As part of our special series of Diamond Jubilee features, JESSICA CREE asked six local celebrities to look back at a decade which shaped their life during the reign of Her Majesty Elizabeth II.

1950s - jim bowen

Lancashire Telegraph: Jim Bowen Blackburn man and legendary TV host and comedian

  • What is your favourite personal memory from the decade? My favourite memory is getting a place at Chester training College. I was training to be a secondary school maths teacher. I got a place in the 50s when I came out of the Army. Another favourite memory would be getting married.
  • Who was your favourite musician? A man called Eddie Calvert. He was a trumpet player and I watched him quite a lot. He had a number one with Oh My Papa and he inspired me to learn the trumpet.
  • What was the best film or TV programme? My favourite programme was Opportunity Knocks. It was a talent show a bit like the X Factor with a man called Hughie Green. There was only one channel then and it was a big success.
  • What car did you have or what car did you aspire to have? A blue Ford Prefect. It was the first car I ever got. But I had to sell it for £390 when I got married.
  • Who was your hero? My hero was a guy called Chris Barber. He had a jazz band and I was really into jazz music, but I was a very bad player. He started my interest in the music.
  • What was the biggest sporting highlight? Watching Blackburn Rovers during the 50s was memorable because they were good then and they were a big name. They had some legend players like Bryan Douglas, they were all internationals.
  • What was the biggest news highlight? When I was doing national service in 1956, there was the Suez crisis with Anthony Eden, when they blocked the canal and I was called to duty. I remember it being on the news, it was potentially World War Three it got that close.
  • What was the best invention or product? Probably a teasmaid that made tea in a machine by the bedside. I had one and we had to save up for it. We also had to save up for a Hoover, it cost us £19 when we got married.
  • What was the fashion like? It was very basic. There was not the money to be fashionable so it did not feature very much. It was very plain, single breasted suit with collar and tie for the men and the girls wore very basic dresses. No miniskirts, we were not very adventurous.
  • What was the best night out? I used to go the Conservative Club, in Cannon Street, Accrington, on Saturday nights before I got married. We went to see a band and used to dance. We used to stand and wait and I asked a girl to dance if I could build up enough courage. It was two shillings and six pence to get in.

1960s - barry kilby

Lancashire Telegraph: Barry Kilbyformer Burnley FC chairman

  • Favourite memory? It has to be England winning the 1966 World Cup. I was there and very few people had that privilege. I was 17 and I stayed at my mate’s house down in London and I had a season ticket for all the games.
  • Favourite band? The Beatles. The rise of the Beatles came in the early 60s and I bought the first single called Love Me Do. It opened the floodgates for a lot of artists and the Sgt Pepper album was my favourite.
  • Best film or TV programme? My favourite film was Easy Rider with Peter Fonda in it. I went to the cinema to see it.
  • Your car? I had a Vauxhall Victor, it was light blue. I had to save up for it and it only had three gears. I had it for a while, about 18 months. It was my first car, which is something special.
  • Hero? Bobby Moore. He was captain of the England team and a real gentleman.
  • Sporting highlight? Burnley became the football league champions in 1960. I remember it very, very well that night in Manchester.
  • Biggest story? I would say the assassination of Kennedy in 1963. I was playing snooker at my mum’s house and I remember my mum coming into the room and telling me. It was a massive shock.
  • Best product? I remember getting a fridge and the novelty of having cold milk was the bees’ knees. It might not have been invented in the 60s but this was when mass production was coming in and working-class homes got this new thing. It was revolutionary.
  • Fashion? I went down the famous Carnaby Street in London, it was an absolute revolution. We wore flares and roundneck jackets, bell bottoms and massive open neck shirts. I have a jacket somewhere that I called my magic velvet jacket, it was popular with the ladies.
  • Best night out? Nelson Imperial. I saw The Who and Small Faces. It really was something to go on a Saturday to see world class live bands.

1970s - sir bill taylor

Lancashire Telegraph: Sir Bill Taylor former Blackburn with Darwen Council leader

  • Favourite memory? The 70s were transitional for me. I entered them taking my A levels at school in Birmingham, went to university at Lancaster and came to be a youth worker here in Blackburn. I exited the 70s a married man, householder with a professional career, soon to become a parent and local councillor.
  • Favourite band? I am probably an unreconstructed hippy, so on vinyl I had Tapestry by Carole King, Blue by Joni Mitchell and Still Crazy After All These Years by Paul Simon.
  • Best film or TV programme? My favourite film was probably Cabaret with Liza Minnelli, it’s a great musical with the anti Nazi allegory running through it.
  • Your car? A nice dark blue Hillman Imp, like McGill, in the Man in a Suitcase.
  • Hero? I suppose it’s always been Paul Simon. He’s a great songwriter and performer.
  • Sporting highlight? I don’t have one really. I was in the Cavendish on the night Rovers went up. Gerry Marsden was on as it happened. We sang You'll Never Walk Alone all night.
  • Biggest story? Just that the news started to get to us sooner. People started to become less formal and stuffy.
  • Best product? Things began to get faster and smaller. We had VCRs, cassette tapes and some word processors.
  • Fashion? I guess I was pretty hippy, I had longish hair and a beard.
  • Best night out? I worked a lot of nights but on the odd Saturday, I went on the bus into Blackburn from Great Harwood and we had beers on the Barbary Coast and a disco in the Cav. We also went to Under-ground or Golden Palms. We got a curry and walked six miles home.

