The Yorkshire businessman behind the proposals to transform Church Fenton into a major filmmaking centre says the project will cost £100 million.

However, Chris Makin, who has other businesses at the former RAF runway, says the project is backed by detailed economic assessments.

He told the Press: “The Create Yorkshire proposals, once fully operational, could be expected to deliver around 1,800 jobs and £100 million per annum for the local economy. Of course, these would be a variety of jobs, including creative, manufacturing and support. Further jobs would be created during construction. “

This will add to the other businesses already there, including his own businesses, such as Leeds East Airport, employing 350 staff in total.

The family-run Makin Ltd took over the site in 2014, which at the time he says was “practically derelict, completely cut off from the public.”

The 65-year old says he saw demand from local businesses for space that did not exist. He set about renovating the buildings and now Church Fenton has “a thriving centre for local businesses and an operational airfield.”

Much of modern filmmaking takes place on sets within studios, Chris explains, and once TV’s Victoria was filmed there, it led to other companies to want to film there.

In addition to Victoria and Gentleman Jack, the site has also been used for shows including Top Gear, Supercar Showroom, Bangers and Cash, and the TAIT staging company.

Celebrities who have filmed at Church Fenton include Tom Cruise, Paddy McGuiness, Freddie Flintoff, Suranne Jones and Stacy Solomon.

Some 3.5 million people are employed in the UK creative and digital sector, a third in London and six per cent in Yorkshire.

Chris said: “We felt that our site provided a fantastic opportunity to build a creative hub where companies and individuals can work alongside each other to help the region grow the sector.

 “Our location close to York and Leeds and in the heart of Yorkshire means that production companies can base themselves here and also have ready access to a whole host of outside filming locations.

“While for Victoria, one of our studios doubled-up as the inside of Buckingham Palace, the team were also able to use places such as Merchant Adventurers Hall, Fairfax House, York Crown Court, Flamborough Head and Harewood House amongst others. Beverley Minster, for example, played the role of Westminster Abbey! “

Church Fenton is also much larger than many of the UK most famous studio complexes; uniquely it has its own airport, which could be used for the world’s biggest stars to fly in directly, it also has two train stations in Ulleskelf and Church Fenton.

The businessman stresses he has been working with the local community, including councillors on the site, with his proposals rigorously tested by Selby and then North Yorkshire Council.

 Chris said: “People appreciate that the site must have a productive use and that we need to generate an income, it cannot just be allowed to the sit there and deteriorate. Interestingly a lot of local families moved to the area because of the RAF base and stayed, so the airbase has played a very important part in the community over the years.”

He added: “We think this a really exciting opportunity for the region, but it will inevitably take time to come to full fruition. Our planning approval enables us the flexibility to respond to market demand when opportunities arise, but we are actively marketing the site and have strong interest from people wanting to be based here.”