Atlantic 252 ran from 1988 up until its last broadcast in 2002. The longwave radio station broadcast across Ireland and the United Kingdom from its transmission site at Clarkstown, County Meath. On the morning of September 1, 1989, presenter Gary King introduced listeners to the first taste that would be Atlantic 252. Broadcasts from the station could be heard as far away as Finland, Ibiza and even Moscow. The station became the go-to for pop and rock music fans. At its peak of popularity in 1993, the station had six million listeners who tuned in across Ireland and the United Kingdom. It was a fond favourite for hair salons and customers alike up and down the country. But did you know that many successful artists like The Calypso Twins and Take That did radio tours with Atlantic 252 before they hit it big? Even RTÉ Radio 1's Rick O'Shea presented on the 252 frequency before landing a job in Donnybrook back in 2001. Unfortunately, the competition from other stations proved too much. After 12 years, Enda Cadwell presented the station's last broadcast on the airwaves in December 2001. At the time, many loyal listeners rang Atlantic 252 to find out what had happened. Atlantic 252 was bought by the UK based station TEAMtalk that specialized in sports and broadcast on the 252 frequency 24/7. Many of the station's presenters carried on their careers in the industry but we wanted to find out exactly what happened to them. Pictured below are Atlantic 252 DJs Dickie Bow, aka Mark Whelan, and Beverley Hills, with Daily Record journalist John Millar at the station's HQ in Ireland. Whelan has had a lengthy DJ career at Limerick's Live 95fm where he has been presenting the breakfast show with his co-host Catriona Tierney. Meanwhile, Hills has spent many years involved in children's television presenting and writing for Children's BBC after her time at Atlantic 252. If you would like to take your ears down memory lane, you can listen to Atlantic 252 broadcasts online - with hits exclusively from 1989 to 2001. Get in touch with your memories or let us know your Atlantic 252 stories in the comments. (dublinlive.ie)
