It is with much sadness that we meet this day, Wednesday 26th of October 2016, the final day of 105.2 on the Irish FM dial. Whether you called it TXFM, or you refused to call it anything other than Phantom is irrelevant now.

Today, the last records will be cued, the broadcast desks will be covered in sheets and the fader will be turned down for the last time on the single greatest supporter of Irish music on Irish radio and tomorrow static will reign.

The writers and photographers of GoldenPlec have debated what's next for alternative Irish radio since the news of TXFM's closure was announced but that is for another day. Today we remember and reflect and muggins here goes first.

- Stephen Byrne -

Being the resident grumpy old man in GoldenPlec I remember when Phantom was an illicit, illegal pirate radio station, even worse I remember when It was called Spectrum.

I’ve watched it grow and die from the side-lines and I even appeared on it several times as a guest – I’m sure they were probably stuck to the point that Jedward were considered, but weren't available on each occasion.

I had distinct pleasure to appearing on the round robin of the greatest little radio shows in the world, The Richie and Richie show, back when TXFM was Phantom. Some people even blamed my appearance on the show for the demise of the station, but hey it’s not my fault that The Fall single they had me review sounded like someone throwing up on a busker mid Clash cover at 3am on O’Connell St - perhaps I shouldn’t have said that on air.

When the colour scheme changed from green to blue I never got used to the VW camper van’s new paint job, but I took some solace from the fact that it brought out the colour in Joe Donnelly’s eyes.

People often wax lyrical about Kelly-Anne Byrne and Nadine O’Regan, but for me several of the presenters deserve much more acclaim than they ever received. Cathal Funge should be a household name for his dedication to Irish music alone and his amazing PPI award-winning documentaries should be studied in Irish media courses.

Dee Reddy, nursed me through countless hangovers on a Sunday morning with her gentle voice and bi-polar taste in music.

I think it’s a credit to the whole crew that they didn’t switch off when the closure was announced. If anything, the station got better in its final months. The 1991 special was the most interesting and quirky thing to happen on Irish radio in an age.

All of this and the fuckers never even sent me a pen.

- Aidan Cuffe -

TXFM.... Phantom..... Spectrum

There was a time when I was young. I swear. Back when notions of a music site that could give Ireland a valuable music resource were just a twinkle in the eyes of a young college going IT student. Phantom was a culture, an ideal that struck a chord. I remember sitting in the hearing for Phantom to get its license, the excitement of rogue to legit, a voice for a group of people who don't tend to get much of a voice in an advertising led market. A branding changed, but the voice was still largely the same, playing the music we love, breaking new music, creating amazing shows with amazing presenters.

It's not unfair to say the people of Phantom, the founders, the presenters, lit a fire inside me and many others for both a passion for alternative music and Irish music alike. I tip the cumulative hat of 14 years running this website, 3 best music website awards and the profound indescribable pleasure good music gives to the people involved at all stages of the stations history. You won't just be missed, you'll leave a gaping hole on the radio landscape.

- Kev Meagher -

The influence Phantom FM had on my life is can be seen through the existence of this very website. I think Aidan Cuffe (GoldenPlec bo$$ man) would agree that with no Phantom there would be no GoldenPlec. For me it is not just about the fact they played the music that no-one else did, but the community it fostered from forums and chatrooms to the passionate staff to promotion and encouragement of music in Ireland, and to do it all while having to fight to be seen as legitimate, bending to the point it broke.

I'll always have great memories of Phantom, from introducing me to the Irish music scene to radicalising me to attend radio tender offers and shout at hot press backed arseholes trying to what others had earned.

- Ros Madigan -

TXFM will be a huge loss for both the Irish radio industry and the Irish music scene. Not many other stations can lay claim to supporting artists in the way that TX (and Phantom) has - in many ways it's been the heartbeat and focal point for many an Irish and international alternative act. From playing the first licks of Kodaline and Hozier over the last few years to genuinely championing Plec Picks and smaller acts like Otherkin, Zaska, Wyvern Lingo and much much more.

The knowledge, enthusiasm and passion of the DJ's will be missed most however, they've become our early morning companions, our mid-afternoon escapes and even our late-night mischief mates. Having worked closely (in an actual literal sense) with the team - my main condolences and best wishes go out to all the TXFM staff - no doubt we'll be seeing and hearing from you all very soon.

- David Dooley -

"What the fuck did I just wake up to?"

That's a thought that would strike fear into any bleary-eyed person, but not when you were setting your alarm clock to TXFM each night before bed.

Whether it was Cathal playing A Perfect Circle's 'Judith' before 8am and making sure I was absolutely awake before my second alarm went off, Nadine O'Regan easing in a Saturday morning with an insightful look into the people behind the music or Dee Reddy's utterly kaleidoscopic collection of tunes on a Sunday morning, I'll miss it all.

After ten years on air, it was too easy to take it for granted. From its debut around Halloween, way back in 2006 as I tried anything to take my mind off the Leaving Cert to secretly switching the station each weekend during college when I was visiting the parent. Then to the elation of being able to tune in as myself and TXFM presenters Claire Beck and Dee Reddy were able to pick the station up as we came into Holyhead on route to our first Glastonbury.

