Pirate radio in the United Kingdom Caroline and Radio London started to broadcast on medium wave to the UK from offshore ships or disused sea forts. At the time, these stations were not illegal because they were broadcasting from international waters. The stations were set up by entrepreneurs and music enthusiasts to meet the growing demand for pop and rock music, which was not catered for by the legal BBC Radio services. The first British pirate radio station was Radio Caroline, which was launched by Irish music entrepreneur Ronan O'Rahilly, and started broadcasting from a ship off the Essex coast in 1964. By 1967 ten pirate
Kiss (UK radio station) Kiss (UK radio station) Kiss is a UK radio station which broadcasts nationally on DAB Digital Radio, as well as on FM in London, Bristol and the Severn Estuary, and East Anglia. Kiss specialises in hip hop, R&B, urban, house, and electronic dance music. It is notable for having originally started out as Kiss FM - a 1980s pirate radio station that was to become the UKs first legal radio station specialising in black and dance music. Kiss FM began in October 1985 as a pirate radio station, broadcasting first to South London then across the whole city, on 94FM.