The Lincolnshire Poacher was a powerful British shortwave numbers station that transmitted from HM Government Communications Centre near Gawcott in Buckinghamshire, England,[1] and later from Cyprus, from the mid-1960s to July 2008. The station gained its commonly known name as it uses bars from the English folk song "The Lincolnshire Poacher" as an interval signal. The radio station was believed to be operated by the British Secret Intelligence Service.[2] Amateur direction finding linked it with the Royal Air Force base at Akrotiri, Cyprus, where several curtain antennas were identified as being its transmitter.[3] It consisted of a pre-recorded English-accented female voice reading groups of five numbers: e.g., '0-2-5-8-8'. The final number in each group was spoken at a higher pitch. It is likely that the station was used to communicate to undercover agents operating in other countries, to be decoded using a one-time pad.[4]
| Broadcast area | RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Several shortwave frequencies between 5.422 and 16.084 MHz |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Format | Numbers station |
| Affiliations | Royal Air Force (speculated) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | MI6 (speculated) |
| Cherry Ripe (speculated) | |
Cherry Ripe, a numbers station of identical format, is believed to have been broadcast from Guam, and later Australia, for agents working in Asia. Like the Lincolnshire Poacher, it used several bars from its namesake folk song as its interval signal.[4][5] Cherry Ripe ceased broadcasting in December 2009.[6]
History
editThe precise date that the Lincolnshire Poacher began broadcasting is not known for certain; however, it is believed that the broadcasts started around the early to mid 1970s.[7] While numbers stations have existed since World War I, numbers stations such as Lincolnshire Poacher began appearing during the Cold War era, when nations such as the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom needed to send messages discreetly to their operatives in other countries.[8] However, after the Cold War, the number of numbers stations greatly decreased.[8] The Lincolnshire Poacher remained operating after the end of the Cold War, and continued to be broadcast into the next two decades.[4]
The Lincolnshire Poacher ceased broadcasting in July 2008; the final station transmission to be recorded occurred on 2 July 2008.[2] It is believed that the station's sister station, Cherry Ripe, began to send broadcasts that used to be intended to be sent over the Lincolnshire Poacher station.[7] This is believed to be true because the "Cherry Ripe" station used a very similar call signal, and broadcast its messages in 200 sets of five-number IDs.[7]
Location
editAlthough the usage of numbers stations has not been confirmed by any world government, amateur enthusiasts have traced the location of the Lincolnshire Poacher's signal transmission to RAF Akrotiri, a Royal Air Force base located on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.[2] The station is believed to have been operated by the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and maintained by the Royal Air Force members that occupy the base in Cyprus.[7]
Broadcast schedule
editThe Lincolnshire Poacher was broadcast several times throughout the day, and was transmitted seven days a week, at various times and on various shortwave frequencies. This schedule was accurate as of January 2006, which is the most recent update to the broadcast schedule. All times are Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), and all radio frequencies in megahertz (MHz).[4]
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:00 | 14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
| 13:00 | 14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
| 14:00 | 10.426 12.603 14.487 |
12.603 14.487 16.314 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
14.487 15.682 16.084 |
10.426 11.545 14.487 |
11.545 14.487 15.682 |
| 15:00 | 11.545 13.375 15.682 |
7.755 8.464 10.426 |
11.545 14.487 16.084 |
11.545 12.603 13.375 |
11.545 12.603 13.375 |
11.545 12.603 13.375 |
11.545 12.603 13.375 |
| 16:00 | 11.545 12.603 13.375 |
11.545 13.375 15.682 |
6.485 7.755 10.425 |
8.464 12.603 14.487 |
11.545 12.603 13.375 |
11.545 12.603 13.375 |
8.464 10.426 11.545 |
| 20:00 | 11.545 |
Cultural impact
editThe station features prominently in The Whisperer in Darkness, the second season of the BBC podcast The Lovecraft Investigations,[9] and in the Prime Video series Truth Seekers.[10] It is also the basis for the Torchwood audio drama "The Lincolnshire Poacher", which supposes it is run by a literal hunter from Lincolnshire.[11]
References
edit- "Tracking the Lincolnshire Poacher". BBC Radio 4. 23 April 2005. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
Footnotes
edit- ^ "E3 - Lincolnshire Poacher - Part Two". E.N.I.G.M.A. Newsletter. No. 14. January 1998. pp. 34–37.
- ^ a b c "E03 The Lincolnshire Poacher". 27 January 2018. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ "Lincolnshire Poacher". Numbers and Oddities. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
- ^ a b c d Simon Mason. "The Lincolnshire Poacher". Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
- ^ "Profile of Cherry Ripe". Spynumbers. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
- ^ "Hundred forty-seventh edition of the N&O column / Spooks newsletter". Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
- ^ a b c d Mason, Simon (30 October 2009). "E3 Lincolnshire Poacher". Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
- ^ a b Pepitone, Juilanne (31 July 2008). "Secrets in the Static". Esquire Magazine.
- ^ "The Lovecraft Investigations". BBC Radio 4. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
- ^ Lealos, Shawn S. (19 November 2020). "Yes, Truth Seekers' Lincolnshire Poacher Was Real". CBR. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
- ^ Mooney, Lauren; Pringle, Stewart. Torchwood: The Lincolnshire Poacher. Big Finish Productions. BFPTWCD67.