Harry Potter star Matthew Lewis and his actor brother Anthony are among the growing number of celebrities pledging their support to keep Bradford’s National Media Museum open.

Matthew played Neville Longbottom in the smash-hit Potter films, while his brother Anthony has appeared in many popular TV programmes including Emmerdale and The Syndicate.

The pair, who live in Horsforth, join a growing list of film stars and personalities including John Hurt, David Hockney, Simon Beaufoy and Monty Python stars Terry Jones and Michael Palin, who have backed the Telegraph & Argus campaign to save the Media Museum.

The museum is under threat along with the Railway Museum in York and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester as their parent body, the Science Museum Group, faces more Government cuts to funding.

Now 40,000 signatures have been collected for the Telegraph & Argus petition and up to 1,200 more will be added today when Bradford Grammar School pupils get the opportunity to sign it at school.

Matthew said: “Growing up I was astounded to discover all the superbly talented men and women who have hailed from Yorkshire to be successful in film and television.

“Visiting the National Media Museum in my home county helped dispel the belief that people from the North of England could not make it in the industry. Yorkshire has a rich history in film and television and it should be celebrated here in Bradford at the National Media Museum so it can continue to inspire future generations, as it did for me.”

Anthony said: “As an extremely proud West Yorkshireman, I have had the pleasure of visiting the museum many times since childhood.

“School trips would leave me in awe and wonderment.

“It is one of West Yorkshire’s showpiece attractions and has certainly done a great deal for the Bradford area, attracting much-needed tourism and educational benefits.

“It really would be a crying shame if that came to an end.

“I live in London now and I don’t see a great deal closing round here. It would be yet another nail in the coffin of the North, I fear.”

Meanwhile, Keith Madeley, widely-known as ‘Mr Yorkshire’ for his role in promoting the county as chairman of the Yorkshire Society, said the closure would be a “disaster”.

“The other day I was talking to someone about how having a national museum in the city had put Bradford on the map,” he said. “It attracts so many positive comments and has received so many accolades, it would be horrendous if it closed.

“We must do all we can to safeguard its future.

The Bradford-born businessman said: “It is not good news for the North, never mind Bradford.”

Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “The National Media Museum and National Rail Museum are outstanding examples of visitor attractions and we would encourage everyone to pay a visit to both in a mass show of support this summer. We feel any decision to close either of these Yorkshire museums would be wrong, and their popularity and role in UK tourism is vital.”

Tomorrow there will be an adjournment debate in Parliament about the issue, secured by Respect MP for Bradford West, George Galloway, who said that he hoped all the Bradford MPs and those MPs whose constituencies house museums in the Science Museums Group would attend.

To download a T&A petition visit thetelegraphandargus.co.uk.