History
Kiss FM began in October 1985 as a pirate radio station, which broadcast across South London and subsequently across the whole city on 94FM. It attracted a huge following before finally acquiring a legitimate licence in 1990 - it was thought to have commanded in the region of 500,000 listeners even as a pirate station. It was first set up by Gordon McNamee (later its Managing Director until December 1997) and his friends; Tosca, Pyers Easton and George Power. Gordon Mac approached a successful London club promoter, Guy Wingate, to discuss ways of improving Kiss' profile and Wingate then launched the hugely successful Kiss nights at the Wag Club (which included the first ever Acid House party, an idea put forward by Kiss DJs Colin Faver and Danny Rampling). These nights gave the station a credibility boost and Wingate joined the Kiss team, followed shortly thereafter by Lindsay Wesker.
Kiss was 'owned' by Gordon Mac who in 1986 sold shares to 10 of the DJs, including Tim Westwood, Jonathan More, Norman Jay, Trevor Nelson and others. Gordon Mac, Wesker and Wingate, the team of DJ's and an army of helpers took the station forward through a combination of grim determination and clever marketing and in 1988, the Department of Trade And Industry advertised the first new radio licence in London for many years. Kiss pitched hard but despite colossal public support, the licence was awarded to Jazz FM (now Smooth Radio). In the weekend that followed, the Kiss team roamed London building up an enormous petition that was delivered on the Monday morning to then Home Secretary, Douglas Hurd.
A short time thereafter, new licences were advertised and this time Kiss, and its loyal army of listeners, were rewarded.
On 1 September 1990 Kiss relaunched as a legal station, its studio and offices located on the Holloway Road, and was supported financially by EMAP. Its many past influential DJs include Paul 'Trouble' Anderson, Trevor Nelson, Judge Jules, Chris Philips, Dave Pearce, Sarah HB, Steve Jackson, Colin Dale, Norman Jay, Nick Power, Richie Rich, Coldcut, Tony De Vit, Jazzie B, Gilles Peterson, Pete Wardman, Hixxy & Sharkey, Slipmatt, Graham Gold, Squirrel and DJ Vibes.
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“I am ashamed to see what a shallow village tale our so-called History is. How many times must we say Rome, and Paris, and Constantinople! What does Rome know of rat and lizard? What are Olympiads and Consulates to these neighboring systems of being? Nay, what food or experience or succor have they for the Esquimaux seal-hunter, or the Kanaka in his canoe, for the fisherman, the stevedore, the porter?”
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