Manchester Central Library is appealing for listeners to help complete its growing archive of historic Piccadilly Radio shows.
The city’s first commercial radio station went on air in April 1974, with Roger Day launching the service by playing the Beach Boys’ Good Vibrations. Since last year, over 1,600 programmes have been digitised through a £99,000 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, preserving decades of local broadcasting history.
Many broadcasts, however, are still missing. The library is asking residents to check their cupboards, attics and cassette collections for home recordings of lost shows such as James Stannage’s late-night phone-ins, Susie Mathis and Dave Ward’s daytime programmes, Mike Shaft’s ‘Taking Care of Business’, and Stu Allan’s influential hip hop series ‘Bus Diss’.
Listeners can have their tapes digitised for free and returned once copied, ensuring these shows are preserved for future generations. The appeal coincides with the Piccadilly Radio Archive: Nobody Did It Better! exhibition, running at Manchester Central Library until 31 December 2025, which celebrates the voices that shaped Manchester’s radio scene from the 1970s onwards.
Councillor John Hacking said the project is “a chance for all of us to be part of preserving Manchester’s broadcasting history,” encouraging anyone with old tapes to contribute. Helen Featherstone from The National Lottery Heritage Fund added that “local radio holds a special place in people’s hearts,” and praised the project for inspiring future broadcasters.
The archive has also collaborated with the Manchester Digital Music Archive and the Greater Manchester Hip Hop Archive, offering young people workshops and training through ALL FM. Oral histories from Piccadilly Radio staff are also being recorded as part of the project.
Former listeners can contact the Library on archiveslocalstudies@manchester.gov.uk to share their recordings.