May 2004
(April 2004 is here...)


It's Official – Johnnie's a GOLDen Oldie!

At the annual Sony Awards ceremony at London's Grosvenor House on 12 May 2004, Johnnie Walker (pictured with wife Tiggy at the Caroline 40th Reunion) was presented with a well-deserved Gold Award. He received the prize, for his lifetime contribution to radio, from Sir Elton John, who said he could not think of anyone else more deserving of it.

The Radio Two website contains a gallery of photos taken on the night and there's a message board for posting congratulations. There is also a link to a webcast of the awards on the Official Sonys website.


'Hello Scammer!'
Like everyone else, Radio London frequently receives 'money scam' messages from various overseas con-artists. However, we couldn't help laughing at the one that arrived from the Ivory Coast, which commenced, 'Hello Dear'!

We bet Stewpot didn't know he had con-men fans on the Ivory Coast!
Guide to UK Radio Museums
The Guide to Radio Museums and Vintage Radio in the UK has been comprehensively updated on the BDXC web site for the Summer 2004 period. There are several new entries and unfortunately, a number of deletions, following some recent closures. Links to museums and other vintage radio web sites have also been added where possible for all entries.

As ringing beforehand to check opening times is always recommended, phone number are also given.

See the Articles Index Page at www.bdxc.org.uk (thanks to Mike Terry)
Roy Loves the Hammond
The Hammond organ has featured extensively on the Radio London site, with the Jimmy Smith appearance on Caroline (mentioned at the bottom of this page) and the comments made about the instrument by Brian Auger.
Now Alf West has constructed a website for a huge Hammond afficionado, Roy Phillips the legendary singer, composer and keyboard player of Sixties band – and Fab Forty stars, The Peddlers. Roy now resides in New Zealand and you will be green with envy when you see the spectacular view from his house!
Arutz-7 Trial Is Over
Mike Brand in Israel reports that the trial of the "Arutz-7 Ten" has come to an end, as both the prosecution and the defendants withdrew their appeals against the original ruling. Both sides had appealed the sentences handed down against ten Arutz-7 station managers and broadcasters seven months ago.

The Jerusalem District Court judges expressed strong criticism of the state and the prosecution in their handling of the case against Arutz-7: "It is inconceivable that the state would take out its rage against the pirate radio stations by punishing the leaders of Arutz-7... [which] operated throughout the years with the encouragement of the authorities; the Knesset even legislated a law to legalize it."

The final sentences are as follows: Katz, Programming Director Shulamit Melamed, Engineer Ya'ir Meir, and News Editor Haggai Segal must serve 3-6 months of community service each, while each of the ten defendants must pay between 20,000 and 50,000 shekels each. In addition, Arutz-7 itself was fined a total of 450,000 shekels.

Arutz-7 radio ceased broadcasts on Oct. 20 of last year, only two hours after a Jerusalem court convicted ten Arutz-7 directors and staff members of broadcasting without a license.

Arutz-7's broadcasts continue as usual on the internet, at www.IsraelNationalRadio.com in English, and www.a7.org/metafiles/asx/arutzlive.asx in Hebrew.
Tony 'Messes About' on a Tall Ship
Our friend Tony Currie in Glasgow (see item further down the page) has sent info about a charity event in which he is involved, starring
Tony Hatch, legendary songwriter, record producer and notorious 'hatch-et' man of TV's "New Faces".

Tony Hatch has chosen Glasgow's Tall Ship, The Glenlee, as the venue for the glittering charity premier of his brand new cabaret on Thursday May 27th. The show's title, "Messing About on the River", comes from one of his first hits, recorded by Glasgow school teacher Josh Macrae, back in 1960.

A champagne party is being laid on for the lucky 200 aboard The Glenlee, raising money for the city's Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice, and Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Tickets for this unique event are available from Karin Spalter on 0141 427 0531 or email: tickets@radiosix.com. You can do the champagne reception and cabaret only for £35, with a Special Fish Supper Cruise on the 'Pride o' the Clyde' waterbus afterwards it's £50, or stay aboard for dinner on The Glenlee with Hatch and the cast for £65. "And we hope everyone will get out the tuxedos, panamas, feather boas – it's a real dress-up-and-party night!" says Karin.
International Radio Report – May, Part 2
Hans Knot in the Netherlands has already received so much information since producing this month's International Radio Report (see bottom of page) that he has already produced a Part 2! Many of the messages concern Roger Day's Caroline Reunion on March 28th and a few omissions from the guest list which was featured previously. Hans already has over 3000 e-mail subscribers to his International Radio Report, but he welcomes any new subscribers who would like to sign up to receive it.

You can also send Hans your opinion regarding the story of the 'Mi Amigo' wheel

Contact Hans at hknot@home.nl

Good Luck, Nancy!
Good luck to Neon Nancy, a presenter on the 2002 Radio Mi Amigo RSL from the LV18, who has launched a new website. Nancy intends to add articles and pictures on all the offshore stations.



(Tom is pictured at the 2003 USS Density Reunion with Chris Payne. Read more about his amazing aviation career here)

Happy Birthday, Tom!

Tom Danaher, the man who converted the Density and the Olga Patricia into radio ships, celebrated his 80th birthday on May 2nd.

Tom, who has enjoyed an amazing life, has worked as a stunt pilot for numerous feature films, including 'Goldeneye' and he continues to own and live at, his own small airport in Texas.

Just think, in the year when Tom was celebrating his 40th, he was in Miami, converting the ex-mine-sweeper Density into the Radio London ship Galaxy, ready to sail for England! He told us he worked so hard that he came out of the project several pounds lighter!

Many congratulations, Tom, from Radio London and the entire offshore family!

The webmasters sent Tom a special birthday gift of one of our new Radio London 40th Anniversary commemorative T-shirts (shortly to be available via this site – please try to contain your excitement). It is entirely appropriate that one of Radio London's Texan founders should be the first person in the USA to wear one!

As you will see from the response below, Tom was delighted with his gift.
Dear Mary & Chris,
You will never know how much I truly appreciate your kind birthday thoughts. The beautiful "FAB 40" shirt and the #1 birthday card received. You made a real 'winner' with that card! My friends had a dinner for the birthday last evening and I took the cards I had received. Your card easily took the prize! So, many thanks for everything.

Included in 'everything', is your untiring interest and effort that keeps Wonderful Radio London alive. Without you, Big L would only be an occasional thought, back in the cobwebs of our minds. We owe it all to you.

I've been hoping for a trip to your part of the World for quite some time now, so hopefully, it will happen in the not-to-distant future.

Again with thanks and love, Tom

Sorry to disappoint you, Bob, but radio's pretty much the same the world over!
Ian MacRae writes in his on-line newsletter The Radio Wave, #27:

Since this newsletter first started 27 issues back, I've had ongoing letters... (from) people with a passion for radio whose passion has turned to a disgust with what's happening in some areas of the business.

The latest has arrived from Canada, where Robert Henderson, a freelance broadcaster and self-confessed 'Grumpy Old man' wrote:

If radio owners could replace announcers altogether with technology, they would, in a heartbeat. I don't know about the rest of the world, but in too many stations in this country, you could drive a dump truck loaded with nitro-glycerine through on the weekend, and not one employee would sustain any kind of injury, because no-one's there! What's really missing is passion for the biz. Idiots who have zero people skills are not a great way to run a business, produce a profit, or a good product.

Read Robert's full rant in the newsletter.

Other features include Ian's ever-popular reports of stunts gone wrong, and a campaign to save Polar Studios in Sweden. The studio, which is threatened by closure because of soaring rent, has been famously used by the likes of ABBA, Led Zeppelin and the Stones. Musically, it is regarded as of equal significance to the Sun Studios in Memphis and EMI's Abbey Road in London.
In Memory of Kenny Page
Carole Anderson has launched a website dedicated to the memory of Scottish radio presenter Kenny Page, who sadly passed away on July 30th 2002. Carole says:

I was a listener of Kenny's on his drivetime show on Radio Tay. My two young daughters and myself spoke to him often on the phone, winning lots of competitions. Kenny was a unique presenter, irreplaceable, a real star.

