DETAILS of the £550,000 facelift planned for County Durham's oldest theatres have been announced.

In early February, The Northern Echo revealed that urgent structural repairs costing £300,000 were needed if the Consett Empire was to remain open.

Now Derwentside District Council has said it plans to spend a further £250,000 on the Victorian theatre, which will close for building work for four months from July.

Leisure bosses in the district have hailed a new era in entertainment and sport because of a number of major funding initiatives.

The council has already agreed to set aside £500,000 for the Empire and is confident that a bid for £50,000 from National Lottery agents Northern Arts will be successful.

The council plans to find its share of the money through sales of assets in the coming year and from the general fund.

The Friends of the Empire has also pledged to donate up to £20,000 for minor improvements to the playhouse, where comedy legends Laurel and Hardy are thought to have once performed.

The bulk of the cash will be spent on a new roof, rewiring, and disabled access.

Managers from the council and its partners, Derwentside Leisure, have outlined plans to further improve the 500-seat theatre which, they believe, is the oldest and largest in County Durham.

Improvements will include: the front of the building extended further out on Front Street to accommodate a new foyer, seating, a function room, a new ticket office and comprehensive refurbishment and decoration.

Steve Howell, head of leisure at the council, said the work on the Empire would be part of a major revamp of leisure services across Derwentside.

He said: "A lot of people have worked a long time for these improvements to what is a very well-loved theatre.

"But it's not just the Empire.

"If you look at the new £4.5m Stanley swimming pool, the £1m relaying of Consett Park, the rebranding of Stanley Civic Hall and the repair work to Consett's Belle Vue swimming pool, it amounts to a new era in leisure in Derwentside.