A TV historian has backed a bid to reopen a leisure centre whose closure two sister dailies tried to stop.

David Olusoga, known for series including ‘A House Through Time’, has lent his support to a campaign to reopen Gateshead Leisure Centre, which he used to visit while growing up.

HTFP reported earlier this year how the Newcastle Chronicle launched the ‘Save Our Leisure Centres’ campaign in a bid to give the centre a new lease of life after it was threatened by public spending cuts, but it shut its doors in July.

The Journal splashed on Mr Olusoga’s support for the facility’s revival last Wednesday.

He said: “I am genuinely shocked, I am really saddened for my hometown. This is a disgrace.

“This is one of the best facilities in the town of Gateshead, this is a place that transformed my life when I was growing up, it is somewhere that is enormously valuable to the people of this town and I cannot believe that we are in a position where this beautiful building is in the state that it is today.”

Journal editor Graeme Whitfield told HTFP: “It was great to see David backing the leisure centre campaigners and highlighting how austerity has led to its closure.

“These are the real life impacts of Government funding cuts and the Chronicle and The Journal will continue to highlight how these decisions affect our local communities.”