Tourism rush thanks to TV exposure

TOURISM in the UK has rocketed thanks to locations appearing in major TV shows and films, according to a new report.
The report reveals the locations most likely to inspire tourism are stately homes; historic and religious buildings; and rural or village landscapes.
At the Brideshead Revisited shoot at the art deco Eltham Palace (Greenwich), the film's production manager gave a short talk to visitors to engage them with the filming process, whilst special tours at Osterley House (Hounslow) have been tailored around what has filmed there.
Rebecca Kane, English Heritage visitor operations director for London said: "Filming at our London sites not only brings in much needed income to help with their high running costs but also raises the profile of our historic properties.
"The power of film is clearly demonstrated by its ability to literally more than double the number of visitors coming to our properties overnight and more importantly it enables us to engage with entirely new audiences who might not have considered visiting a historic site before. It's fair to say that location filming has become part of English Heritage's very lifeblood."
Harvey Edgington, National Trust broadcast and media liaison officer said: "Every time we participate in a big feature there is a positive effect on visitor numbers. Filming is also very useful in terms of exposing stately homes to new audiences - working with Bollywood titles and children's programmes has helped the National Trust reach a new demographic."
Visit London and Film London have produced a range of movie maps highlighting key hotspots and lesser-known locations from recent London hit films, as well as general maps covering Bollywood and other London-shot productions. The maps have been distributed at information centres around the UK and overseas and hundreds of restaurants, bars, cafes and cinemas in London's West End.
Adrian Wootton, CEO of Film London added: "The worldwide reach of new movies such as The Bourne Ultimatum and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer brings profile to London that advertising just can't buy.
"The success of our movie maps demonstrate the appeal of discovering film locations both on and off the beaten track, with 'set-jetters' eager to discover the capital from a movie-perspective and share in the glamour of the big screen."

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