TV LICENSORS were Roman the countryside and delivering written demands to ancient piles of bricks in the area this week.

But when curator of Lancaster City Museums, Dr Andrew White, (pictured) received a letter claiming the unlicensed use of a television at the few deserted bricks that is the Roman bath-house in Vicarage Field, all he could do was laugh.

Joked Andrew: "I was very quick to point out that there isn't anyone there to use a television unless our Roman ghosts have been more than usually active!

"I also mentioned that it would be very difficult to hide a television set as the ruins stand no more than two feet high. They actually addressed the letter to the bath-house. It only arrived at the museum because of the post-code at the bottom. I'm sure it gave the postmen a laugh as well. Staff here at the museum were very surprised about it, that's all I can say. I don't really expect to have a response from them. All I can assume is the computer sent it."

A spokesman for TV Licensing held his hands up to the error. He said: "We've got 26 million addresses and things like this can happen. You wouldn't believe places where we've come across unlicensed television sets. We've had them in cemeteries, lighthouses and even in public toilets. It's usually workers in staff rooms who have a telly for their tea breaks and bring a telly in. I think this letter was part of our national campaign to remind businesses about their licensing requirements."

Meanwhile the public of Lancaster and Morecambe are warned - any televisions hidden in fields next to a couple of old bricks will be found and licensed!

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.