Carole has already received a number of memories of Kenny, (including from our friend Tony Currie), but she would like to be able to include more memorabilia and photos. Contact her via the website.


Knees Club member #10, Dave Cash, presents member #235 with his own version of the MBKnee.
Photo copyright Pirate BBC Essex, 2004.
Brilliant Pirate BBC Essex photo gallery here.

Break a leg, Pirate Radio Skues!

Ahoy there, listeners lurking locally in the counties of Bucks, Herts, Beds, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridge, Peterborough, Norfolk and Northampton! Many of you may not have a coast to boast, but now you can sail out to sea every Monday evening. Between 10.00pm and 1.00am, Keith Skues will be reverting, werewolf-like, to his former piratical self, evil seaman Cardboard Shoes, to take over the BBC airwaves as Pirate Radio Skues. Even those who live outside the above-mentioned counties should shortly be able to receive a Net feed of Pirate Radio Skues.

Evil seaman Skues admitted exclusively to Radio London that he will be replacing his recently-awarded MBKnee with a cardboard insignia, resplendent with skull and cross-bones, for the occasion. When asked to comment on rumours that so much fan mail had arrived for Daphne during the Pirate BBC Essex broadcast, that she is to be given her own BBC show, evil-seaman Skues replied frostily that no 'dummying-down' would be permitted on the Beeb while he had any say in the matter.


Andy's available at all good Newsagents and on the Net!

Martin Kayne, aka Andy Cadier writes of his publishing success

'Piracy On The High Seas' is the title of a full-page article about offshore radio published on page 53 of the May Edition of 'Yours Magazine'. It is unlikely that you'll subscribe to this publication unless you happen to be a pensioner, as it is targeted at the more mature person.

The article has been rather heavily edited and a photo of the (radio) fort 'Knock John' and the Caroline North tender Offshore 3, has unfortunately been excluded, but a coloured picture of the Ross Revenge has pride of place. Other than that, it's an insight for non-anoraks of what we got up to back in those naughty wireless days of the 1960s.

If sufficient people respond to the publishers (EMAP) they may be open to publishing further Anorak stories (not necessarily written by myself) to the nostalgic benefit of all concerned. This is quite an achievement, as EMAP are big investors in modern day ILR and are not really disposed to pirates or their memories!

Andy broadcasts regularly on Internet station, Offshore Music Radio.

Ale of Man
The April update of The Pirate Radio Hall of Fame has some terrific photos from Greg Bance's photo album when he was aboard the Oceaan 7. The handsome young men on board at the time, include Paul Burnett and Mark West (sporting the cutest-ever kiss-curl)! Of course they are still as cute as ever, as Jonathan's photos taken aboard aboard the LV18 at Easter, prove!

Jonathan also has news of 'Golden Oldie' beer, a special brew from Manx brewery Bushy's, to commemorate Caroline North's sojourn in Ramsey Bay 1964-68. Bushy's are to be congratulated on a great idea and a beautifully-designed label.

As if all that were not enough, Caroline presenters Garry Kemp and Alan 'Neddy' Turner have been in touch with the Hall of Fame for the first time, and there are fascinating documents from Hans Knot's archive.

And talking of the Pirate Radio Hall of Fame...

International Radio Report – May
Hans Knot in the Netherlands already has over 3000 e-mail subscribers to his International Radio Report, but he welcomes any new subscribers who would like to sign up to receive it. The report is an open forum on all radio-related topics, but comments using expletives are excluded. The May International Radio Report covers feedback on Pirate BBC Essex, a full list of offshore attendees of Roger Day's Caroline Reunion. There's also an update from our good friend Tony Currie about his station Radio Six. Radio Six plays an unusual mix of music, much of it from new artists, which you are unlikely to hear anywhere else. Contact Hans to sign up for the newsletter at hknot@home.nl

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