Listeners were meant to turn off, tune out and drop off to sleep at midnight Sunday when the station officially played its final track Fenians by New York based rappers Seanchaí.

But this was one radio station that refused to lie down -- even after staff had departed to party at Springhill -- and continued to broadcast Fenians for the next 12 hours.

By the time feile officials raced to the station yesterday to pull the plug at noon the airwaves were not so much tricoloured as true blue.

The song with its chorus "Say it loud and say it proud, I will stay an unrepentant Fenian b*****d . . . " had been playing for 12 hours straight -- approximately 240 times

Taken from the There Will Be Another Day album, Fenians proved to be a big hit on the four-week long festival radio with requests pouring in.

Lines like "seditions are tradition and it won't just go away" follow on from a roll-call of the Irish Republican Brotherhood names including John Devoy.

Festival director Caitriona Ruane yesterday described the broadcast as a "mistake".

She explained that staff had put on what they thought was the last track before heading off with the understanding that the radio authority would cut them off.

Ms. Ruane said the feile apologised if any offence had been caused. She said: "The station was a huge success and we're sorry if an isolated incident caused offence."

Triple FM broadcasted to all of west Belfast including the Shankill.

According to the festival director, the station tried to reach out to all groups. At one stage community workers from the predominantly loyalist district took part in a phone-in on a current affairs programme.

A spokesman for the Radio Communications Agency -- the body that pulls the plug on illeagal radio stations -- said he was sure a genuine mistake like Triple FM;s would not jeopardise any future licence application.

So it looks certain that feile FM will rise again next year and go on, and on, and on, and on...