Even today, on their last day of broadcast they're still introducing me to great new music in the form of Grandaddy's 'The Way We Won't' (TUNE!)

So to everyone at TXFM and Phantom, both on-air and off, thank you for the music.

-Fionnuala Jones -

I remember going to get my most recent tattoo and being so relieved when I realised TXFM was on in the background of the studio. (The National proved to be very soothing in those uncomfortable hours!) TXFM is as familiar as an old friend, and was the gateway to a lot of my current friends.

It provided me with the opportunity to explore music beyond that of my friend's tastes, and its loss to the scene is unimaginable.

- Frank Hughes -

It was the small things that made listening to Phantom and TXFM so essential. One thing that always stood out to me was texting in to request a song when texting was still a thing. Usually you send a message and it may or not be read at all. Only in this case the legend that is Cathal Funge sent a text back saying he didn't have any RJD2 but would some Mr Lif suffice? It was this kind of care about the music which set the DJ's of Phantom and laterly of TXFM apart from the herd.

I also remember some of Sonic Youth's more left field songs being played on the breakfast show. Who else in their right mind would play something as normally radio unfriendly as Sonic Youth and in the morning? That's what got me hooked. Phantoms commitment to new Irish music especially in their early days was more or less my main outlet to discovering new Irish music.

You'd hear something brilliant and then head down to Road Records to see if they had it in stock. I miss all that. It always a niche but that niche was really important to the people that listened. It's sad to see it go but thanks for the great memories.

- Tara Thomas -

TXFM my favourite part of being stuck in Dublin traffic. Heading up to or from a gig TXFM always kept me company and piqued my interest in new music.

I loose signal the closer I get to home. After tomorrow, I'm going to pretend it's just my terrible car aerial & TXFM lives on.

- Danny Kilmartin -

TXFM and Phantom will both be huge losses to Irish radio. Whether it was their unwavering support of up and coming Irish acts or their dedication to providing a true alternative to the top 40 in constant rotation or the state sponsored content, I knew I could rely on both stations for what I needed to hear.

My own personal favourite memory of the stations comes from when I first moved into my apartment with no telly or laptop for entertainment. I was a devout listener of the evening slots, never disappointed.

- Sean Conroy -

I listened to Phantom back in 5th year religiously - I remember texting in on my Nokia 3310 to get Creep played - and they played the version with the swearing - On Christmas day. Then the Two Petes Talk Rubbish meant I stayed up late during my leaving cert on Sunday nights, laughing myself stupid. I walked to college everyday listening to Phantom.

I ran around town looking for Electric Picnic tickets off them the day before my new job. Then TXFM came along and carried on the tradition - I remember ringing up Claire Beck and doing air guitar down the phone for some competition which I'd CLEARLY gotten the wrong end of the stick on. Joe Donnelly helped me bond with new co-workers with his debates about albums.

This radio station has been with me for years and it'll be sad to have an empty spot on the car radio now.

- Bernard O’Rourke -

Right to the end, TXFM were still doing the things that, supposedly, no radio stations did any more. I could list a whole bunch of current faves I heard first time on Phantom/TX, or Irish bands who got their first for anybody to hear them on the station. But more than anything else, it was a station that you could stick on, any time, and hear a proper example of what music radio was supposed to be.

It’s not even they that they played a constant stream of things I personally loved. They played songs I thought were shite, sometimes. But there was always the sense – whether I was into it or not – that the DJs gave a shit about the music they were playing, rather than just twiddling some dials and pressing a play button. So, thank you TXFM/ Phantom for giving a shit. I won’t forget that.

- Ste Murray -

TXFM and its ancestral Phantom FM have always been the go-to radio stations for me as I was growing up. It was so important to hear your taste and attitude resonate back at you through the music it played and the voices that spoke.

It validated my alternative youth and made me think 'this is ok, I'm not alone, and there are plenty of others out there'.

- Aisling Finn -

Phantom and TXFM have introduced me to music that will be a part of my life forever, from the likes of John Grant to less well known Irish acts such as Messiah J and the Expert.

Travelling by car, Phantom has always been one of my programmed buttons on the dash and is always my first choice for music. It has been my soundtrack travelling to and from work and has accompanied me on journeys down the country, hoping for the signal to hang in for 'one more tune'.

It has been a privilege to have such great music so easily available. Thanks TXFM and all who have been part of the station, you will be missed.

- Kenneth Fox -

Whether it was as Phantom 105.2 or TXFM, their unwavering support for up and coming Irish acts has always been something to admire. In an age where every radio station is pandering to the mainstream, TXFM was always proudly alternative and that's what will be missed most.

Any time I tuned into TXFM I knew I wasn't going to hear something that was processed and packaged for a certain demographic, I was going to either hear something brand new or a classic song from the best artists around.

Unlike a lot of the GoldenPlec crew who know a lot of the presenters and staff, I never got the chance to make those connections. Instead, I have admired from afar for many years and just like everyone else I will be truly sad to see TXFM go off the air.