Bradford's vicars have the chance to become television celebrities for the day.

Members of the clergy and senior Church of England personnel in Yorkshire are being given the chance to spend a day learning how to perform behind the camera.

During the day-long course, all the participants will be "interviewed" in a mock-up television studio and in an outside broadcast scenario.

Their responses will be filmed and their performance later evaluated by Bradford City chaplain the Reverend Martin Short, who is also head of training at the Church of England Communications Unit and Blair Jacobs, a television and radio presenter, who is based in the North East of England.

Bradford Diocese spokesman Alison Bogle said: "The course is for senior members of the church who are likely to face the cameras at some time as part of their church role.

"On the day, they will be asked to respond to crisis scenarios and come up with ideas for interviews.

They will have the chance to experience what it is like to be in a studio setting and out on location."

The Reverend Tony Tooby, vicar of St Philip's in Girlington, is no stranger to media attention after he was chased from his burning church by a 50-strong group of stone-throwing yobs in November 2001.

Since that incident, he has been interviewed for several radio and television news bulletins and documentaries, both local and national.

He said: "The course is a great idea. When I first went behind the camera I had no experience of the media at all and no knowledge of what would be required of me.

"In this job, you never know when you might be interviewed.

"The media is so important as it touches a lot of people and it would be helpful to put over a professional point of view."