of the station on several distress frequencies. In 1963 a group of six people formed the REM Company, Radio en Explotatie Maatschappij, with the main backer Mr. Verolme from Rotterdam, who had made a big name in the shipping industry. Their aim was to set up an offshore radio and television station from a, for that purpose to built, artificial island. Construction took place at a shipyard in Cork, Ireland, but it would take up to May 16th 1964 before there was any assembly activity on the Northsea, off the coast of Noordwijk. -
The World's Most Famous Offshore Radio Station. On
Channels How to receive us Radio Caroline offers two distinct channels, On 648kHz AM receivable via our two websites (addresses on ● If you live within the reception area of our AM (medium back page) or smartphone apps. Our main wave) transmitter, primarily Suffolk and North Essex, then channel may also be heard on 648 kHz AM and you can tune in as you may have done back in the day when The world’s most famous some DAB radios in certain areas of the UK. the station was live from the North sea. See our main website for DAB coverage. offshore radio station. Listen online ● The internet is everywhere and internet On 648kHz AM, online radio is now a serious player. Radio and on your mobile Caroline can be heard at the internet’s furthest reach. ● Probably the easiest way to listen is via Radio Player, an industry wide pop-up Our main channel Caroline Flashback, player accessed from the “Listen” button plays music from all plays music from the on our website. of the decades in 60s and the 70s when which the station has the station broadcast ● Listen to Caroline on any iPhone, iPod broadcast. from the high seas. Touch, iPad or Android device with the Caroline App – just £1.99 from Apple’s Radio Caroline is iTunes App Store. See our website for the a not-for-profit Android version. organisation whose main running costs ● Many people are purchasing stand-alone come from Support ‘Wi-fi’ radios that plug directly into a Group subscriptions broadband wall socket without the need and donations. -
RADIO MERCUR 50Th Anniversary of Europe’S First Offshore Radio Station
RADIO MERCUR 50th Anniversary of Europe’s first offshore radio station This month marks the 50th anniversary of the first broadcast by Radio Mercur – Europe’s first “pirate” offshore radio station, anchored in international waters off Denmark. It started a revolution in European broadcasting, challenging the monopoly of state-broadcasters and would be copied by many others over the next decade, including Radio Veronica and Radio Caroline. On 11th July 1958, a small German fishing boat, ‘Cheeta I’, was fitted out for broadcasting at sea and left port to anchor south-east of Copenhagen, where it started transmissions on 93.12 MHz FM with an ERP of around 20 kW. The station used a directional aerial, kept pointing in the right direction from the control room on board. The boat was registered in Panama, though after pressure from the Danish government, Panama withdrew registration at the end of August 1958. ‘Cheeta 1’ then claimed to be registered in Honduras, but was later discovered to be in fact stateless. During the night of 17-18 July 1958, ‘Cheeta I’ lost her anchor and antenna and ran aground just outside the Swedish city of Malmö. After repairs, the ship returned to her former position, while the frequency was changed to 89.55 MHz and the transmission power was increased. left: the quite small radio ship ‘Cheeta I’ with only 107 BRT capacity. (The ‘Cheeta II’ was 450 BRT) As Danish law only prohibited broadcasting from land, the station could operate sales offices and studios on land, the latter were in a house in a high-class suburb of Copenhagen. -
Is There a Future for an Offshore Radio Museum in the Netherlands? In
Is there a future for an offshore radio museum in the Netherlands? In June 2016 it’s 22 years ago that there was a special exhibition opened in the former broadcast museum at the Amersfoortseweg in Hilversum. The subject was ‘The Dutch language offshore radio stations in the past 3 decades’. The amount of visitors to the museum during the period of exhibition was so high that it was decided to let it open another few months after the official closing date. A lot of the former listeners to stations like Veronica, RNI. Radio Mi Amigo and Radio Caroline, amongst others, knew to find their way to the museum to bring back a lot of memories and talk with people who have the same interests. In the years afterwards a lot of these persons got together during the annual Radiodays and several reunions, which took place in several places in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany as well as in England. It’s almost 42 years ago that the so called anti offshore radio law came in act and the memories to those offshore radio stations is still so strong that a group of persons came with the idea to start preparation to open an ‘Veronica and offshore radio museum’ Since the month of January in cooperation between 192 TV (Bert van Breda), Foundation Norderney (Ad Bouman and Juul Geleick) and Museum Rock Art (Jaap Schut) people are working hard to bring the ideas to reality. The plan is to open the museum in a part of the building used by 192TV in Nijkerk. -
Alexander Badenoch Between Rock and Roll and a Hard Place: 'Pirate
Alexander Badenoch Between Rock and Roll and a Hard Place: ‘Pirate’ Radio and the Problems of Territory in Cold War Europe Chapter in Christian Henrich-Franke, Andreas Fickers and Alexander Badenoch (eds) Airy Curtains in the European Ether: Broadcasting and the Cold War, Nomos Introduction: Floating Signifiers Pirates always tend to invoke nostalgia. This is particularly so for the offshore radio ‘pirates’ of the 1960s, who come pre-packaged with a soundtrack of pop hits from yesteryear that seemingly invoke a whole generation’s coming of age. Now, over half a century since the Danish Radio Mercur first began unlicensed commercial broadcasting from the high seas to European mainlands, offshore ‘pirate’ stations are as present as ever in national canons of commemoration. The images and myths of these supposedly ‘swashbuckling rock rebels’ have far outlasted the stations themselves - and the national governments and public service broadcasters who once fought against them have become faithful commemorators in the general nostalgic haze that surrounds them.1 The Dutch radio history magazine Soundscapes lists 88 sound documentaries and compilations produced since 1967 to remember offshore stations, and Michael Curtis's 2009 comedy The Boat That Rocked (simply called Pirate Radio in the US) and a 2011 stage musical surrounding the Dutch offshore station Veronica attest to their enduring relevance in popular culture.2 A key part of the nostalgia for the offshore stations is their image as 1 See, for example, John Walsh, 'The swashbuckling rock rebels of Radio Caroline' The Independent, 18 March, 2009 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/the-swashbuckling-rock- rebels-of-radiocaroline-1647240.html, last accessed 1 March 2012.