Radio in Thurles, Co. Tipperary

 

An hour and a three quarters from Dublin is the Tipperary town of Thurles. Although more famous for its Feile in the past and Semple Stadium today, the population of just over 8,000 has since the Seventies had a flirtation with radio broadcasting in their town. The first Radio Thurles[1] was set up for the Suirside Festival in the town in 1977. The festival was held from August 21^st – 28^th 1977.  The station was operated from a caravan in Liberty Square in the town.

According to the Tipperary Star

‘Radio Thurles has had thousands of-, requests, played for people "deeply in love", lost fans of the late Elvis Presley, tourists returned exiles etc.’

The paper also reported that those ‘spinning the discs’ included Mary Grace, Jim Kearns, Kendall and Michael O'Brien, Johnny Kearns, Jackie O'Brien, Mary Gleeson and Tim Corbett.

The next Radio Thurles began broadcasting on 230mMW. A small low powered station that broadcast to the County Tipperary town that opened in 1978. The studios were in an abandoned building attached to a castle ruins in the town. The station hijacked the station title Community Radio Thurles when they heard that RTE’s mobile service would be in the town in October 1979 forcing the state broadcaster RTE to title itself Thurles Community Radio.

Independent Radio Thurles on 222m MW was a short lived station that began broadcasting on St Patrick’s Day 1979. Then came the RTE’s mobile radio station now known as Thurles Community Radio or Raidio Phobail Dhurlas.

 

Another version of  Community Radio Thurles appeared on 100mhz FM. Following a number of various incarnations, this version of CRT began test transmissions on November 9^th 1981. The following December, the Southern Star newspaper reported,

‘Community Radio Thurles has just completed a very successful week of test transmissions. From the enormous response received it has been decided that the station, will commence broadcasting on a permanent basis from Monday, 14th of December.

The station will be broadcasting from a new and eminently more suitable premises. At present a varied schedule of programmes is being prepared and will include a variety of programmes to suit all sections of the community, both young and old. A strong element of community involvement in the station is hoped for and many local bodies are being contacted with a view to forming a programme management committee.

Broadcasting will be between the hours of 6—11 p.m. from Monday to Friday and between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Why not tune in to Community Radio Thurles on 100 Megahertz F.M. It will be worth your while.’

In January 1982, the station moved to a new studio and began broadcasting on a permanent basis to the Tipperary town. The station changed its title slightly to Thurles Local Community Radio.

 

Today apart from the independent franchise Mid-West Radio and the community station Tipperary Community Radio, you will find Thurles parish church radio on FM 106.4.

Sources

Radiowaves.fm

Pirate.ie

The DX Archive

The Irish Newspaper Archives

The Tipperary Star.

 

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[1] Originally known as Radio Suirside

The Irish Pirate Radio Archives & Tipperary Community Radio

 

In July 2021, The Irish Pirate Radio Archive at Dublin City University were delighted to accept the archives of 'Anoraks Ireland'. They had been meticulously gathered by Paul Davidson who ran 'Anoraks Ireland' for over a decade. The archives are extensive covering a golden era of Irish pirate radio (1980's) and shed light on both the social and broadcasting history of Ireland. The archives includes station advertising rates cards, correspondence with stations, detailed questionnaires, comprehensive bandscans, newspaper clippings, photographs of both studios and transmitters and over 2,500 tape recordings. Over the next couple of months we will bring you snippets of this extensive archive to give you a flavour of both its breath and depth and what pirate radio was like in Ireland in the 1970's and 1980's. 

We begin by looking at Tipperary Community Radio. Following a successful festival station run in the town in July 1980 by the operators of Radio Amanda from Limerick City, it was decided that the town needed a station of its own. Initially two stations were reportedly about to go on the air but following a Muintir na Tire meeting in the town, a decision was taken to launch a station of their own from the St. Michaels Community Centre in the town. The committee was led by Muintir na Tire (People of the Country) who promote community development nationally having been founded in Tipperary in 1937. 

