Piccadilly Radio Archive - Jon Horrocks

"I feel close to the rebelliousness of the youth here. Perhaps time will separate us, but nobody can deny that here, behind the windows of Manchester, there is an insane love of football, of celebration and of music."
- Eric Cantona.

I didn’t feel very rebellious aged fourteen pretending to do my homework while trying to find out what the latest score was in the Quarter Final second leg of the Manchester United UEFA cup match against the Hungarian team Videoton. Sponsored and named after the state-run video making company, the men from Székesfehérvár reversed the one nil result at Old Trafford with a deflected shot from a free kick that seemed harsh on United’s hitherto parsimonious defence. As the clock ticked down, United’s adroit Danish winger with the cool haircut- Jesper Olsen- went on a mazy run only to be felled in the Videoton box. A clear ‘stone wall’ penalty was denied by Swedish referee Erik Fredriksson* despite vehement protestations from the away team.



You would think if anyone could rewind a clip and watch it again – it would be them. So, the match ended as a draw – there wasn’t even the doubling of any away goals to be worked out and this parity meant United’s first ever European penalty shoot-out.

I ended up ’watching’ this penalty shoot-out on teletext (if you do not know what I am on about ask your parents) Ceefax page 316 flashed up in pixelated graphics STAPLETON - MISS to my huge disappointment. It moved to sudden death where Arthur Albiston’s penalty was saved and Laszlo Disztl leathered Videoton’s sixth penalty to Gary Bailey’s left. We were out.

I say watching- but actually watching football on TV was a rarity. These matches were never broadcast live on terrestrial television in my teenage years - only the ‘Big Match on a Sunday and the FA Cup and European Finals were.

(One could, however, negotiate a late-night TV pass with my dad to see the highlights on ‘Sportsnight. ’)

My usual link to all things Manchester United related was Piccadilly Radio’s United Vox - Mr Tom Tyrell. Years later I wonder if they couldn’t broadcast that particular match behind the Iron Curtain, but I do remember being particularly frustrated that my link to all things United was down! I was bereft of my lifeline!

Tom Tyrell was engaging and passionate, knowledgeable and courteous. Perfect for the job.

And what a job! – gathering news at The Cliff training ground and interviewing star players like mercurial Scot Lou Macari or our first ever international player Yugoslavian Nikola Jovanovic. (I later read an article from the superb fanzine United We Stand founder, Andy Mitten- that on hearing that United were not extending his contract, Jovanovic drove his club car with his model girlfriend-straight to Belgrade and neither he nor the BMW ever returned.)

You can hear Tom’s style in the clip below, interviewing coach Tommy Cavanagh after United’s FA Cup semi final win against Leeds in 1977. The two Tommys- Cavanagh and Doherty celebrated again the following month at Wembley Stadium as United went on to win the FA Cup that year against Liverpool 2v1 with goals from Stuart Pearson and a shot from Lou Macari that came off Jimmy Greenhoff. Tommy Cavanagh got his wish.



For certain games Tom Tyrell would commentate the full match or sometimes just radio in updates from the game. This was as well as being the stadium announcer at Old Trafford! Not sure if he chose the music though, as I seem to remember the rather naff Baltimore one hit wonder – Jungle Life being played far too frequently for my like.

He would also be the link for United on Piccadilly Saturday sport with James H Reeve at the helm, the famous cheering clip and a cheery ‘it’s a goal’ if a local side scored is legendary -and of course the ‘oh no’ clip would fill you with dread ( you would pray they were going over to Brian Clarke at Maine Road where Manchester City played at the time)

I remember Piccadilly backing Manchester United in the 1985 FA Cup Final, ‘Big Ron’s Red Army’ stickers became attached to our car. Things were looking bleak when referee Peter Willis harshly sent off United’s Irish centre half Kevin Moran (- the first ever red card in an FA Cup Final.) for a professional foul on Everton midfielder Peter Reid. The ten men battled hard against the League Champions and in extra time -the combative Norman Whiteside beat the offside trap ‘Whiteside is onside!’ and beat Everton’s ‘keeper Neville Southall with a sumptuous curling shot. The cup was going back to Old Trafford. My love affair with United continues to this day.

The 80’s was also the time that Thatcherism was in full swing and Northern Cities were hit hard. There wasn’t a day it seems when Granada News wasn’t reporting a factory closing with the loss of jobs for hundreds of workers. Cities haemorrhaged people living in them and Tory Norman Tebbit urged families to split up and get on bikes to look for the little work there was. People struggled.

Piccadilly was a release for many. James H, although cursed with being an ardent Manchester City fan, was left wing, sharp as a tack, erudite and very, very, funny. He was the perfect host for a late-night phone in. A wonderful celebration of absurdity. I am sure my ‘O’ Level examinations suffered as I stayed up far too late listening to ‘Nocturnal Emissions’ as he named the show.

