2005

2005 had started. A very special year as August 31^st of that year FRS-Holland would become 25 years old….a milestone!

May…at long last the first broadcast

Following the successful November 2004 broadcast via Latvia, listeners had to wait exactly 5½  months. Sunday May 1st FRS took to the air on 9290 from 09.52-13.59 CEST.  09.52 seems a bit odd as a starting time but FRS-Holland die-hards must know the answer… The first 8 minutes FRS IDs and theme tune are being aired and exactly at the top of the hour a time signal is marking the  start of presented programmes. May 1st not only was our initial 2005 transmission but also our 150th official shortwave broadcast !! During the 4+ hour broadcast, six shows were aired: FRS Magazine, Off Beat, FRS Goes DX, the FRS Golden Show and two 15 minute mailbag programmes under the name “International Listeners’ Letter Show” (ILLS). Throughout the entire broadcast, May 1989 was the focal point. The 100 kW signal once again ensured excellent reception in large parts of the world, including New Zealand. FRS Frank Carson who was unable to join this time, was replaced by Paul Graham. Paul was a highly experienced presenter who had already made his mark in the radio landscape. A very welcome addition to the depleted FRS team. Not much later it would become clear Frank would not return on FRS-Holland. Frank wasn’t as good as his word and for both parties his farewell was the best solution. He only produced a total of 4 shows between November 2003 & November 2004. More serious was the fact that during the May broadcast, the final Off Beat” show was aired.
Of course we were not happy when Mark announced his departure some time earlier. He joined FRS June 1998 and presented his alternative music show ‘Off Beat’ for exactly  7 years. Peter Verbruggen comments….

“Mark Jones joined the FRS ranks at a moment there was no German presenter, following Stefan Kramer’s departure in August 1997. He filled up a gap and when Joop ter Zee died he and I had to fight to keep the service alive. He was a dedicated, reliable presenter who did an excellent job witness the many German listeners who listened to his ‘Off Beat‘ ‘show over the years. A FRS presenter in heart and soul.  I am pretty sure that without him FRS would have petered out. Thanks to Marks enthusiasm, perseverance and ideas Peter had the strength to go on. Besides: when he left, he took care of his successor. I owe him a lot!“

No 25 years celebrations

‘FRS News’ Volume 13 edition 28 from April 2005 called on listeners to participate in the upcoming 25^th anniversary. And: An article was dedicated to the benefits of a 9290 relay. Plan was to have an on air celebration party in October or November. Listeners were invited to send their personal FRS memories on tape /cassette/ MiniDisc/ CD/ mp3 or simply on a sheet of paper. Despite the good intentions the 25^th anniversary did not get off the ground.  In fact quite an unique situation knowing FRS-Holland had always been keen on celebrating special events. It is of no use to go into details….Peter Verbruggen failed to live up to the expectations to organize the 25^th anniversary mainly due to personal circumstances. For Peter certainly a huge disappointment knowing he was not able to do what he had in mind: a comprehensive celebration including flashbacks, memories, extracts from the past 25 years and much, much more. It looked like a curse rested on “celebrating special events”. The proposed 20th anniversary in 2000 was sadly overshadowed by Joop ter Zee’s passing. That ended in an emotional broadcast commemorating Joop ter Zee. Certainly the most special broadcast in FRS’ history so far. Peter still aimed at a big commemorative broadcasts sometime in the not too distant  future. It would take another 5 years before that  wish would be fulfilled. Similar to previous years.

Boxing day

2005 would see only two regular broadcasts. The second one took place on Boxing day December 26th 2005. For the 4^th time in a row the 9290 outlet was hired. It was a last minute decision. Peter Verbruggen recalls…

“Just before the end of the year I felt I had to do something on shortwave. It was too late to involve fellow presenters but I had time enough to produce a two hour show. I contacted our Latvian contact and he agreed to relay a two hour FRS show. It was far too risky to send an mp3 CD by post, so I decided to give it a try via Internet. FRS owned a website which was under construction. The site was temporarily put online for a day or so enabling the Latvian contact to download the programme via a secret link.  It worked out very well!”

Hardly any promotion was done and Peter Verbruggen produced a two hour December 1985 special  including (radio)news from that month and extracts from Caroline, Monique and shortwave free radio stations. And of course the music from 20 years ago. Certainly a nice X-Mas ‘brunch’ for all listeners who tuned in to 9290 kHz that morning. The two hour show rang out 2005 and was radiated between 09.52– 12.00 CET and produced nearly 40 letters from all over the world. Between 11.48– 11.56 CET there was a technical problem: during those 7 or 8 minutes, the programme only contained one audio channel instead of two. And as it happens: during the complete transmission, the huge 9290 tx was only putting out one channel: the one which faded out during that brief period. As a  result almost no audio was heard. Quite a number of listeners thought the tx developed a fault. Audio returned during the farewell tune. Not to forget: it would be one of the rare FRS broadcasts with only the voice of Peter V.