A TV programme has featured a dramatic reconstruction of a robbery in which Bury mayor's £200,000 civic chains were stolen after her driver was hit with a hammer.

BBC One's Crimewatch Roadshow recreated the events of last October which left Jet Vyas with a fractured shoulder.

He was brutally attacked as he placed a briefcase, containing the chains, into the boot of a car in Stonemere Drive, Radcliffe.

Earlier, the then mayor, Cllr Michelle Wiseman and deputy mayor, Cllr Sharon Briggs, had been attending an engagement in the town.

All three spoke about the incident during the programme, which was broadcast on Monday. A £10,000 reward has already been offered for the recovery of the chains.

Speaking on the Crimewatch Roadshow, Pilkington Park councillor Cllr Wiseman, now deputy mayor, paid tribute to Mr Vyas.

"Jet is excellent at his job. He's so diligent and caring and you couldn't ask for a better driver or mayor's attendant."

Using actors, Crimewatch Roadshow reconstructed the robbery, showing the mayoral car stopping and Mr Vyas transferring the case containing the chains into the boot.

Cllr Briggs, who was in the vehicle last October, said: "I looked to my left and noticed a man sat in a parked car with no lights." A second man, who was lurking nearby, then attacked Mr Vyas.

He recalled: "As I opened the boot of the car and leaned inside to put the box away, someone came from the back and hit me with a hammer straight on my back. He was wearing a balaclava. He tried to snatch the case. I wouldn't let go, so he hit me again."

The robber then jumped into a waiting car which sped off.

Cllr Briggs, who heard Mr Vyas shout for help during the attack, said: "He could quite easily have been killed."

The briefcase contained the Mayor’s chain, known as the Bury chain. Worth £200,000, the chain was given as a gift to the town by Queen Victoria in 1877. Also taken was the Mayoress' chain, extremely rare and just one of five made.

Cllr Wiseman told Crimewatch Roadshow: "The chains are important, but they're not the be all and end all. I want them to be caught for what they did to Jet."

Mr Vyas, who has yet to return to work, said that since the incident he has suffered flashbacks and has difficulty sleeping.