Two friends will be celebrating the 70th anniversary of the UK’s Official Chart Show with several special programmes on a local hospital radio.

Martin Kinch and Mark Withey, who have collectively been volunteering at Stoke Mandeville Hospital Radio for 77 years, will front the shows on specific Tuesdays and Thursdays to commemorate the milestone, whilst also raising funds for the station.

Between 1pm – 4pm on Tuesday, October 25, November 1, and November 8, and on Thursday, October 27, November 3, and November 10, numerous number one hit singles will be played across the network from 1952 to the present day.

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Martin joined SMHR (Stoke Mandeville Hospital Radio) in January 1979, just a few weeks after the station launched.

He currently hosts the ‘Solid Gold’ show on a Monday evening between six and eight whilst Mark, who joined nine years later in 1988 presents The Aylesbury Chart show every Saturday morning at nine.

Martin said: “When I first started, the only way people could hear us was through plastic tubes coming out of the wall in the wards.

“Now, thanks to years of fundraising and hard work by our dedicated team we broadcast on 101.8 FM and also online, we also have our own app which can be downloaded onto phones and tablets.

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“Stoke Mandeville Hospital Radio is a registered charity so as well as celebrating 70 years of the UK single charts, we also want to raise much-needed funds to help keep the station on the air.

The entire radio station is run by volunteers.

To find out more, go to www.smhr.co.uk/index.shtml.