When Pirates Ruled the Airwaves - Part 1

Bill Nighy at The Boat That Rocked premiere

Bill Nighy narrates a tale of ‘daring-do' on the high seas in a new series; When Pirates Ruled the Airwaves.

The 60s was an era where pop music was changing people's lives - yet nobody in the UK was able to hear it. In 1964, Irishman Ronan O'Rahilly and Australian Alan Crawford began to hatch the idea of a radio station outside of British territorial waters, broadcasting pop music back into the UK - a phenomenon that became known as pirate radio.

Star of the new movie The Boat that Rocked Bill Nighy tells the story of how a group of mavericks made radio what it is today and in the process changed the entire landscape of British radio. It's a tale involving glamour, tragedy and political struggle - and all set to a soundtrack of the best music of the era.

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