1980s - simon garner

Lancashire Telegraph: Simon Garner Blackburn Rovers all-time leading scorer

  • Favourite memory? Breaking the scoring record for Blackburn Rovers. It was against Manchester City and it felt great. I had been trying to do it for quite a while.
  • Favourite band? I have always been a U2 fan. I just think they are a great band and they have been going for years. I have got all of their albums.
  • What was the best film or TV programme? I liked ET: The Extra Terrestrial. It was a nice family film and I went to see it at the cinema with the kids.
  • Your car? Everybody wanted a Ford Capri 2.8 injection. I wanted a black one. It was my dream car but I never got it.
  • Hero? Kenny Dalglish. He must have been at Liverpool at the time. I just thought he was a great footballer and one of the best in the 80s in the English game.
  • Sporting highlight? It was scoring five goals against Derby County when I was playing for Blackburn Rovers. It is not very often you get five in a game and it was very pleasing.
  • Biggest story? The wedding of Charles and Diana. We got a day off training for it so we went to the pub to watch it.
  • Best product? Sky TV. I got it in as soon as it came out in 1989.
  • Fashion? Everybody had a dodgy shell suit. I had a blue one.
  • Best night out? We always used to go to the Cavendish or Peppermint Place on top of the multi-storey car park in Blackburn. It was a nightclub and it was very popular, you used to get people coming from miles around.

1990s - jennifer laycock

Lancashire Telegraph: Jennifer Laycock Lancashire women’s cricket captain

  • Favourite memory? In the 1990’s I played county cricket and I was selected to play for Lancashire County’s Under 13 girls team in 1999.
  • Favourite band? I’m not really a big music fan, but I like Take That. I liked pretty cheesy music.
  • Best film or TV programme? I liked the film Austin Powers and on television Friends. I used to like my books and I loved Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
  • Your car? My dad used to drive me around in a Golf. I have always wanted an Audi. Any Audi.
  • Hero? My hero was Arran Brindle, the England women’s cricketer from Barnoldswick. I really looked up to her. She was the captain of the Lancashire first team when I was 12. She had the position that I now have 10 years later.
  • Sporting highlight? I remember watching the World Cup in 1998. I know England didn’t do particularly well, but I remember celebrating at school. We were allowed to watch it at school and wear St George’s face paint.
  • Biggest story? The build up to the millennium stands out from that decade. I remember everyone worrying about the millennium bug and what would happen to all the computers.
  • Best product? The mobile phone became popular and available to people in the 1990s. I remember getting a 3310 with the game Snake on it.
  • Fashion? I always wore trainers. I was into my sports – football, cricket and ballroom dancing. I always wore shorts and a t-shirt.
  • Best night out? I used to hang out at sports clubs and the youth club at Read School.

2000s - diana vickers

Lancashire Telegraph: Diana Vickers East Lancs X Factor semi finalist

  • Favourite memory? I guess X Factor was a big part of that era for me. Doing my West End debut in Little Voice was also amazing. I worked with the most amazing actors and it was really great because I won an award for it. It was a great experience.
  • Favourite band? Kings of Leon all the way. I love them and I have their old albums and their current ones.
  • Best film or TV programme? Friends and Sex and the City. Friends is absolutely hilarious and it is really universal. Sex and the City is great because it is so glamorous and relevant to modern day women, you can really relate to it.
  • Your car? I really wanted one of the old school VW Beetles at one point, a convertible yellow one. But now I would maybe like a vintage Jaguar.
  • Hero? I used to love Marilyn Monroe. I love all her film and she is so sexy and a really woman. She just oozes some sort of aura. Every time I watch one of her movies, I just fall in love with her.
  • Sporting highlight? I am not really a one for sport but I did go and see Prince Harry play polo. I was doing it just outside of London, it was really great.
  • Biggest story? I loved the whole Kate and William thing but the Twin Tower attacks were the most horrific thing that happened.
  • Best product? I love the MacBook and the iPod. I love my music and to be able to have an iPod is great. It is a pretty amazing invention.
  • Fashion? I loved it when big Burberry and buckled boots came into fashion, I loved it when old school fashion started to come in, like the 60s era, and people going back to that. I liked little play suits in the summer and people being more eccentric with their make-up.
  • Best night out? The Glamour Awards were pretty amazing and I loved the Isle of Wight Festival, I met some incredible people. But at home I went out with all my friends and family on Christmas Eve, when we all went to the Bull’s Head in Wilpshire. I had my 16th party at home and then went out around Blackburn.

your memories

What are your favourite memories of Queen Elizabeth II's reign? Tell us in the comments section below.