Celebrity support for the revival of Yorkshire's tourism industry flew into one of the region's most visited landmarks this week.

Television personality Richard Whiteley touched down in the gardens of Harewood House on Tuesday in a jet ranger helicopter to encourage people to visit the region's heritage.

The Countdown star is backing the Yorkshire Tourist Board and the Yorkshire's Great Houses, Castles and Gardens' (YGHC&G) initiatives to pull people back to Yorkshire's countryside.

Tourism has suffered during a nightmare 18 months which contained foot and mouth, floods, disruptions to the rail service to and from London after the Hatfield train crash, and the events of September 11.

Mr Whiteley, who has always lived in the region, said that he had seen first hand the devastation caused by foot and mouth. He was, however, positive about the future of tourism in the area.

"Foot and mouth is all behind us, as are the bad old days of 'no effort' from the English tourism industry. We used to think that people would come to the Dales just

because they were there."

He was joined by Sir Thomas Ingilby, Chairman of YCHC&G, and Dr Kim Howells, Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcast-ing.

Sir Thomas said: "67per cent of overseas visitors to Britain cite heritage as a major reason for visiting. Now when these people come to England we want them to know that Yorkshire is the place to come for heritage buildings, castles and gardens.

"We have not just been telling the domestic market, but also taking this message to Europe thanks to the efforts of the Yorkshire Tourist Board."

The YGHC&C have just launched a new leaflet detailing over 45 properties involved in the consortium of Yorkshire's stately homes, historic castles, abbeys and gardens. 400,000 copies are being distributed to the region's network of tourist information centres, accommodation providers and attractions.

Dr Howells MP, said "It has been a great achievement to come through possibly the worst year in British tourism's history. I believe Harewood House still managed to have a record year with 322,000 visitors, which is a triumph of marketing."

He praised the Yorkshire Tourist Board's efforts, stating that their co-ordinated organisation has helped create constructive communication with Government and other agencies.

The YTB, meanwhile, is currently implementing an integrated marketing campaign themed around 'Yorkshire Heritage', aiming to provide an ideal 'hook' to drive business into the rural areas through targeting consumers, groups and businesses and tourism m arkets. The campaign involves advertising, business tourism, sales promotion, a direct mail campaign and the production of a Yorkshire Heritage map.