Live Wire Radio - a station that packed a punch

By the mid 1990's I had purchased what proved to be the final upgrade to my listening equipment. Having looked longingly at receivers manufactured by Lowe, Icom, and the Japan Radio(JRC) these and other communications hardware would financially remain out of my reach. My listening station at the time would also not have been able to do justice to the antenna requirements for what were, and remain to this day, sophisticated and comprehensive ways to listen to all forms of wireless broadcasts. With a modest budget but in need of a significant improvement to the way I received shortwave transmissions, I purchased a Sangean ATS-803A world band receiver, which crucially had what for me was the holy grail of radio listening: a digital tuner.

My previous receiver, a Venturer 2959 had by this time begun to frustrate, with the analogue tuner not corresponding to the frequencies on which many stations were broadcasting. As with my initial listening equipment, a National Panasonic 1813, I was now only snaring the stations who used the highest power or when the atmospheric conditions offered short skip and an opportunity to listen to lower power operators - an explanation of 'skip' can be found here: Skip distance explained - Wikipedia

The previous blog post concentrated on one of my favourite stations of the time, Scotland's Weekend Music Radio(WMR), which was also one of the most listenable thanks to often strong and stable reception at my at-the-time location a few miles from the Irish Sea coast. For a while in the early to mid-90's, prior to being able to upgrade my receiver, the likes of WMR, Radio Fax http://radiofax.org/ - a UK station that fought to no avail to gain a broadcast license from Her Majesty's Government and similar to Scotland's Radio Stella, had to transmit from Irish soil - and Live Wire Radio were who I could generally hear without fail, even when the skip had gone longer into continental Europe and beyond. Other UK stations occasionally heard with strong(ish) signals during the years when I didn't require a 'better receiver' included Geronimo, Mirage, Atlantis, and Terry Phillips' Radio Mi Amigo.

If I were asked which station defined my listening to UK shortwave free radio in the 1990's, the answer would undoubtedly by Live Wire Radio. Representing one of the first three stations I heard that October morning in 1990 operator Bill Lewis replied straightaway to what must have been a rather naive, rudimentary letter with a QSL card, sticker, and handwritten note of his own. This personable reply completely tallied with an engaging, charismatic-style of broadcasting, that was only complemented yet further by a diverse music choice which veered seamlessly from Metallica to Abba without reflecting anything other than Bill's personal taste - one of the tenets of free radio.

Live Wire would on occasions be particularly prolific with very regular broadcasts, before retreating into some relatively lengthy periods of absence due to personal circumstances(other hobbies, etc), restrictions on when able to broadcast, poor listening conditions and perhaps, from becoming weary of extremely frequent letters from certain listeners and many others besides - a downside to transmitting an almost unfailingly strong signal coupled with excellent broadcasting values.

One Live Wire highlight which sticks in my memory was from August 1992, a broadcast where Station Sierra Sierra's Paul Stuart guested in a studio which transpired to be in a caravan. Ironically, reception conditions were so poor that even the usual LWR power, perhaps curtailed due to the transmission being made during Sunday daylight hours, could not cut through the noise. Bill did though send me a studio copy of the broadcast on cassette(remember those?) which I still have to this day, on which was an entertaining show from two of shortwave's less wooden, more maverick personalities. With a musical choice spanning from Was (Not Was) featuring Kim Basinger and Ozzy Osbourne, Nirvana's Lithium, to Snap's Rhythm is a Dancer, a track that for a time ruled the airwaves in 1992, a programme underpinned by the banter between Bill and Paul proved to be very entertaining listening - if albeit on this occasion it was only heard in full after the event.

I once read in a free radio publication that Live Wire had been logged by dint of being recognized by its 'musical theme tune'. This was taken by me in the spirit it was meant, that the station was identifiable by one particular track, rather than an otherwise eclectic taste, before Bill had even spoken. I was never aware of what that certain piece of music was, or even if there actually was one tune by which Live Wire was instantly recognizable, but if Boney M segued into an L7 classic before Get-A-Way by Maxx burst onto the airwaves, chances are that you had once more happened upon this UK powerhouse.

Starting out  in the late 1980's as DX-20 on the Echo Charlie band Echo Charlie explained Live Wire by the operator's own admission was more about achieving technical excellence than Bill's desire to be a DJ-type figure. It was though through succeeding in both these aspects that Live Wire became an incredibly popular station throughout the 90's, first as a daytime broadcaster on 6 MHz before migrating to 1.6 and 3 MHz for what were highly successful night-time broadcasts that on occasion only drew to a close after 4 am. Instead of calling time on broadcasting when local interference threatened to expose the station, Bill opted to reinvent Live Wire by experimenting with different frequencies, including on 11 MHz in FM mode, and times of transmission which in the end reaped significant dividends for listeners and the main man himself.

Even though both Bill and I had by this point drifted away from free radio we remained in contact until just a few years ago. For some there comes a time when broadcasting has run its course, especially when aspects of everyday life makes it difficult to continue to do so, or simply that they are on balance more important than maintaining a presence on shortwave. There are though those stations from the same era who have managed to find or make a way to strike a balance and continue, for example XTC, Pamela, and Merlin, but the very essence of free radio is following your own path, rather than adhering to a set list of rules and 'what is expected' by the listenership; what works for some, won't necessarily for others. Some station operators will perhaps be hamstrung by a 'never can say goodbye' syndrome, but knowing the time to bow out for one's own personal reasons and/or when performing has become samey and unenjoyable is as relevant for a free radio station operator as it is a celebrated actor or musician.

Becoming a DJ or even an operator of a 'must listen to' station on shortwave might not have been at the top of Bill's wish list, but many who listened to free radio in the 1990's will echo my views that Live Wire Radio was, by accident or otherwise, a highlight of what was by any measure a golden era for UK 'pirate' broadcasters. When a station maxed out all the signal lights to a point where even a modest Sangean receiver threatening to overload, it must have been doing something right.

NEXT TIME: What's in a name?