Radio Aire 1984 - 1987

In 1984 Radio Aire introduced a new logo and jingle package, produced by David Reilly, with the main theme only being specific to that year ("news and music and more in '84"). The format was similar to before, however by now the original line-up had completely changed.

Presenters such as Peter Tait, Ray Stroud, Ross Dickinson and James Whale had begun to be part of a team that was familiar to Radio Aire throughout the rest of the 1980's.

The schedule from 1984 was...

05:00 Gerry Raynor

06:00 Peter Tait

09:00 Peter Levy

12:00 Tony Blewitt

15:00 Ross Dickinson

18:00 Paul Fairburn

19:00 Ray Stroud

22:00 James Whale

01:00 Closedown

1984 Radio Aire Jingles

1984 Radio Aire Jingle Montage.mp3

1984 Bill Mitchell Voice-Overs

1984 Radio Aire Voice-Overs (Bill Mitchell).mp3

Weekend & extra presenters  included Bob Preedy and Maggie Mash (who were also continuity announcers for Yorkshire Television - now ITV Yorkshire), Gerry Raynor (with his Fabulous Fifties programme) and Dave Burland.

Carol Vorderman made regular appearances on the Peter Levy Show, where she would read stories for pre-school children.

Radio Aire in 1985 / 1986

By 1985, Radio Aire reverted to using the original 1981 jingle package, however it continued to use the Bill Mitchell voice-overs and the 1984 logo. The station had also started to broadcast 24 hours a day.

Christa Ackroyd became programme controller, as well as being a regular newsreader. Around this time, Radio Aire was struggling financially and was on the verge of closure. Christa quickly needed to ensure the station was running at a profit, so introduced sponsorship as part of the advertising revenue. This resulted in the station being successful financially, as well as attracting hundreds of thousands of listeners.

The schedule in March 1985 was...

05:00 Gerry Raynor

06:00 Peter Tait

09:00 Peter Levy

12:00 Ray Stroud

14:00 Gareth O'Callaghan

17:00 Focus, with Dave Burland

18:00 Carl Kingston

22:00 James Whale

02:00 Mark Abson

In 1985, Ross Dickinson left the station to join Pennine Radio, Ray Stroud moved to his new Lunchtme show and Carl Kingston joined to present Evenings. 

Weekend presenters included Bill Naylor, Mike Hurley, Dave Burland, John Boyd (with Sportstime) and Jon Hammond.

Pictured below: Gerry Raynor, Dave Burland, Peter Levy, Ray Stroud, Maggie Mash, Carl Kingston, Mikey Dreadlocks, Paul Stead, Linda Larder, Christa Ackroyd and Jon Hammond.

Ray Stroud (with Peter Tait in the background)

Radio Aire Branded Bus (used in regular service)

On 16th September 1986, the station's FM frequency moved from 94.6 VHF to 96.3.

Also in 1986, Paul Stead had joined the weekday schedule and Mikey Dreadlocks presented a weekly Reggae Show on Monday evenings.

Carl Kingston Air Check - October 1986

Carl Kingston Air Check (Oct 86).mp3

Radio Aire 1986 Promos & Production

Radio Aire 1986 Promos and Production.mp3

In 1986, James Whale moved to the Breakfast Show, although this was short-lived and only lasted for 3 months.

James Whale

The line-up from 1986 was....

 Weekend and extra presenters included Jon Hammond, Jay Jackson, Bob Preedy, Gerry Raynor and Maggie Mash.