30 years ago
It sounds like a giant step back
in the time when I decide to take you to the month of January 1977 with
some
‘Monitor
Memories’. The Second Wednesday in January 1977 was an atrabilious day
for Dutch
Justice as well as for the late Samantha Dubois (Ellen Kraal) from Radio
Caroline. She was asked to tell her own story of what happened when she
was summonsed to appear before the Magistrates accused of broadcasting
on Radio Caroline. So here once again in here own words, is the account
of her experiences: ‘I went to the court on the 12th of January in
Amsterdam. I didn’t have a lawyer because it’s to expensive to pay.
Buster Pearson (Photo Theo Dencker)
There were three witnesses in the
court to testify against me: ex crewmen Guenther the Cook, Derek the
generator engineer and Jan, the sailor. The Dutch Court is really Micky
Mouse. I am very ashamed of being of Dutch Nationality. Why do I say
that? Well, firstly there wasn’t a jury. I pleaded not guilty. So the
court called on of the witnesses, in that case it was Jan the sailor.
The court asked him if he recognised me as being Samantha, alias Ellen
Kraal broadcasting illegally on board the ship called the MV Mi Amigo.
Well, much to my surprise Jan denied everything. He said that he never
knew me. If that had happened in a British court the second witness
would be called up. But the Dutch wankers just warned Jan that he was
committing perjury and he could get up to six months imprisonment for
going back on his word. I was found guilty and giving three weeks
suspended sentence plus 200 pounds fine. The three week suspended
sentence is for 2 years. So if I get caught within 2 years I go to jail
for 3 weeks. Actually I’m going back to the ship. I haven’t paid the
fine, and I’m not planning to either which means 40 days imprisonment.
The only reason why I was taken to court is because of the three above
mentioned people signing a statement under oath that they were with me
on the ship and saw me broadcasting in English.’
Samantha 1977
Samantha had certainly the courage of her conviction in those days. The
late Buster Pearson wrote in 1977: ‘Perhaps if there was more of here
buccaneering spirit around the outlook for offshore radio would be a
brighter one.’ Sadly neither Buster Pearson nor Samantha are no longer
with us. During the last two Radio Days spontaneity comes around when
one or more of the guests are mentioning the names of the people who are
no longer with us, the names of Samantha and Buster Pearson should be
there too the next time!
But there were more justice
happenings in January 1977 as on the 27th a large crowd got together
outside the Magistrates Court in Southend on Sea in Essex. Once again
let’s see what Monitor editor Buster Pearson told about the get
together: ‘They were free radio supporters who had arrived from all
parts of the country to peacefully protest at the way the Home Office
wasted public money and Police time by harassing harmless folk whose
‘crime’ is apparently treating persons on board the radio ship Mi Amigo
as fellow human beings.’
What had happened on forehand in August 1976, was the work of a
detective constable from the Police Headquarters Drugs Intelligence
Section. His name was Gary Skull. He played a fool at everybody as he
intended to go out to the radio ship Mi Amigo pretending he was an
anorak like you and me still are in 2007. He talked with all the other
people on the tender and told them he was a free radio fan with the name
‘Simon Martin’. Oh man, what a mean man he was as he was testifying to
his superiors – after coming back at the office – that he had seen the
organiser of the trip handing over newspapers and mail over to the guys
on the radio ship Mi Amigo. The organiser was Dave Hutson and the fake
Anorak mentioned also that Dave was wearing a Caroline badge, which of
course was promoting the station. This of course was forbidden by the
1967 Marine Offences Act. So Dave was ordered for court and on January
27th 1977 and with him the owner of the ship, which went out to the Mi
Amigo, appeared in Southend on Sea It was Arthur Ord, and old age
pensioner and ex commando. Like the earlier case with Samantha neither
one of those two felt they could afford a lawyer, as the fees for that
were to high. Both pleaded ‘guilty’ to the charges laid against them.
The next is what the newspaper ‘Standard Recorder’ had to say about the
court case some days later(February 4th 1977):
‘Pirate Radio Supporter Scuppered. Pirate Radio Supporter David Hutson
was determined to keep Radio Caroline afloat. Not only did he supply the
outlawed station’s disc-jockeys with letters and newspapers but he
organised boat trips to the MV Mi Amigo and even published an
advertisement in the form of a Radio Caroline badge. These were
purchased by the passengers on a trip to the vessel. But Hutson, 27, a
storeman of Sandon Road, Vange, got into deep water with this hobby, for
his actions contravened the Marine etc Broadcasting Offences Act. And at
the Southend Court last week, he was find a total of 125 Pound with 20
Pound costs. Boatowner Walter Ord, 68, of Brightlingsea, was find a
total of 125 Pounds with 20 Pound costs, also for supplying newspapers
and letters to the ship. He had a former conviction for taking a
passenger of the radio ship. The fines were met with gasps and groans
from the public gallery, were Free Radio Supporters had gathered.’
Nice to see a small article appeared in a local newspaper, probably a
weekly, days after the court case, almost 30 years ago from today. On
the court case a certain Mr Orlando Pownall, appearing for Hutson, told
the people in court it would become time that Independent Radio would
become legal. Well there were already independent radio stations on land
in Britain since 1973 with LBC as the ‘numero uno’! Another negative
speaker at the court was Miss Jeraine Roberts, for the director of
Public Prosecutions, as she told the court that following an
advertisement for boat trips to view the MV Mi Amigo, Gary Skull posed
as a passenger aboard Ord’s trawler. She said each of the 12 passengers
bought a 15 p Radio Caroline badge, offered by Hutson. Alongside the Mi
Amigo Hutson threw aboard passenger’s requests for records, plus their
newspapers and letters for those onboard. Of course the Police had to
come in force and at the court case the attendees learnt that the Home
Office officials boarded, in cooperation with the police Ord’s trawler.
Hutson’s comment afterwards was good for a laugh way back in 1977 but
also 30 years on: ‘You can do burglary and get less. I don’t see what we
have done wrong’.
Well think about the time and money put into this court case, the money
they were making out of the prosecutions, compared to the ‘super de
luxe’ reception murderers and other criminals are getting then and now!
HANS KNOT