The television airing of a documentary on Wonthaggi's State Coal Mine has more than doubled the number of visitors to the tourist attraction in recent weeks.

Eight years in the making, 'Black Gold, Kindred Spirits', was shown on the ABC earlier this month, and has had an immediate impact.Just over 50 percent of visitors surveyed said the documentary prompted them to visit Wonthaggi's mine. Mine assistant, Sharon Stoneman, said the recent publicity had been a bonus. "Anything like that is very good for the mine....it creates an interest and people like to find out more about it", she said.