About the same time rival radio station Lancashire’s Red Rose Radio also had a late-night phone-in hosted by gruff curmudgeon ex-soldier Alan Beswick. He had however, also previously worked in a citizen’s advice bureau, so he was far more likely to genuinely help callers with their problems- this approach would be anathema to James H Reeve who would irascibly dismiss ‘Herberts’ who phoned in with the blink of an eye and the puff of a John Player Special.

This clip from 1986 when the Mexico Word cup was on finds James at his acerbic best. It also coincided with Timmy Mallett's leaving party…



In that show not only does he call a caller a piecan – a word my father used regularly but says Frank Sidebottom has promised to answer the phones to callers. Later on we find out he has wandered off though with something better to do. Now that does sounds like the chaotic yet genius mind of the late Chris Sievey. Frank, the paper mache headed alter ego character (who lived in Timperley with his mum- and his ventriloquist puppet Little Frank) was previously in the band The Freshies who had a small hit single with I’m in love with the girl on the Manchester Virgin Check out desk.

Frank popped up introducing and supporting bands with his surreal act – as anarchic as the punks before him. Enter Johnny Clarke. John Cooper Clark was a Salfordian punk poet whose verse was as quick as his brain.

Below is a link for a Mark Radcliffe interview. Radcliffe championed new music and alternative post punk. His dry and relaxed style was the anthesis to the cheesy Radio one types - the ‘Smashie and Nicey’ style DJs that held atrocious travelling road shows playing awful pop ditties.



New Order’s Gillian Gilbert was far cooler than Bonnie Tyler.

The show I had the greatest music affection for was however - The Last Radio Show hosted by Tony Michaelides. This was one of the only shows that championed the music I liked. Piccadilly used to get local bands to record ‘sessions’ just for the radio. This was so exciting. Michaelides was the first DJ to introduce acoustic sessions in 1985. They sometimes interviewed the bands as well. I could list so many great bands that were broadcast by Tony the Greek here, New Order, The Fall, Happy Mondays, Inspiral Carpets, Miaow, The Waltones, Bradford, Dub Sex, James... the list would go on and on and reflect the local talent around – all threaded in with cool other stuff like Tom Verlaine’s Television or Take the Skinheads Bowling by Camper Van Beethoven. I went to see ethereal The Sundays after hearing them on the show – I was blown away by Harriet Wheeler’s vocal ability. Whilst legendary ‘Alternative DJ’ John Peel would play such a diverse mix of artists and gave many bands their first break-some of them were truly atrocious-

Why I remember the Last Radio show is so fondly as it was like being round a mate’s house and their cool elder sibling played their latest records to you. And that is probably the best compliment I can give.



This conversation with the band James’ Tim Booth and Jim Glennie shows his genial and enthusiastic style.



One of the bands featured frequently were Middleton’s The Chameleons who were selling out the free Trade Hall in 1985 and continue to be crowd pullers to this day. Mark -Vox - Burgess on Bass and Vocals combined with Reg Smithies and Dave Fielding on guitar was a delicious mix of power and melody. The late John Lever is bashing away on drums. Steven Rice, Todd Demma and Danny Ashbury are in the latest line up and have recently produced another gem in a great new album ‘Arctic Moon.’

Bobby Moore’s Wine is the track. This later morphs into the song Mad Jack on their 1986 anthemic Strange Times album. They are as life affirming and wonderful now as ever.

Another band Piccadilly championed right from the beginning who became one the most influential Manchester bands – The Stone Roses.



I have always loved them not least as the truly kind bass player Gary Mounfield once got me into a couple of early gigs (saving my money for a few pints and some chips and gravy on the way home!)

I was hanging around before the show and we got chatting about- you’ve guessed- Manchester United. Although neither of us mentioned Frank Stapleton’s penalty miss against Videoton.

At the time Piccadilly Radio was threaded through my life, not just a soundtrack but intertwined with news. Politics and people’s lives. It was there in my formative years and probably shaped my musical taste.

I may have fallen for the psychological phenomenon – The reminiscence bump that says that the influences (music especially) that teens have- has a lasting impact forever. Memories from this time are recalled more vividly. Certainly, I forget where I’ve put my keys now.

Gen Zed teens now can access thousands of songs on a microchip and watch global tv from their mobile phone.

They will never need go to Piccadilly Records on Saturday morning- not linked to the Radio station- after hearing it on The Last Radio show and then subsequently take their 12” indie music purchases on to the United Road terraces at Old Trafford for the 3pm afternoon kick off.

(Although it is tricky to goad the visiting away fans in the Scoreboard paddock waving a plastic Piccadilly Records bag about. Not least as they moved them to the corner by the main stand.)

Years later Manchester United adopted the Stone Roses song ‘This is the one’ to be played as the teams walked out. It is still played today.

So- my paean to Piccadilly Radio was of Football, Celebration and Music - maybe Eric was right!

Jon Horrocks.



* In 1990 Erik Fredriksson failed to spot a clear hand- ball off the line from Diego Maradona during the 1990 World Cup match between Argentina and the USSR. After the match, Soviet coach of Dynamo Kiev fame- Valery Lobanovsky suggested he should leave football forever if he had any integrity. This Erik got it wrong again. This clip is for the octogenarian Swede.