From Paddington Bear to Harry Potter and James Bond to Mr. Bean, Great Britain has a long history of marketing the destination through TV and film. Indeed, Britain is never far from viewers around the world through an endless list of cinematic mainstays that are uniquely British, such as Downton Abbey, Bridgerton, Dr. Who, Mary Poppins, and Sherlock Holmes – not to mention productions that simply borrow Britain as a backdrop, like Jurassic Park and Game of Thrones/House of Dragons.

And now, with travellers increasingly seeking to get a glimpse of where their favourite shows were filmed, VisitBritain has unveiled an engaging promotional campaign for 2025 designed to shine a spotlight on “the real star of the show: Great Britain.”

Unveiled last week at the Showcase Britain trade event at Hampton Court Palace outside London, the ‘Starring GREAT Britain’ campaign comes as VisitBritain’s screen tourism research shows that more than nine-out-of-10 potential visitors to the UK would be keen to visit film and TV locations during a trip.

Noting that “more films are produced here than in Hollywood,” VisitBritain chair Nick de Bois said the global screen tourism campaign, which is now live across social media, presents film and TV as a “hook” for visitors who want to put themselves in the scenes of the films while, at the same time, “telling the story of Britain today – its cities and world-class attractions and stunning countryside, and British hospitality.”

For example, Oxford University – an otherwise renowned and historic attraction – attracts Harry Potter fans by the thousands to see the lunchroom at Christ Church college and the Bodleian Library – both now renowned as settings in the films. Visit Oxfordshire even offers an “Oxford on Screen” walking tour, heavy on the city’s Potter connections, but also featuring the likes of Brideshead Revisited, X-Men and Mama Mia 2.

Fan interest in “Peaky Blinders” has similarly helped rejuvenate tourism in Birmingham, where the post First World War series was set, and Liverpool, where it was mostly filmed.

Michael Bendib, who has conducted tours for Brit Movie Tours in London for over a decade, says the company’s tours – walking, private car, and coach – are very popular and attract clients from all over the world. The tours take place across Britain.

“(The tours) were always busy but have come back with a vengeance after the pandemic,” he says.

Revealing historical context about sites and behind-the-scenes info and anecdotes about the movies, Bendib made stops on our London tour at sites that appeared on screen in such films as Paddington Bear, Bridget Jones Diary, Spiderman, Mission Impossible, Thor, Mary Poppins, The DaVinci Code, Pirates of the Caribbean, Mission Impossible, and Napoleon, amongst others.

Sites included St. Paul’s Cathedral, Somerset House, the Bank of England, Leadenhall, Temple, and the Royal Exchange Building across the two-hour tour.

Harry Potter and James Bond are the most popular draws to the tours, he says.

Does Bendip regret that some of the sites are better known for their movie cameos than illustrious histories? “Not at all! It’s showing London through a different lens – especially for the kids (without movies like Thor) they wouldn’t even know what St. Paul’s was.”

De Bois, VisitBritain chairman, told Travel Industry Today he believes the screen campaign is “an extraordinary fit – it ticks all the boxes of our objectives of what is in the consumer’s mind. We’re not short of people who want to come to Britain, but what we want to do is turn that ambition into coming to Britain now. And what’s more current than what’s streaming in people’s minds. Wherever they’re looking at it, streaming has opened up a whole new world of people to reach.

“And we’ve got this unique situation, where so many films and TV show are being produced (here). It gives us a golden opportunity to take people to other parts of Britain, as well as the ones they know.”

De Bois notes that encouraging people to spread out beyond London is the key to the campaign, particularly as a great deal of film-related product (such as tours, or learning how to ride Harry Potter broomstick at a castle) is already in place, providing both regional, and experiential, offerings to visitors.”

Cathy Stapells, Canada country manager for VisitBritain, says Canadians show great interest in TV and film sites, pointing to the popularity of Outlander tours in Scotland, but also new shows like The Diplomat and Slow Horses.

And with streaming and services like BritBox, the latter specializing in British TV shows, “there are so many shows to see,” she says.

But De Bois is quick to note, “This is not just selling Britain by films. Obviously, you’re going to go to Liverpool to see The Beatles, or take in some of the football. You’re still going to do those things; what we’re adding in is a device of freshness.”

He’s also confident that the film campaign “is going to move the dial,” adding, “I think this is some of the finest work to come out of VisitBritain in a long record of achievement.”

Campaign and the travel trade

Designed to engage people of all ages, the campaign rolled out this week with a launch film on social media drawing on iconic film and TV moments from Mission: Impossible to Bridget Jones; Spider-Man to Succession; House of the Dragon to Harry Potter; Paddington to Fast & Furious to Mary Poppins Returns and more, taking on a cinematic journey through Britain.

The launch film, directed by Academy Award-winning British director Tom Hooper, the first phase of the international advertising campaign will run the end of March and is part of a longer-term screen tourism focus by VisitBritain.

The advertising also directs viewers to a screen-tourism hub on VisitBritain’s global consumer website with itineraries themed around film genres from romance to fantasy, action to adventure, encouraging visitors to broaden their itineraries, discover more regional destinations and stay longer. A digital map links to film inspired locations, attractions and experiences across the nations and regions.

‘Starring GREAT Britain’ is also being amplified across all VisitBritain’s markets using the powerful reach of its social channels and its work with international travel trade. As part of VisitBritain’s Showcase Britain event last week, 120 top travel trade from across 17 markets, including Canada, took part in tailored film-and-TV inspired educational visits across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, exploring the latest tourism products and experiences to get those sold in international markets.

For the travel trade, a range of resources are also available on VisitBritain’s trade website, (https://www.visitbritain.org/starring-great-britain) from images inspired by film and TV locations and genres, products available to book through the VisitBritain Shop and itineraries featuring trade-bookable product.

See the full launch film video for Starring GREAT Britain below:

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