mid-January 1985

Heavy snow lying on the aerial forced a four day closure while the crew rigged a temporary array enabling the station to resume broadcasts on low power.

18th January 1985

An article in the trade paper, Broadcast revealed that Eurad SA had offered the Communicator for sale.

Roy Lindau resigned as President of MMI, the New York marketing and airtime sales agency representing Laser 558. His successor, Vice-President John Moss, issued a denial that the station was up for sale.

9th February 1985

Laser 558 closed earlier than usual due to the Force 8 gales and heavy seas which were pounding the ship, causing one of the aerial masts to collapse.

14th February 1985

Laser 558 returned to the air, using a temporary aerial arrangement and on very much reduced power.

23rd April 1985

The Communicator's front mast collapsed putting Laser 558 off the air again for two weeks while a completely new aerial mast was constructed and erected on board

7th May 1985

Laser 558 returned to the air using the new aerial mast

** July 1985

More details about a financial crisis facing Laser 558 appeared in the trade magazine Broadcast.

8th August 1985

A helicopter circled over the Communicator while the ocean going launch Dioptric Surveyor, which had been chartered by the British Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)anchored nearby - the start of what became known as "Eurosiege 85", a surveillance operation mounted by the DTI.  

14th August 1985

To test the effectiveness of the blockade and establish whether public money was being wasted the Daily Star sent a reporter to deliver supplies and copies of the newspaper to both the Communicator the Radio Caroline ship, Ross Revenge.

21st August 1985

The Communicator raised her anchor and sailed to a new position about 10 miles away from the Ross Revenge. The Dioptric Surveyor followed the Communicator, but could not anchor in the open sea, so was forced to continuously sail around the radio ship near her new position.

23rd August 1985

The Communicator returned to her Knock Deep anchorage with the Dioptric Surveyor once again following closely behind.

mid-September 1985

Further reports appeared in the press about Laser 558's financial and supply difficulties. There were now only three DJs left on the Communicator, eachpresenting six hour programmes to fill the station's 18 hour broadcasting schedule.

October 1985

Although some extra DJs were recruited others left so the programme schedules varied for most of the month, but Laser 558 was off the air for more than half of October 1985, due either  to generator problems or aerial damage.

mid-October 1985

The DTI announced that it had no immediate plans to discontinue the surveillance operation.

1st November 1985

The Dioptric Surveyor was replaced by a larger surveillance vessel, Gardline Tracker.

5th November 1985

Programming on Laser 558 began as normal, but coded messages were broadcast asking the station's landbased representatives to contact the ship on the  emergency channel . Then at 12.21pm the music stopped and one minute later the transmitter was switched off.

6th November 1985

The Communicator raised her anchor and sailed into Harwich, escorted by the Gardline Tracker and an Essex police launch. A temporary Prohibition Order was served by the Department of Transport because of doubts about the Communicator’s seaworthiness and a writ issued by creditors was also served on behalf of the Admiralty Marshal.

8th November 1985

The Department of Transport confirmed the temporary Prohibition Order and formally declared the Communicator to be unsafe .