DURHAM'S medieval manor house and gardens are to feature in a travel programme on American television.

A film crew has visited Crook Hall, in Sidegate, which attracts 10,000 visitors during the three months it is open. Its footage for The Seasoned Traveller will be screened on PBS, the public network in the United States.

Independent film-maker George Bauers spent a day at the attraction for a feature on English gardens and Scottish castles that is likely to be aired in October of next year.

His wife, Susan, discovered Crook Hall while looking on the Internet for gardens near the A1(M).

"I didn't know it was this beautiful until I got here. It is so different to the gardens we have been filming at previously, like Chatsworth.

"I have always liked Durham. I have been here before and I think it is a pretty little town.

"The show is aimed at 50-plus baby boomers. We find that the baby boomers have more disposable income and go farther afield.''

Crook Hall owner Maggie Bell said: "It is a real coup for us because we are so small and it is quite a thing for the region to get so much exposure.''