TELEVISION crews are such a familiar a sight in Otley that hardly anyone gives them a second glance - apart from when they're blocking our way.

But do we cash in on them? Is Otley 'Emmerdale Land', 'Heartbeat Country' or 'Jack Frost Territory'? And does anyone outside the town know so much Yorkshire Television filming takes place in Otley?

Absolutely not. In a time when every town and village with the slightest connection to any historical figure or popular television series cashes in on it with all the gusto its local council can manage, Otley makes its own extensive television connections the best kept secret since the Emmerdale set switched from Esholt to Harewood.

Now, traders are looking around at the empty shops and wondering why Otley - when it has so much to offer - is not more successful. And they are asking why Otley, unlike other towns, does not cash in on its television connections.

They want to know why the town and city councils and the town partnership group do not promote Otley as the place where all these programmes are filmed.

It doesn't take a genius to work out that a bit of self-promotion could bring an awful lot of additional visitors into the town. A few letters written to the appropriate coach tour companies and Otley could end up part of a television location tour.

Yes, they might clog up the streets, but they'd want feeding while they were wandering the same streets walked by Emmerdale cast members. And they'd also drop in on a few shops, possibly even buy something.

It's just what Otley needs. The town centre is not going to rejunevate itself without a lot of money and without a lot more people coming in wanting to spend money.

Someone has got to take the bull by the horns and make the most of what Otley has to offer - and if that means exploiting its television connections, then why not?

What would we rather be moaning about - the fact that the town is full to the gills with charity shops and that fewer and fewer people are bothering to do their shopping here, or that there's a stream of coaches dropping off money-spending tourists every day of the week?

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.