A TV celebrity has offered his backing to an Ilkley Millennium project aimed at boosting the coffers of local charities.

The organisers of the Ilkley Civic Society Millennium Video 2000 scheme are confident the video will hit the shelves in time for Christmas 1999.

Since the Civic Society unveiled its plans last year, money and offers of help have flooded in.

And Yorkshire Television celebrity and Countdown host Richard Whiteley has now agreed to provide the commentary.

The video has also attracted interest from groups based in Ilkley and outside the town.

And the organisers are on target to raise the necessary £5,000 with 11 months still to go - although the charities which will benefit from the sale of the video are yet to be decided.

Bob Tilley, chairman of Ilkley Civic Society, said: "I am delighted that it is now a partnership project. It has been greeted enthusiastically by those groups and businesses we have approached."

The society is also celebrating the news that Crest Homes, currently preparing to transform the Ilkley College site, has agreed to come on board as a major sponsor, along with the Skipton Building Society.

Mr Tilley and his colleagues have been busy since last May, starting the process of capturing Ilkley's rich heritage on video.

"As well as the major sponsors, we have so many other groups who have wanted some input with the project, including the Operatic Society, the Ilkley Playhouse and the Friends of the Manor House," he said. The video would not only be an item to mark the occasion, but would serve as a valuable educational tool.

Shot over a year, the video will capture town highlights such as the carnival, Christmas lights and the Ilkley Literature Festival. And it will record sporting, educational and cultural events, scenery and architecture.

Mr Tilley said various media people had also offered advice, including the BBC's North of England correspondent, John Thorne, Ilkley-based director John Thirlwell and Howard Foster, producer of ITV's The Cook Report.

Mr Whiteley, who lives on Ilkley Moor, said: "I'm glad to help. I'm delighted to do it and support Ilkley. It's a town where there is a lot of community spirit and this is a very original idea."

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