Off-shore DJ of the 60s.
Born Graeme Gilsenan on 15th April 1936 in the Melbourne seaside suburb of Williamstown, Graham Gill’s radio career began at the age of 14 at Radio 3UZ in Melbourne.
After about a year Gill transferred to 3KZ as studio panel operator for Alan Freeman before becoming a broadcaster in his own right. From there, Gill moved to Griffith in New South Wales, to 2RG as well as MTN-9 TV.
At the end of 1965 Gill moved to the UK and, like many Australians, ended up in London’s Earls Court.
Gill would become one of Britain’s rock n’ roll pirate DJs when after finding work at the Wimbledon Palais, he was spotted by Radio London.
In May 1966 he joined the station, although his stay was brief – just two weeks – before he was offered a job on the rival Britain Radio / Radio England operation.
Gill was associated with Radio London, Swinging Radio England, Britain Radio and Radio 390 off the British coast during the 1960s, until visa problems forced him out of the country and he moved to Holland.
Gill returned to sea during the seventies, working on both Radio Caroline and Radio Northsea International off the Dutch coast. Here he sang his theme tune live every night over Junior Walker’s ‘Way Back Home’.
When Holland introduced anti-pirate legislation in 1974, Graham joined Radio Netherlands (the Dutch equivalent of the World Service).
After retiring in 1984, in 2002 Gill was tempted back on air to present shows on the short-lived Radio Caroline cable service in Holland.
Graham published his autobiography in 2010, Way Back Home: The Graham Gill Story.
He died in his sleep at his home in Amsterdam in April 2018, 6 days before his 82nd birthday.
Watch Graham sing ‘Way Back Home’ at Radio Days in Amsterdam, 8 November 2008 below.