A BOURNEMOUTH town centre church is set to be demolished and replaced with a hotel after being sold for more than £4.5 million.

The distinctive Punshon Memorial Methodist Church has stood on Exeter Road since 1958, opposite where the BIC now stands.

Businessman Philip Oram, who made an unsuccessful bid to buy the AFC Bournemouth stadium in 2007, has bought the site.

He owns the three-star 74-bed Hermitage Hotel next door, and subject to planning permission the 0.75 acre church site will be turned into a hotel or another leisure amenity'.

The news is a boost to the town's tourism industry after entrepreneur Richard Carr branded it "tatty" and said the leisure industry had "been in decline for some time".

Richard Sturt from property agent Savills said: "Landmark sites such as this do not come to the market often, particularly in such a prime location.

"We were expecting a number of proposals, but to sell the site in nine weeks for the guide price is certainly an indication that there is still much confidence in the commercial market."

Mr Oram was not available to talk about the plans in more detail.

The original church was built in 1886 and stood in Richmond Hill but was destroyed in a wartime air raid which killed 77 people.

The church was rebuilt in Exeter Road on the site of the former Hive and Waterford hotels and council officers have suggested its 1950s style has "significant architectural merit".

The Rev Bob McKinley told the Echo in 2005 how the distinctive building was too large and costly to maintain and it closed down at the end of August 2007.

A spokesman for the Methodist Church said this week: "There's always a certain amount of sadness whenever a church closes, but the money will remain in the area to be used for the continuing work of the church.

"The building will go, but the church remains and in some ways it's good news."