A poche ore dalla scomparsa Radio Caroline ha trasmesso un radio documentario sulla figura di O'Rahilly che è stato messo in rete sul sito dell'emittente. Questo è un estratto audio video realizzato con il supporto in diretta di facebook.
UNA BREVE STORIA DI RADIO CAROLINE
Radio Caroline nacque nel
1964 per volontà del giovane imprenditore musicale Ronan O’Rahilly: stanco dei
continui rifiuti da parte della BBC, allora monopolista dell’etere britannica,
nel far suonare i dischi dei suoi artisti, decise che l’unica via sarebbe stata
quella di fondare una radio propria, all’epoca vietata dalla legge.
Comprò una nave, installò gli studi radiofonici ed un
trasmettitore da 50 kilowatt, posizionò la nave in acque internazionale – fuori
dalla giurisdizione inglese – e rivoluzionò il mondo del broadcasting.
Il successo di Radio Caroline fu
immediato. Nel giro di poche settimane conquistò 11 milioni di radioascoltatori
e fu subito seguito da una ‘armata’ di imitatori, al punto che il governo
dell’epoca fu costretto ad introdurre una legge, la Marine etc. Broadcasting
Offences Act, che rendeva illegale ai cittadini britannici qualsiasi forma di
lavoro (anche investimenti pubblicitari), collaborazione, aiuto, sovvenzione a
favore delle radio “pirata” da parte di ogni cittadino inglese.
La legge entrò in vigore nell’agosto del 1967 ma Radio
Caroline, la radio che ha ispirato il film campione d’incassi “I Love Radio
Rock”, continuò, spostando il suo quartiere general prima in Olanda poi in
Spagna per raggirarla e continuare a promuovere musica nuova, dai Pink Floyd ai
Beatles, fino ad arrivare ai Rolling Stones e ai Dire Straits.
L’unica radio che resistette, nonostante
il divieto, fu proprio Caroline. Fu amata subito dal pubblico ma anche e
soprattutto dagli artisti internazionali, al punto che uno di loro, George
Harrison dei Beatles, contribuì a tenerla in onda nei periodi più difficili
della sua storia.
Alla fine furono gli elementi ad aver il meglio. Nel
1991, durante una forte temporale, si spezzò la catena dell’ancora e la Ross
Revenge finì su un banco di sabbia. I DJ e l’equipaggio furono salvati da un
elicottero della RAF ma la vita in ‘alto mare’ di Radio Caroline finì
definitivamente.
A serious mourning hit the radio world. Ronan O'Rahilly, the founder of Radio Caroline, the first pirate radio that defied the BBC monopoly from the ship Ross Revenge, anchored outside British territorial waters, died at the age of 79. O'Rahilly lived in his home country in Ireland and had been suffering from a serious vascular disease for several years. Radio Caroline, which today is a legal broadcaster, present on various platforms, including the average wave of 648 KHz, was the forerunner for the breakdown of the monopoly of public radio in the telecommunications sector and the advent of commercial radio. Able to perceive the rapid changes in taste and customs of the British public of the time, O'Rahilly sensed that there was a vast market segment available to those who dared to overcome the old patterns. Taking advantage of a vacuum in the legislative system of the time, he literally invented a new way of doing radio by setting up an off shore broadcaster in international waters where the telecommunications control authorities had no jurisdiction. He then bought a ship, the Ross Revenge, and by using a 50 Kilowatt transmitter he managed to cover a good part of southern England. Many are the DJs and musicians who were initially known by the general public thanks to this broadcaster. The short, but intense parable of the Radio Caroline of the 1960s is well known, but we propose it briefly in another paragraph of this article. In the world of radio listening, Radio Caroline is an unrivaled myth and even today that the broadcaster is, so to speak, institutionalized, it still boasts a myriad of admirers all over the world who have experienced those years firsthand or who have read and heard about them in publications, documentaries and films, see "The boat that rocked" known in Italy as "I love radio rock". It is therefore intuitable the feeling of mourning and loss that crosses the world of radio for the disappearance of a visionary, who in his own way has changed him forever.
A few hours after the disappearance, Radio Caroline broadcast a radio documentary on the figure of O'Rahilly which was put on the net on the broadcaster's website. This is an audio video excerpt made with facebook live support.
Radio Caroline was born in 1964 by the will of the young musical entrepreneur Ronan O'Rahilly: tired of the continuous refusal by the BBC, then British monopolist of the ether, in playing the discs of his artists, he decided that the only way would be that to found his own radio, at the time prohibited by law.
