Magic 105 was a very successful Monaghan-based Northern Irish pirate station which was on air from 1999-2006
Magic 105 flyer
Magic 105 was a hugely popular oldies service serving Northern Ireland from transmitters located at Alien Mountain in Co Monaghan on the Republic side of the border.
Magic was on air from January 1999 and grew slowly but the station became very popular in and around the Mid-Ulster Area, providing a much-needed local service for those areas which lost two licensed AM stations.
It broadcast on 105.1MHz (serving mid- and east-Ulster) and also served the west for a period on 105.8MHz.
The station ceased broadcasting on March 5th 2006 for a number of reasons – mainly to apply for a licence from OfCom.
Magic 105 was sister-station of Energy 106 with whom it shared its transmission site at Alien Mountain – named so due to numerous UFO sightings and the claim by Energy 106 frontman that he was abducted there!
Most of the Magic crew were Ex ZEE-103 staffers from the 1980s.
Restrictions due to the site distance from its target area – reason being the more relaxed attitude of the (Republic of) Irish authorities to pirate broadcasting – made life difficult. The 2 1kw transmitters used for Energy and Magic survived but not without severe damage due to water ingress on the feeder.
How they seen themselves
From their website...
Magic FM broadcasts HotAC (Adult Contemporary) music on 105.1MHz across Mid Ulster, and is dedicated to playing hits from the ’70s and ’80s – including a selection of love songs Monday-Thursday from 9pm.
Much thought has been given to the format of Magic 105. We decided from day one that it would be a music station with emphasis based upon personality and relationships that can be built with you, the listener.
Magic 105 branded car and clothing
Magic FM broadcasts on 105.1MHz for Mid Ulster and has been on air since March 1999, and the growth of the station has been phenomenal and scarcely could it have been imagined that it would today reach a high market penetration in areas covering: Armagh City; Dungannon; Omagh; Cookstown and much of County Tyrone; Mid Ulster; Portadown; Craigavon and Lurgan; The Lagan Valley Basin i.e. Lisburn and Greater Belfast; and of course the border areas of the Republic of Ireland on a secondary basis.
Magic FM remains the only locally owned FM station for the older audience, and relationships have developed with stations such as: Energy 106 (of course!), Kiss 106, Radio Star Country, Sunshine, Kiss 103.7 Monaghan, and a number of small stations that operate for a short time (RSL’s) i.e. Shine FM and Castle FM.
Magic FM is committed to community participation and has been involved in many community events: Cancer Care, Sands Group (Still Born) Walk, Motor Neuron Disease, Armagh Fire Brigade, Portadown Integrated School (Fund Day) and Lurgan Irish Speaking Primary School (several discos).
magic105.co.uk
Magic 105 Gallery
Above: Sign at Alien Mountain Image 2: Tower Others: Station equipment
Website at the end
Frequency Logs
105.1MHz: July 2000 (Radiowaves News)
105.1MHz: September 2002 (fmlist.org)
Other items
Postal Address: Magic 105, PO Box 105, Belfast BT66 7WA
Is there anything you can add to the information above, or do you know of a station not listed in the database?
Please send updates, from the seemingly trivial to full station histories, to this email address.
Images can also be sent to john@radiowavesfm.com.
