UK
Cock fight venue's tourist boost
Plans to transform part of a building used for cock fighting in the 19th Century into a town centre tourist attraction have been revealed.
The downstairs of the octagonal venue in Welshpool, Powys is to be rented out to the Women's Institute.
But there are proposals to convert the top floor to feature displays about the now outlawed sport.
Known as the cockpit, it run down but is believed to be the last place of its type in Wales on its original site.
Town council clerk Robert Robinson said the cockpit, which is owned by a high street bank and leased to Welshpool Town Council, needed restoring.
"It's in a poor state, partly boarded up and looks tired and unloved," he added.
"We would like to restore it and make it available for people to see. We would like to open the upstairs and feature a display about cock fighting and open that section two days a week."
The cockpit was specifically built as a venue for the sport and could have held more than 150 spectators.
Welshpool councillor Alan Crowe said: "I want to see it totally as a tourist attraction, and I think Welshpool would benefit from a town centre attraction.
"It has a lot of a history attached to it, and would probably need a bit of money spent on it to develop it as a tourist attraction."
Cock fighting was outlawed about 160 years ago in the UK.
bbc.co.uk
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