Radio Mid-Distance first appeared in Dublin in December 1978 sporadically broadcasting on 104MHz. It was operated by Garrett Fennell and two of his friends; Garrett was just 12 years of age when he first put the station on the air from his bedroom in Foxrock, in south Dublin.
What started out as a bit of fun, an attempt at creating memories before a proposed law outlawing pirates came into effect, turned into something a little more serious in May 1979. Equipment consisted of two record players, two tape decks, a mixer and three microphones.
The experiment ended as suddenly as it began when in the middle of June Garrett sold off the equipment. However, he missed the station when he returned to school and by December he’d sourced another transmitter and eventually returned to air on 96.5MHz, broadcasting on Sundays between 10am and 7pm. The station was also available on shortwave.
