THE owner of a tourist attraction near Middleham has bid to be allowed to welcome more visitors.

Colin Armstrong wants to admit up to 150 people an hour to his Forbidden Corner, in Coverdale.

Current restrictions, imposed when he won a planning appeal to keep the site open to the public, mean only 120 an hour may visit.

Mr Armstrong fell foul of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority when it was discovered that he had opened the park without planning permission in 1997.

A retrospective application was rejected but he eventually won an appeal to keep it open, on condition that he removed some exhibits and restricted access. The move aimed to ease congestion on the narrow access road.

Mr Armstrong said the Forbidden Corner was turning people away and he hoped the national park authority will look favourably on his latest request.

The park did not open until noon to allow racehorses unhindered access to the nearby gallops.

A spokeswoman for the national park authority would not comment on the visitor attraction's chances of success before planning officers had discussed the matter.