Piccadilly Radio
 |
|
| City | Manchester |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Greater Manchester |
| Slogan | The Greatest Hits for Manchester |
| Frequency |
MW: 1152 kHz DAB: 11C |
| First air date | 2 April 1974 |
| Format | Oldies |
| Audience share | 1.4% (June 2014, RAJAR) |
| Owner | Bauer Radio |
| Sister stations |
Key 103 Key 3 |
| Website | planetradio |
Key 2 is a local radio station owned and operated by Bauer Radio as part of the City 2 network. It broadcasts to Manchester from studios in Castlefield.
It began broadcasting in 1974 as Piccadilly Radio, the first commercial radio station in Manchester. The station was later renamed Piccadilly Magic 1152 and then Key 2.
The station began broadcasting on 2 April 1974 as Piccadilly Radio on 261m (1151 kHz then) AM/MW and on 97.0 MHz FM (from the same transmitter in Saddleworth that is used by Key 103 today). The station is named after Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester, and Piccadilly Plaza was home to the station's first studios until 1996, when Piccadilly 1152 and Key 103 were relocated to the Castlefield area of Manchester.
Many of Britain's best-known presenters started their careers at Piccadilly, including Chris Evans, Mike Sweeney, Steve Penk, James H Reeve, Andy Peebles, Gary Davies, Tim Grundy, Timmy Mallett, Pete Mitchell, Geoff Lloyd, Mark Radcliffe, James Stannage, Nick Robinson and Karl Pilkington. Journalist Paul Lockitt joined Piccadilly in 1979 and endures as the radio station's longest serving broadcaster after 30-plus years as a producer, presenter and newscaster.
Piccadilly Radio split into two services in 1988, with Key 103 broadcast on FM with a contemporary format, while Piccadilly Gold broadcast on AM with a Gold format. In the mid-1990s Piccadilly Gold became Piccadilly 1152 as the playlist moved away from "golden oldies" to a mix of classic and current easy-listening music. The late-night phone-in with James Stannage became the most listened-to talk show outside London, whilst the Dave Ward and Umberto breakfast show helped the station to become one of the biggest broadcasting on AM.
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