LAST week I reminisced about the happy sound of Radio 1, and the fact that it has been on air for 50 years.

I'm far too old to appreciate the station nowadays, but I remember racing home from school to listen to the original Steve Wright In The Afternoon and all his mad jingles and characters.

Back in the early days of Radio 1, the DJ's were as big as the programmes. Familiar faces like Noel Edmonds and Kenny Everett were all newcomers.

Noel came to Basingstoke in 1983 to open a new electrical store called Mr G's in Castle Square. This is now a Costa Coffee. I don't remember this store, but maybe some of you reading this do?

Noel presented a top loading VHS video recorder to Reg Payne of South Ham. This was top of the range in 1983!

Another famous Radio 1 DJ also came to town in the 1980s to open the Simon King music store in new Market Square. Simon Bates was at Radio 1 between 1976 and 1993 and he was mobbed by young fans at the opening of the store.

Do you have Basingstoke Memories you'd like to share? You can get in touch via the Facebook page or by emailing basingstokememories@gmail.com.

By Marc Neun