Former  RNI and Laser DJ Paul May/Paul Dean has died

DATELINE   Detroit, USA, 8th July 2024

Former Radio North Sea International (RNI) and Laser 558/Laser Hot Hits DJ, Paul May, has died.

Paul was born in April 1950, near Detroit, Michigan, and by 1965 his family had moved to Pittsburgh.

In his mid-teens Paul became interested in radio in America and in the UK where on family visits to Norfolk he listened to Radio Caroline and Radio London. He had hoped to join Radio Caroline in 1967, but his father insisted he return to America to complete his education.

Paul attended the Broadcasting Institute in Baltimore for 9 months and at the end of the course he joined a station in southern Maryland - WKIK, Leonardtown. Within two months Paul had become the station's Programme Director and worked there from November 1968 to 1971.

In 1971 Paul returned to England and discovered that a new offshore radio station was broadcasting off the coast of the Netherlands - Radio Northsea International (RNI).

He wrote to the station owner, Edwin Bollier, who put him in touch with the Production Director, Vic Pelli. ,Paul joined Radio Northsea International in August 1971 and in January 1972 he was appointed Senior DJ. but left in July that year to get married. He returned to live in Norwich, working for the local council during the day,  and as a DJ at night.

In May 1984 Paul joined Laser 558 (using the name Paul Dean) where he worked in production, with spells filling in on air as required as a DJ and news reader.

Paul's last show on Laser-558 was on 28th September 1984. He was later involved with the station's successor Laser Hot Hits, where he was Operations Manager and on air as a DJ during December 1986.

Paul died on 8th July after a long battle with cancer.

(Additional information courtesy Pirate Radio Hall of Fane)

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