Campaigners want to create a new bank holiday for Bradford and district - to celebrate the Brontes, Yorkshire's greatest writers.

The date of June 6 has already been marked in Japan as Bronte Day, where the famous Haworth sisters - Charlotte, Emily and Anne - have thousands of fans.

Back in the UK, the Institute for Public Policy Research called for the Government to give the green light to setting up a series of new bank holidays, based on the regions.

And it has recommended Yorkshire's new public holiday should celebrate the Brontes.

The suggestion has been backed by Bronte Parsonage Museum manager, Alan Bentley.

He said: "If they want ideas, I suggest June 6.

"Only this year it has been adopted by the Japanese and it's a good date to use."

June 6, 1823 was the day Branwell Bronte, the sisters' six year-old brother, was given a set of toy soldiers by his father Reverend Patrick Bronte, who bought them in Leeds.

"That's the date accepted as sparking off their creative imaginations," said Mr Bentley.

"They wrote miniature books for the soldiers which eventually lead to the great classic novels by the three women.

"We need an extra bank holiday because leisure time is under so much pressure in Britain and we in the tourism industry are all competing to attract visitors.

"People would be able to organise their time better and we could market Bronte Day both regionally and nationally."

There was even an argument to nominate Yorkshire Day on August 1 as a public holiday, he added.

The Japanese will be celebrating June 6 as Bronte Day next year

Matthew Taylor, IPPR director, said Britain, with eight bank holidays a year, had fewer than most countries in Europe.

And full-time employees in the UK worked the longest hours in Europe.

"We work too hard. And when we have public holidays - like Christmas - the preparation that we put in is so exhausting that we need the holiday just to recover.

"Although killjoys argue this would be bad for the economy a regional bank holiday linked to regional culture, history and identity could be a boom for tourism and the service sector on which the economy is so dependent."

Other regional suggestions are: Samuel Pepys - London; Pankhurst sisters - North West; Boudicea - East Anglia; James Cook - North East; Charles Dickens - South East; Thomas Hardy - South West.