The Last Pirates: Britain's Rebel DJs
Rodney P presents the untold story of Britain's second wave of pirate DJs who played a cat and mouse game with the law to create a platform for black music in the 1980s.
In the 1980s a new generation of pirate radio stations exploded on to Britain's FM airwaves. Unlike their seafaring swinging 60s forerunners, these pirates broadcast from London's estates and tower blocks to create a platform for black music in an era when it was shut out by legal radio and ignored by the mainstream music industry.
In the ensuing game of cat and mouse which played out on the rooftops of inner-city London across a whole decade, these rebel DJs used legal loopholes and technical trickery to stay one step ahead of the DTI enforcers who were tasked with bringing them down. And as their popularity grew they spearheaded a cultural movement bringing Britain's first multicultural generation together under the banner of black music and club culture.
Presented by Rodney P, whose own career as a rapper would not have been possible without the lifeblood of pirate radio airplay, this film also presents an alternative history of Britain in the 1980s - a time of entrepreneurialism and social upheaval - with archive and music that celebrates a very different side of Thatcher's Britain.
Featuring interviews with DJs, station owners and DTI enforcers - as well as some of the engineers who were the secret weapon in the pirate arsenal - this is the untold story of how Britain's greatest generation of pirate radio broadcasters changed the soundtrack of modern Britain forever.
Last on
Clips
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Record Shops, Pirate Radio and White Label Records
Duration: 02:00
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The DTI vs The Radio Pirates
Duration: 01:53
Music Played
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David Joseph
You Can't Hide (Your Love From Me)
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Atmosfear
Dancing In Outer Space
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Paul Anka
Make It Up To Me In Love (feat. Odia Coates)
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Linx
You're Lying
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Skyy
Here's To You
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Ripple
Victorious
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The Jones Girls
Nights Over Egypt
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David Ruffin
Everything's Coming Up Love
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Beggar & Co
London Town (feat. The Funk Jazz Collective)
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Roy Ayers
Love Will Bring Us Back Together
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Young & Company
I Like (What You're Doing To Me)
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Wha-Do-Dem
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Yellowman
Soilder Takeover
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Hashim
Al-Naafiysh (The Soul)
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New Order
Blue Monday
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Sound Dimension
Real Rock
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Wayne Smith
Under Me Sleng Teng
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Nitro Deluxe
Let's Get Brutal
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Brentford All Stars
Greedy G
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Newcleus
Jam On It
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Loose Ends
Hangin' On A String
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Cheryl Lynn
Encore
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Mr. Fingers
Can You Feel It
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Serious Intention
You Don't Know (Special Remix)
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Madonna
Material Girl
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Sister Sledge
Thinking Of You
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Maze featuring Frankie Beverly
Twilight
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Ladies of The 80'S
Turned On To You
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Public Enemy
Public Enemy No 1
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The Blackbyrds
Rock Creek Park
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Boogie Down Productions
Criminal Minded (Album Version)
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Sherrick
Just Call
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Loose Ends
Slow Down
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Soul II Soul
Keep on Movin' (feat. Caron Wheeler)
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Inner City
Good Life (Buena Vida)
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Inner City
Good Life
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Eric B. & Rakim
Paid In Full
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Cocoa Tea
Pirates Anthem (feat. Shabba Ranks)
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Alison Limerick
Where Love Lives
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Windy City Orchestra
Windy City Theme
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Technotronic
Pump Up The Jam (feat. Felly)
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Technotronic
Pump Up The Jam
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The Family Stand
Ghetto Heaven (Soul II Soul Remix)
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Unlimited Touch
I Hear Music In The Street
Credits
Role | Contributor |
---|---|
Presenter | Rodney P |
Producer | Vanessa Van-Yeboah |
Director | Jaimie D'Cruz |
Assistant Producer | Evie Buckley |
Broadcasts
- Fri 29 Sep 2017 21:00
- Sat 30 Sep 2017 02:30
- Sat 16 Feb 2019 00:55
- Sat 10 Aug 2019 02:45
- Sat 19 Oct 2019 00:05
- Fri 31 Jul 2020 22:00