A TV documentary featuring retail guru Mary Portas has painted a gloomy picture of Dunstable as a shopping centre "on its last legs".

But town clerk David Ashlee feels strongly that the BBC2 Money Programme show gave a one-sided view of Dunstable.

He pointed out that Mary Portas: Save Our Shops ignored plans to breathe new life into the town.

And Mr Ashlee, Dunstable Town Council's chief officer, said: "Dunstable has fantastic potential. I think that for developers with the right vision, it could be a goldmine."

Mary was shown walking around the town centre in a short segment of last week's programme, which did not offer any possible solutions for Dunstable's retail problems.

Her verdict on Dunstable town centre was: "I actually just feel it dissolving."

After the programme, a disappointed Mr Ashlee talked of the work already under way to create a town centre 'masterplan' - a vision for the future of the heart of the Dunstable, which could bring real change.

And he made it clear that Dunstable's location within a housing growth area brings new opportunities in its wake.

For the full story see the July 1 edition of the Dunstable Gazette, out now priced just 45p.