ShipRocked: Life on the Waves with Radio Caroline

by Steve Conway

A witty, revealing memoir by Phantom FM DJ Steve Conway about the years he spent on Radio Caroline, the pirate radio ship with a rock 'n' roll history, published alongside the release of Richard Curtis' (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill) brilliant film The Boat That Rocked. Radio Caroline was the iconic pirate radio station, immediately capturing the imagination of millions of people when it started broadcasting rabble-rousing, cutting-edge music to Britain and Ireland from international waters in 1964. When he first went out to the radio ship, the Ross Revenge, in December 1985, Steve Conway, a 21-year-old IT executive, was fulfilling his dream of working on Caroline. Despite his young age, he soon became a vital part of Caroline's renegade crew, broadcasting music and news programmes, helping keep the vessel seaworthy during fierce storms, and making sure the station ran smoothly on a shoestring budget- doing it all despite staffing problems, technical crises and persistent harassment by the authorities. In this gripping memoir, Steve Conway tells of his time aboard the Ross Revenge: the excitement and danger of living on board the ship for long spells, the constant challenge of keeping complex electronic equipment working in occasionally treacherous conditions (including the collapse of the ship's main mast in November 1987), and the camaraderie of working alongside people who, like him, were completely committed to the radio station and its fiercely bohemian ideals. His wild and wonderful tale builds towards the sad demise of Radio Caroline as a ship-based station, recounting how he and his few remaining companions narrowly escaped drowning after the ship ran aground on the notorious Goodwin Sands in hurricane-force winds in November 1991. A love letter to Ross Revenge and rock music, ShipRocked has to be read to be believed.

Genres: Nonfiction

211 pages, Paperback

First published March 15, 2009

Reviews

[Pamela Harju · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a shame that more people haven't read this book! More people will know the film, The Boat That Rocked, that is loosely based on the events of this book. The book is the real account of events, and it's no less entertaining for that. The writer's passion for the cause is evident throughout.

[C.A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little known fact here in the US, but in Great Britian government run radio is strickly controlled in terms of contient, and popular music gets little respect, so there have been several "pirate radio" ships offering competition to state run radio. This book is about one of the, Radio Caroline, told from the point of view of Steve Conway, who came out at the age of 21 as the newsreader. His tenure wasn't boring. Their broadcast tower snapped off and went into the North Sea, they came loose from the anchor and were drifting on the sea, and, during a huge storm, the the final distruction of the ship in a particualry danger part of the sea. He does a great job detailing life on the micorcosim of the ship really well, but I didn't really need all that info on the rebuilding of the mast, ect. Still, the fact that Radio Caroline found a second life on Sattalite radio is a nice ending to a rather strange tale.

[Joseph Heath · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoroughly interesting and entertaining account of working and living on a pirate radio ship. Full of fascinating stories, hilarious hijinx, and harrowing adventures. Read it immediately!

[Devon Fleming · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5**

[Hans Nelis]

Marvelloous account of the life on the Ross Revenge, the ship of radio Caroline in the eighties.

[N.V. Binder · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Shiprocked" is the true story of radio DJ Steve Conway's tenure as a young newsreader on the radio pirate ship Ross Revenge. Written in a clear, accessible style, the book delivers thriller-quality sea adventure.

As late as 1991, the Ross Revenge functioned as a pirate radio station in international waters off the coast of England. Sharing the ship's 300 foot antenna were a Dutch pirate (which funded the operation) and England's famous pirate rock station, Radio Caroline. Throughout its long life at sea, Caroline developed a distinctive broadcasting format that combined classic rock and new artists and built an enthusiastic following on land (the rambunctious Caroline Movement). The young DJs at sea gave many famous artists their first breaks, all while dodging the British and Dutch authorities and keeping the ship and radio equipment operational. Conway's book paints a fascinating portrait of the day-to-day pleasures and stresses of working as a Caroline DJ and showrunner.

Finally, "Shiprocked" the last days of the Ross Revenge's life as a deep sea pirate. A Dutch police raid brings the radio station to an end, and sometime thereafter, the ship ran aground, with a small group of courageous Caroline staff (including Conway) still aboard. In his willingness to brave isolation and extreme danger to save the station, one can see Conway's abiding care for Caroline and the Ross Revenge.

Radio Caroline survives as a licensed satellite broadcaster (http://www.radiocaroline.co.uk/), and they still do special shows from the Ross Revenge, which is now detained in the U.K. The Caroline Movement still thrives as well, and is looking at bringing the station back on medium wave. I hope they pull it off. Conway's book is an inspiration, and it would be great to know that a radio ship was operating off the British coast once again.

[Tammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

True story that loosely inspired the movie Pirate Radio. Follows a newsman who becomes station manager on Radio Caroline on the Ross Revenge anchored just inside international waters into 1990s when Britian still controlled the radio stations and their programming.

[John Maguire · Rating 2 out of 5]

Got a bit bored of this one. Interesting times but not enough interesting stuff actually happened to build a full story around unless you really really cared a lot about pirate radio and its history. I just didn't care enough.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was pretty neat. The story moves along, and although you know how it ends you're still interested to see how it all happens. Maybe not for everybody, but I recommend it.