I was a very loyal Radio Hauraki listener from early January 1967, when I bought my first transistor radio (a National Panasonic 8 from Smith’s Sound in Hobson St, just around the corner from the North Shore Transport bus stops and just up the road from Farmers) with money saved from my Auckland Star paper run, up until broadcasts from the Hauraki Gulf ceased in 1971.

I mostly listened to Peter Telling (“Screaming Peter T”) who was on 7 to 10 on week nights (after I’d had tea, done my homework and watched a bit of TV). At 10, Carl Olsen took over. Peter Telling was replaced at some stage by the late Rick Grant and Carl Olsen was replaced by Ross Goodwin. I think Peter Telling moved to Radio I at some point and Ross Goodwin was on 1ZM in the early 1980s.

There was a gap of a few weeks until land-based broadcasting commenced from the Mangere transmitter site. During that time I listened to 1ZM and was amazed at how good 1ZM had become. When Radio Hauraki (with it’s official call sign 1XA announced hourly) came back I was very disappointed – the format was different because they were apparently trying to compete more directly with 1ZB, which had by far the biggest audience share (over half, I think, but definitely not including me! I hated 1ZB!).

A few months later, Radio I (1XI) 1590 started broadcasting. Radio I is perhaps best known as a talk station (Dr Eccles Smith etc) or a “beautiful music” or easy listening station, but when it first started it was the wildest radio station in NZ. Radio I had ex-Hauraki DJ Keith Ashton. 1ZM and Radio I became my favourite stations.

After a few months there were more format changes. Radio Hauraki went back to a format similar to its original one and Radio I switched to talk. 1ZM stayed much the same and took on a drop dead georgeous DJ named Dallas Cuthbert.

I shared my loyalties between Hauraki and 1ZM until about 1979 when I completely abandoned Hauraki and didn’t ever listen to Hauraki again until about a year ago. I listened exclusively to 1ZM/1251ZM/Classic Hits 1251 until I left Auckland in 1989, apart from brief flirtations with the two new FM stations (89 Stereo FM and Magic 91FM). They weren’t any good and had a feeble sound quality, as did Hauraki, on my new stereo system compared to 1ZM’s thundering bass.

Now, in 2006, Radio Hauraki is once again one of my favourite stations along with Solid Gold FM.
Happy forthcoming 40th birthday, Radio Hauraki! Dave