He bought a ship, installed radio studios and a 50 kilowatt transmitter, positioned the ship in international waters - outside of English jurisdiction - and revolutionized the world of broadcasting.
The success of Radio Caroline was immediate. Within a few weeks, he conquered 11 million radio listeners and was immediately followed by an 'army' of imitators, to the point that the government of the time was forced to introduce a law, the Marine etc. Broadcasting Offences Act, which made it illegal for British citizens to engage in any form of work (including advertising investments), collaboration, aid, subsidies for "pirate" radios by any English citizen.
The law came into effect in August 1967 but Radio Caroline, the radio that inspired the blockbuster film "I Love Radio Rock," continued, moving its headquarters first to Holland then to Spain to trick it and continue to promoting new music, from Pink Floyd to the Beatles, up to the Rolling Stones and Dire Straits.
The only radio that resisted, despite the ban, was just Caroline. She was loved immediately by the public but also and above all by international artists, to the point that one of them, George Harrison of the Beatles, helped to keep it on air in the most difficult periods of its history.
In the end it was the elements that got the best. In 1991, during a heavy storm, the anchor chain broke and the Ross Revenge ended up on a sandbank. The DJs and crew were rescued from a RAF helicopter but Radio Caroline's 'high seas' life ended definitively.
A serious mourning hit the radio world. Ronan O'Rahilly, the founder of Radio Caroline, the first pirate radio that defied the BBC monopoly from the ship Ross Revenge, anchored outside British territorial waters, died at the age of 79. O'Rahilly lived in his home country in Ireland and had been suffering from a serious vascular disease for several years. Radio Caroline, which today is a legal broadcaster, present on various platforms, including the average wave of 648 KHz, was the forerunner for the breakdown of the monopoly of public radio in the telecommunications sector and the advent of commercial radio. Able to perceive the rapid changes in taste and customs of the British public of the time, O'Rahilly sensed that there was a vast market segment available to those who dared to overcome the old patterns. Taking advantage of a vacuum in the legislative system of the time, he literally invented a new way of doing radio by setting up an off shore broadcaster in international waters where the telecommunications control authorities had no jurisdiction. He then bought a ship, the Ross Revenge, and by using a 50 Kilowatt transmitter he managed to cover a good part of southern England. Many are the DJs and musicians who were initially known by the general public thanks to this broadcaster. The short, but intense parable of the Radio Caroline of the 1960s is well known, but we propose it briefly in another paragraph of this article. In the world of radio listening, Radio Caroline is an unrivaled myth and even today that the broadcaster is, so to speak, institutionalized, it still boasts a myriad of admirers all over the world who have experienced those years firsthand or who have read and heard about them in publications, documentaries and films, see "The boat that rocked" known in Italy as "I love radio rock". It is therefore intuitable the feeling of mourning and loss that crosses the world of radio for the disappearance of a visionary, who in his own way has changed him forever.
A few hours after the disappearance, Radio Caroline broadcast a radio documentary on the figure of O'Rahilly which was put on the net on the broadcaster's website. This is an audio video excerpt made with facebook live support.
Radio Caroline was born in 1964 by the will of the young musical entrepreneur Ronan O'Rahilly: tired of the continuous refusal by the BBC, then British monopolist of the ether, in playing the discs of his artists, he decided that the only way would be that to found his own radio, at the time prohibited by law.
He bought a ship, installed radio studios and a 50 kilowatt transmitter, positioned the ship in international waters - outside of English jurisdiction - and revolutionized the world of broadcasting.
The success of Radio Caroline was immediate. Within a few weeks, he conquered 11 million radio listeners and was immediately followed by an 'army' of imitators, to the point that the government of the time was forced to introduce a law, the Marine etc. Broadcasting Offences Act, which made it illegal for British citizens to engage in any form of work (including advertising investments), collaboration, aid, subsidies for "pirate" radios by any English citizen.
The law came into effect in August 1967 but Radio Caroline, the radio that inspired the blockbuster film "I Love Radio Rock," continued, moving its headquarters first to Holland then to Spain to trick it and continue to promoting new music, from Pink Floyd to the Beatles, up to the Rolling Stones and Dire Straits.
The only radio that resisted, despite the ban, was just Caroline. She was loved immediately by the public but also and above all by international artists, to the point that one of them, George Harrison of the Beatles, helped to keep it on air in the most difficult periods of its history.
In the end it was the elements that got the best. In 1991, during a heavy storm, the anchor chain broke and the Ross Revenge ended up on a sandbank. The DJs and crew were rescued from a RAF helicopter but Radio Caroline's 'high seas' life ended definitively.
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