BBC Radio Solent’s Summer of ‘76 kicked off on Monday and the station wants to hear your stories and memories of life 40 years ago.

Throughout the summer Radio Solent will be celebrating everything ‘1976’ and you and your story could feature on the airwaves.

Coverage starts with a week of special features telling the story of Southampton Football Club’s journey to the FA Cup final and the historic win against Manchester United.

Presenter Julian Clegg said: “It’s a great idea to mark 1976 – for anyone who is 40-something and older, it’s a year we’ll never forget.

“Endless summer days, the best cheesy music of the decade, standpipes on street corners and Dennis Howell as Minister of Drought. It had to rain in the end!”

Managing editor Sarah Miller said: “1976 is just one of those memorable years that, if you lived through the 70s, you remember with fondness. You just need to mention water saving and hosepipe bans to start the memories rolling.

“This project is a great way for BBC Radio Solent to capture stories of the time, to hear listeners’ recollections, and to enjoy the music from one long, hot summer.”

Senior producer Julie Massiter, who is leading the project, said: “It was the year the UK won the Eurovision Song Contest, the country basked in a heatwave, and children turned on the TV to watch The Muppet Show and Multi-Coloured Swap Shop.

“But it was also a time of strikes and high inflation.

“Whatever was happening in your life, we’d love to hear from you. Perhaps you got married in 1976, had a baby or launched a new business.

“Do you remember the lengths your family had to go to save water or the music that got you dancing back then?

“We want to tell your stories across the station, on air and online, and build a picture of life here 40 years ago.”

To share your memories and photographs of 1976 with Radio Solent, e-mail [email protected] or write to: Summer of ’76, BBC Radio Solent, Broadcasting House, Havelock Road, Southampton, SO14 7PW.