A FORMER shipyard worker has lost his battle to create a fantasy forest of elves and Hobbits after pouring his life-savings into the venture.

Harry Davison and his wife, Val, spent more than £30,000, and even sold their house in Tyneside to fund their dream of creating a woodland park with Lord of the Rings characters.

Mr Davison, now living in a rented home in Hamsterley, Weardale, had planned to create the fantasy forest in a seven-acre site just outside Crook, County Durham, to promote his Elfin Tea, a cure-all created from lichen and mushrooms, which he claims can treat a host of complaints.

Planning permission for Elfinwood was initially refused in February on the grounds that old mine workings under the site were unsafe, and that the entrance on the busy A689 was a hazard.

Mr Davison employed a team of experts including a professor of geology and mining engineer to examine the mine shafts, a civil engineer to design a safe entrance, and a planning expert to advise him on his next application.

However, on Friday, Wear Valley district councillors again rejected the application.

Mr Davison, who is considering an appeal, said: "We sold the house to put everything we had into this, because we thought we would be able to do it.

"It's not the people who don't want it, there's a lot of support. We even had two little old women in their eighties come down from the top of the dale to give us support at the planning meeting."

Planning committee chairman, Barbara Laurie, said they supported the idea, but wanted it in another location.

She said: "If you ask any councillors they would say it's a great idea and that they want to promote tourism in Weardale, but it's in entirely the wrong place and the plans have not satisfactorily overcome the question of the traffic."