Both photographs from The Nationalist (Tipperary) newspaper

They installed a 50ft mast and a FM transmitter and on Monday December 15^th 1980, TCR made its first broadcast. Although on air initially only for the lucrative Christmas period 1980, they were back in early January later added a medium wave outlet broadcasting on 228m medium wave. Tim Ryan officially became the first voice heard on TCR when it officially opened as a full time service on 29^th May 1981. By 1982 they had a regular full time on air schedule and a leaflet aimed at advertisers.

One of the most important elements of the 'Anoraks Ireland' archives was Paul's surveys of each and every pirate station that he came across. This is the survey for Tipperary Community Radio from early 1988. 

The station continued on air until December 1988 when the implementation of the new Wireless Telegraphy Act closed the vast majority of the almost 100 pirate radio stations across Ireland, to pave the way for the introduction of commercial independent radio in Ireland. The franchise for Tipperary was originally divided into two areas and the contracts were won by Premier County Communications Limited and Tipperary Community Radio Co-Op Society Limited but only one station would take to the airwaves initially known as Suriland Radio, later to be renamed as Tipp FM. A community station Tipperary Mid West Radio took to the airwaves broadcasting from the old TCR broadcast studios in Tipperary Town.

These are the original plans for the station created as a prospectus and business plan for 'Tipperary Community Radio' by Muintir na Tire.  

#For further reading see

The DX Archive

radiowaves.fm

The 'Up For The Match' (RTE) Top Ten

Each year on the eve of the both the hurling and football All Ireland finals RTE broadcast a special programme 'Up For The Match' hosted by Grainne Seoige and Des Cahill. A programme featuring chat, stories and music as they built up in 2016 to the All Ireland hurling final between the Premier county of Tipperary and the Cats of Kilkenny. But this year rather than simply reviewing the show, I have produced a top ten.

The 2016 Up For The Match (RTE) Top Ten
1   Eddie Brennan (9)
2   James Woodlock (8)
3   Ken McGrath (7)
4   Liam Sheedy (6)
5   Lar Corbett (5)
     Anna Geary (5)
7   Cha Fitzpatrick (4)
8   Aidan Tierney (3)
     Ritchie Power (3)
10 Owen Kelly (2)

So I am guessing you are asking the top ten in what? It is the number of times each guest said the phrase 'I SUPPOSE' while being interviewed on the show. Eddie Brennan the former Kilkenny hurler said the phrase 'I suppose' nine times. Even host Des Cahill managed to say it once. That means throughout the show 'I suppose' was spoken 56 times.

It was not the only repetitive phrase used by guests from the two neighbouring counties. Also up there were 'ye know' and either 'ah sure look' or 'look ah sure'.
Ah sure look Tipperary won, ye know I suppose they were the better team on the day.

The 'Up For The Match' (RTE) Top Ten

Each year on the eve of the both the hurling and football All Ireland finals RTE broadcast a special programme 'Up For The Match' hosted by Grainne Seoige and Des Cahill. A programme featuring chat, stories and music as they built up in 2016 to the All Ireland hurling final between the Premier county of Tipperary and the Cats of Kilkenny. But this year rather than simply reviewing the show, I have produced a top ten.

The 2016 Up For The Match (RTE) Top Ten
1   Eddie Brennan (9)
2   James Woodlock (8)
3   Ken McGrath (7)
4   Liam Sheedy (6)
5   Lar Corbett (5)
     Anna Geary (5)
7   Cha Fitzpatrick (4)
8   Aidan Tierney (3)
     Ritchie Power (3)
10 Owen Kelly (2)

So I am guessing you are asking the top ten in what? It is the number of times each guest said the phrase 'I SUPPOSE' while being interviewed on the show. Eddie Brennan the former Kilkenny hurler said the phrase 'I suppose' nine times. Even host Des Cahill managed to say it once. That means throughout the show 'I suppose' was spoken 56 times.

It was not the only repetitive phrase used by guests from the two neighbouring counties. Also up there were 'ye know' and either 'ah sure look' or 'look ah sure'.
Ah sure look Tipperary won, ye know I suppose they were the better team on the day.