Radio Caroline

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A repeat of the Top 15 Show first heard yesterday morning at 9am.

A selection of music from the past five decades

Terry started in broadcasting in 1979 at a talking newspaper for the visually impaired, then he spent a few years at Dudley and District Hospital Broadcasting. He did a few shows on Beacon 303 and BRMB, including joint shows with Gordon Astley, Mike Baker and Roger Day, and some gigs with KKJ, and at the age of 18 was being considered for a full time role in Independent Local Radio but his dad said "Son, go and get a proper job". So in 1983 Terry moved to Coventry and became an apprentice at GEC. To make extra money he became a nightclub DJ, and for fun he was involved with 2 land-based FM pirate stations in Coventry: Segway Sound and City FM. Terry had always been obsessed with pirate radio, and in those early Coventry days he listened to Radio Caroline and Laser 558 from afar, dreaming of a day when he could fulfil his dream of presenting on Radio Caroline. He recalls sending a demo tape to Radio Caroline in the early 80s, and it was sent back with a rejection letter. And that was that. Until COVID came along. Like everyone else Terry was locked down and had more time on his hands. He started putting shows together, he published them on Mixcloud to great reviews, he got picked up by a UK based internet radio station and did 6 months of "Terry's Real Gold" live radio every weekend. He also became the presenter of the syndicated Retro Charts weekly countdown. Then at last, some 42 years after starting out in radio, he felt confident enough to approach Radio Caroline, and he was offered the weekday early breakfast slot, from 6am to 7am UK time. Each morning Terry warms up for Tony Paul, another Beacon 303 graduate from the early 80s. Terry's first show was in March 2021, and since then he has built up a loyal set of early riser listeners, along with people all over the world.

07:00 - Johnny Lewis (Sitting in)

Johnny Lewis worked on Caroline in the 1970s as both broadcaster and engineer until the Mi Amigo sank in 1980. He later worked for The Voice Of Peace and Laser 558 before rejoining Caroline on the Ross Revenge. He has also worked for a clutch of Irish stations as well as local commercial radio in the UK – the latest being Academy FM in East Kent. Johnny's other interests including golf, cooking, walking and fund raising for the RNLI. He also gives after dinner speeches on offshore radio, loves to listen to soft rock and soul and says his fantasy date would be Sandra Bullock who he would lover to cook a romantic dinner for, candles the works (the wife won't be happy with that!!) Johnny is also an expert on beer, and promised this year to bring back a brew from the Ross Revenge he made in the 80's... GBH or should we call it "Old Blackwater".

09:00 - Top Fifteens

A Caroline listener's music selection - see 'Top Fifteens' page for details.

10:00 - Stephen Foster

Stephen is one of this country’s most experienced music broadcasters with more than 40 years’ worth of programmes for the BBC and commercial radio under his belt. Affectionately known as Foz, he was born and bred in Suffolk and has Radio Caroline to thank for his eclectic taste in music having been an avid listener to the likes of Andy Archer, Tony Allan, Johnny Jason and Simon Barrett during the 1970s. Foz is delighted to be broadcasting on the station that ignited his passion for albums. He has a huge CD and vinyl collection covering the history of popular music and is widely regarded as an expert on the subject.

14:00 - Barry Marsh

When you're young, something very often fires the imagination which stays with you for life. In Barry's case it was music and radio and in particular free radio. From the age of seven whilst on holiday on the Isle of Man; he was fascinated by the Radio Caroline North ship which could be seen out in the bay, thus a lifelong interest in radio was kindled. Whilst Barry’s career in its early days embraced the entertainment and music business, other opportunities presented themselves and whilst away from the entertainment business they allowed the opportunity to enjoy the thrill of building and managing teams, travelling extensively and bag a whole bunch of experiences. Throughout his business life he always kept a keen ear on radio and more than just a listener's interest. Barry says 'Over the years many radio stations have become corporate enterprises and formula driven, but the internet opened possibilities for radio to reach much wider audiences and to be a passion again, with so much choice available it had to be a very special station if I was to become involved as more than listener. In fact, it was my irritation with the lack of good music radio in the UK back in 2005 that steered me to look at Radio Caroline once again. This time from the inside of the Maidstone studios. For me, presenting a show on Caroline is like inviting some mates round and playing them a pile of records that you have pre-selected. Some they will like, another only one will like, and some will bounce you off in a different musical direction in search of a newly discovered artist or a forgotten album'. You can join Barry every Tuesday afternoon between 2 & 5pm. Amongst the pile of carefully selected music, which always takes some twists and turns along the way, you will hear tracks from new artists and albums, and classic and long forgotten albums.

