Radio Caroline, one of the most popular pirate radio stations of the 1960s today celebrates the 50th anniversary of the station’s first broadcast. From their ship out in the North Sea, Radio Caroline played the pop music that the mainland stations didn’t give airtime to; thus attracting the youth of the 1960s to tune in and increase the station’s popularity.

The BBC would only play a mere two hours of pop music on a Sunday afternoon, therefore the non-stop broadcasting of the music young people wanted to hear via pirate stations such as Radio Caroline helped these stations grow audiences rapidly. Alongside Radio Luxembourg, Radio Caroline was one of the largest pirate radio stations and has featured a selection of some of Britain’s most well-known DJs; Tony Blackburn, Dave Lee Travis and Johnnie Walker to name but 3.

Pirate radio completely revolutionised the way in which radio was presented as a medium in the 1960s and, despite a significant level of disapproval from the authorities, created the mould for how modern radio works in all forms. Generally rooted just off the coast of East Anglia, Radio Caroline was at the centre of a number of controversial incidents including the shooting of Radio City boss Reg Calvert. Events such as this helped Harold Wilson and his government to launch the Marine Offences Broadcasting Act in 1967.

Despite all the controversies, the memories that most people have of Radio Caroline are positive and it has undoubtedly been one of the most influential ventures in shaping the way in which radio stations work and the content that they broadcast.