A PUB which featured in the popular TV series All Creatures Great and Small may close and be converted into a house.

The move to call time on the King's Arms in the Wensleydale village of Redmire, North Yorkshire, has prompted a storm of protest from locals.

The pub was used as a location for the Drovers Arms in fictional Darrowby - a name familiar the world over to fans of the James Herriot books.

An application has been submitted to Richmondshire District Council to convert the building for residential use, prompting a 243-name petition opposing its closure.

The parish council has added its weight to the campaign and has written to the district council to register its objections.

Although Redmire has another pub, The Bolton Arms, residents say they want to continue to have a choice between two quite different inns.

"It is like all small villages that face losing part of their character - the locals will fight to keep it," said one villager.

"Even though there are two pubs, we don't want to lose one of them - we want to be able to have a choice."

Villagers say they are worried about having to travel further afield rather than using a facility which has been part of community life in Redmire for hundreds of years. They also say it would be a great shame to lose the James Herriot link.

Others said the new Wensleydale Railway would soon resume running trains and demand for the pub was likely to increase.

"The village appears to be becoming a ghost village for the convenience of retired people wishing to escape to the country," said objector David Shields. "There is little to attract young people to the village and the closure of the pub will do nothing to help this."

However, a planning officer's report to be tabled next week has not ruled out the pub's demise.

Members will be told they should take the objections into account, but they may not be enough to warrant rejecting the application.

The move will be considered by the council's environment and planning committee tomorrow.