17:00 - Chris Pearson

Chris was with Caroline on the Ross in spring 1985. Prior to that, he'd been on Dart Radio in his hometown of Dartford, Kent, alongside future Caroline colleagues Dave Foster, Rob Ashard and Tony Christian. A spell on a cable station, Radio Thamesmead, in south London, lead to former Radio Caroline man Jason Wolfe (Chris Bowskill), handing Chris's demo tape onto the team onboard the Ross. Chris says he'll never forget clambering up the rope ladder to board the ship for the first time on that dark March night, "It was just mind-blowing to actually be setting foot onboard as one of the team". Finally getting to bed at around 5:30am, he was awoken by knocking on his cabin door to be told that he would be on-air in 15 minutes as someone had gone ill. "Thanks to Nick Richards for the ten minute crash course on using the Ross desk!". After leaving Caroline, Chris spent six months aboard the Peace Ship with the Voice of Peace 'from somewhere in the Mediterranean' before returning to instore radio with the newly launched Radio HMV in Oxford Street. Several years in commercial radio followed (Invicta Radio, Essex Radio, Ocean Sound, Power FM, Chiltern Radio, Horizon Radio, The Superstation and Key 103) before Chris joined the forces station BFBS. He travelled with them as a presenter and Station Manager in the Falkland Islands, Germany, Cyprus, Belize, Northern Ireland, Kosovo, Bosnia, Iraq and two three-month long tours of Afghanistan using the BFBS studios at Camp Bastion. Off-air highlights for Chris have included flying a Red Arrow Hawk jet from the back seat, ramp riding Chinook helicopters and Hercules aircraft, a Royal Navy trip to South Georgia, a back seat in a Tornado jet in the Falklands and being winched into a helicopter from the Belizean jungle. After 28 years travelling the world with BFBS, Chris left in April 2019 to take up a new role as the Managing Director of Manx Radio, the Isle of Man’s Public Service Broadcaster. He continues to broadcast with the station and is heavily involved with the Radio Caroline North link-ups. Around the same time, he also commissioned as an Officer with the Royal Air Force Reserves, serving with 7644 (PR) Sqn, based at RAF Halton.

19:30 - Alec Lamb

Alec grew up in Essex, brought up on a radio diet of Caroline, early Radio One, Radio North Sea International and Veronica. A self confessed Vinyl Junkie, he started buying music way back in '66 with Manfred Mann's 'Pretty Flamingo' being the first one and soon progressed from there. Even today he can often be found scouring the charity shops for hidden gems. He set out doing on Mobile Disco's in '74 with the usual rounds of pubs, weddings and club presentation events, plus background music before such bands as Geordie, Hustler, GT Moore and the Reggea Guitars and The Kursaal Flyers. This continued until 2009. The year before Alec started doing a couple of hours for a local community station Saint FM in the Maldon area of Essex, presenting a 70's show and more eclectic late night show. He loved radio so much he finally stopped doing the disco circuit. "The chance to do a slot on Caroline was too good to miss" – says Alec "So here I am".

22:00 - Tuesday Late with Andre van Os

Inspired by Radio Caroline and Mi Amigo in the late 1970's, André started making radio on a landbased pirate in his home country The Netherlands and for a short spell on a Belgium one. He did music and news programmes for hospital radio up north and in Amsterdam, where he was also passionately involved in local newsradio on FM.For twenty years he worked for several national public broadcasters as an internet pioneer, setting up their first streaming webradio stations with documentaries and current affairs. He was head of the internet department of Radio Netherlands Worldwide, until the government unfortunately cut most of the station's funding.While writing about radio for magazines and websites he got in touch with the internet heir of The Voice of Peace, the station he saw and listened to in Israel. He presented his Peacetrain show there for four years. After that, it was on to his first love in radio: Caroline. First to wake you up on early mornings, now doing Saturday afternoons and Tuesday lates.