Restoring crumbling gems

The countdown to saving one of 10 crumbling architectural gems was under way today as the last contender for BBC2's Restoration was announced and voting began.

Wiltons Music Hall in east London has won the final heat of the show, which aims to give a multi-million pound boost to Britain's built heritage.

The winner will be announced on Sunday during a live final broadcast from the Tower Of London.

Phone votes during the show's five-week run have generated piles of cash to enable restoration.

A further £3 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund will also help to secure the winner's future.

Finalists include an art-nouveau swimming pool in Manchester that has been derelict for a decade and a grand Methodist hall in Stoke that has fallen into disrepair.

Presenter Griff Rhys-Jones said today: "Restoration has been a huge success. It's put conservation concerns on the agenda and I hope entertained a lot of people on the way."

Carole Souter, director of the Heritage Lottery Fund, added: "The way these 10 fantastic buildings have caught the public's imagination demonstrates just how passionate people really are about their heritage.

"Now it's up to the public to decide where their money should go."
Voting closes at 10.10pm on Sunday and the winner will be announced minutes later. A minimum of 17.9p from every 30p call will go to The Restoration Fund.
The 10 building and numbers for phone voting are: