Norfolk Police said Michael Souter, a former presenter for BBC Radio Norfolk in eastern England, had been charged with 18 offences against boys, one offence against a man and one against a woman.

The alleged offences date back to between 1979 and 1999.

A spokesman for the force said the charges were not connected to Operation Yewtree, the Scotland Yard investigation into the late BBC star Jimmy Savile who is now accused of sexually abusing hundreds of children over four decades.

Souter, 59, is due to appear before Norwich Magistrates' Court in Norfolk on November 30.

The former radio presenter, who now runs a media consultancy, issued a statement “strenuously” denying the allegations.

“This is the third time that Norfolk Police have investigated these alleged offences,” he said.