TELEVISION historian Adam Hart-Davis has hit back at critics who say the unprofitable Steam museum is Swindon's white elephant.

Mr Hart-Davis, presenter of the popular BBC series What The Victorians Did For Us, was at the museum to deliver the first Steam Christmas Family Lecture.

And he praised the museum, next door to the Great Western Designer Outlet Village, as an asset for Swindon, playing an important role in promoting an appreciation of the historical role of the railways.

He said: "It is really important that people learn about their railway heritage because it affected our whole way of life.

"This museum is a real asset for Swindon and is one of just three rail museums in the country. I have not had a chance to look around Steam yet, but I shall certainly take the opportunity. In the 1850s Swindon was at the cutting edge of technology and has been largely shaped by the development of the railways.

"Railways affected all sorts of people, businessmen could travel to London and back in a day, Thomas Cook could run his first package holidays and allow people to get out of the cities and football teams could play their first away matches."

Saturday's Christmas lecture, entitled What the Victorians Did For Us was held inside the main exhibition hall in the shadow of the GWR locomotive Caerphilly Castle, before a sell-out audience.

And afterwards Adam Hart-Davis signed copies of his book of the popular television series.

Swindon's showpiece attraction has been at the centre of controversy over falling visitor numbers and spiralling costs since its official opening on June 27 last year by Prince Charles. Visitor numbers at Steam were expected to reach 200,000 during its first year, but the actual figure was only half that.

The council was forced to bail the museum out with a £470,000 subsidy and a further injection of £500,000 from the authority is expected by the end of its second year of operation.

In a bid to cut losses, Swindon Council is considering reducing the hours of opening at the museum. Despite this, the museum has been hailed as a one of the countries premier attractions, scooping the title of Wiltshire Family Attraction of the Year and is an English Tourism Council quality assured visitor attraction.