this is a whistle stop tour of 252; given more time it would be a story; given financials it could be a cracker.
Chris Cary spins off Nova LW as XIDY ‘radio nova’ 252 LW (jan 1986) Panic sets in. RTE & RTL (50/50) form Radio Tara at a cost of £6million (aug 1986) Pat Kenny is chairman of the board. Sep 1 1989 Atlantic 252 launched and was on 6am-7pm then listeners were invited to tune to RTLs other station Radio Luxembourg. By 2000 RTL ups its stake and owned 80% of Atlantic and later they sold it to Team Talk 252, they offered it to RTE but the funds were not there. what cost RTE 50% of £6M; 80% of it was sold to Team Talk for £2M stg (Dec ’99) TeamTalk had no commentary rights worth commentating on and the station was a 7 month listener & cash failure. UKbetting bought Team Talk and sold the 80% back to RTE for a nominal consideration. UKBetting sold the land and equipment for UK£418,000. 252 fell silent. RTE Radio 1 started using the freq, 252 again on March 17th 2004 as a relay of its FM / MW output.
the Mast in Trim has always been controversial.
Irish Emigrant – August 6, 1990
– The High Court has reversed the planning permission for the 300 metre high mast from which the signals for Radio Tara’s Atlantic 252 station are transmitted. Atlantic 252 is a pop station aimed at the British market. RTE is a 50% shareholder. For three years residents in the vicinity of the mast in Co.Meath have been protesting against the decision of the local council, a decision which was later confirmed by An Bord Pleanala. It was the residents who took the case to court. In a follow on from this Meath County Council instructed Radio Tara to stop broadcasting immediately and submit plans for dismantling the mast. Pat Kenny, who is chairman of the company, said that this ruling was premature and that An Bord Pleanala still had time to appeal to the Supreme Court. This is what it subsequently decided to do.
comments / corrections welcome;