BRADFORD is at the forefront of Yorkshire and the Humber being named the fastest growing region for TV and film in the country, according to a city film boss.

Screen Yorkshire has released new figures that reveal that the growth of Yorkshire & Humber’s film and TV industries has outstripped every other part of the UK, including London and the South East.

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The figures show between 2009-2015, Yorkshire’s film and TV industries generated an annual turnover of £424million across 590 creative businesses (an increase of 247 per cent against the UK average of 118 per cent with Gross Value Added (GVA) rising 242 per cent in comparison to a UK average growth of 120 per cent.

The figures are based on data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) and have been taken from research commissioned by Screen Yorkshire, as part of a new five-year Growth Plan for the screen industries in the region.

David Wilson, director of the Bradford City of Film, says the district has been a key contributor to this success.

A number of TV dramas and films have used locations across Bradford to carry out filming. These have included the BBC gangster drama Peaky Blinders, which is this week filming in City Hall after previously using the site to film Christmas scenes in April.

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The BAFTA award-winning Channel 4 drama National Treasure, starring Robbie Coltrane and Dame Julie Walters was also filmed in the city.

ITV soap opera Emmerdale has also been a regular visitor to the city to film, including this month.

Scenes for comedy drama film, Funny Cow, starring Maxine Peake – in the title role – and Vic Reeves, were shot in Saltaire earlier this year.

Parts of both Mary Street and Upper Mary Street were closed for filming and residents were asked to move their cars.

Mr Wilson said: “I’m really pleased about Screen Yorkshire’s announcement and a lot of that is down to Bradford.

“I think it is testament to the Yorkshire region having stunning locations. We have that rich film heritage.

“We are a true film friendly city now. The Bradford City of Film office has never been busier.

“Bradford is consistently being used for feature films and TV dramas, I’m really pleased about that.

“Little Germany, in particular, is becoming a film factory.

“I just hope that we can build on that for the future.

“It also has an effect on tourism to the area afterwards when people see the district on TV or films.”

Screen Yorkshire says one of the most significant reasons for the region’s increase in filming revenue is its Yorkshire Content Fund (YCF), backed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and has secured more than £157million of new business to the region through its investment.