Radio1 roadshow, Dundee: Lewis Capaldi headlines, with buses leaving from Fife

In the east of Scotland we could hear pirates like Radio Caroline North or Radio Scotland with Kirkcaldy’s Richard Park in his first radio role. When the bland Home Service and Scottish stations stopped in came BBC Radios One, Two, Three and Four

By 1973 the Radio One Roadshow toured the resorts with live bands, quizzes and a popular DJ. You may remember them coming to Beveridge Park or Burntisland Links where Dave Lee Travis told a very sparce crowd to go home and bring back some mates. Portobello Beach was always a favourite location where the audience had to fight off the incoming tide during the live show.

I remember interviewing Crowded House in Dundee at a roadshow which had PJ & Duncan from Biker Grove as opening act. They would later emerge as Ant & Dec and become television gold.

The biggest roadshow recorded was at Sutton Park Birmingham in 1992 when over 100,000 fans saw performances from Status Quo, Aswad and Del Amitri. Since the events’ demise, the Radio One Big Weekend has become a big budget festival weekend and tickets for these sell out like any popular festivals do. For 2023 it comes to Dundee’s Campertown Park starting on Friday, May 26. As I write, Friday tickets at £18 are selling fast while Saturday and Sunday all 15000 tickets immediately sold out.

Friday will be headlined by Jamie XX, Arielle Free and Ben Hemsley while Saturday boasts the Jonas Brothers, The 1975 and Jess Glynne. On Sunday it has Lewis Capaldi, Niall Horan and Becky Hill. There is also a BBC Introducing Stage and a Future Sounds Stage with acts like Rudimental and The Snuts.

Already a local bus company has organised travel leaving locally from John Smith Business Park. The whole event will be covered on radio and online.