What is ‘set jetting’? And why some say there’s ‘untapped potential’
There remains “untapped potential” in screen tourism, according to some who work in the industry.
Hit shows such as Bridgerton, Game Of Thrones and Gavin & Stacey have attracted visitors to some of the locations used to film the series.
But some say that more could be done to reap the rewards of the trend of visiting TV and film locations, sometimes known as “set jetting”.
Glenda Kenyon, 71, owns one of the houses used to film Gavin & Stacey, on Trinity Street in Barry Island.
Ms Kenyon told Sky News that since opening up her home to location tours, she had welcomed 28,398 visitors through her door over the years.
“I’ve had people from Hawaii, Africa, India, Cardiff, London, and a lot more places than that,” she said.
“Honest to god, I love it, I love the show. If I didn’t love the show, I wouldn’t be doing this.”
Ruth Jones (left) and Joanna Page during filming for Gavin & Stacey. Pic: PA
Ms Kenyon’s home features cast photos and merchandise signed by cast members
Having lived in Barry for 35 years, Ms Kenyon says she has seen a lot of change in the town and that she expects there will be “a lot more coaches” visiting after the recent finale.
“In the beginning, when they first started, they don’t tell you they’re going to come back and do another one,” she said.
“I will miss it, but I know I’ve still got the tours and that’s good for me.”
The latest official statistics from the British Film Institute show that inbound tourists spend an estimated £892m annually in film-related screen tourism in the UK.
A total of 19% of the UK domestic holiday market reported that visiting locations featured in TV, film or literature was an experience they would like to do during a holiday or short break in the country, according to Welsh government research.
Visitors take part in a tour of Northern Ireland locations. Pic: Game Of Thrones Tours
‘Deeply undeveloped’
Robert Dowling, 51, worked as a national tour guide in Ireland before he set up the Game Of Thrones Tours company in late 2012 to showcase some of the series’ locations in Northern Ireland.
Mr Dowling told Sky News he believed there was “untapped potential” in screen tourism.
“Screen tourism remains deeply undeveloped…it’s kind of a new field now, it’s quite exciting,” he said.
“I suspect Game Of Thrones will still be a thing 10 or 20 years from now, and therefore we can invest with confidence that there will be demand.
“That’s my argument for why we should develop screen tourism, because I think it has an enduring appeal.”
Pic: Game Of Thrones Tours
More than a decade since the series first aired, he said the tours can be “emotional” and “moving” as visitors embrace the nostalgia, with some even deciding to get engaged at the featured locations.
“My motive for it was really to show people the beauty of County Down and County Antrim in Northern Ireland,” he said.
“By the time season two came out [in 2012] I said ‘Right, this is going to be a thing, this is just awesome’, because those two seasons are very big on Northern Ireland locations”.
With a total of eight seasons and a number of spin-off series comes a whole host of locations to explore and share with fans.
“We’ve tweaked the itinerary as we went through all eight seasons of Game Of Thrones to include new stuff, and we’re going to have to do that again in 2025,” he added.
“It’s great that there’s more to come with A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms, so we’ve at least three more years of footage and locations to get up on screen to strengthen that relationship between the franchise and Northern Ireland.”
Pic: Game Of Thrones Tours
‘Kept on attracting visitors’
Fred Mawer, 59, has lived in Bath for 20 years and has been working as a tour guide for the last six.
In addition to his usual tours of the city, he has created a bespoke tour of locations featured in Netflix series Bridgerton.
He told Sky News the show had proved “incredibly popular” and had brought some people to Bath “who wouldn’t necessarily have done the tours otherwise”.
He was asked to do a Bridgerton tour in 2021 for the annual Bath Festival and since then he has continued the tours outside of the festival too.
“It’s kept on going, I mean it really does have longevity because obviously there have been more seasons of Bridgerton released,” he said.
“Season one, with an enormous amount of filming in Bath, [was the] biggest thing that’s ever been filmed in the city, 14 locations across the city, but also some more filming for those other seasons as well.
“So it’s kept on attracting visitors and people coming to do the tours in subsequent years.”
Fred Mawer has worked as a tour guide for six years. Pic: Fred Mawer
But Mr Mawer fears “there may be much less” filming in Bath for season four after reports that the production company had bought a stage set replicating Bath’s Royal Crescent.
The “million-dollar question” for Mr Mawer is what impact that could have going forward on tours specifically designed to showcase some of the show’s locations.
“It’s hard to know at the moment what impact it would have if the production company does not come back and film any more in Bath and just use the stage set,” he added.
“There will certainly still be a market for Bridgerton tours because of all the filming that took place for the first seasons.
“It may not be quite so appealing for people to come on the tours if the filming stops altogether in Bath.”
But given the avid nature of fans’ attachment to some TV series and movies, those involved in the world of set jetting believe its popularity is only set to continue.
Counter-terrorism police are investigating after an incident involving a crossbow and a firearm left two women injured in Leeds.
Police were called to Otley Road at 2.47pm on Saturday to reports of a “serious incident involving a man seen with weapons”, West Yorkshire Police said.
Officers arrived at the scene to find two women injured – and a 38-year-old man with a self-inflicted injury. All three were taken to hospital, with the man held under arrest, but their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
“Two weapons have been recovered from the scene, which were a crossbow and a firearm,” Counter Terrorism Policing North East said in a statement.
The incident happened on the ‘Otley Run’ pub crawl, with one venue saying it was closed for the evening due to “unforeseen circumstances”.
Officers guard one of the crime scenes
Officers inside the cordon in Leeds
Counter Terrorism Policing’s statement added: “Due to the circumstances surrounding the incident, Counter Terrorism Policing North East have taken responsibility for leading the investigation with the support of West Yorkshire Police.
“Extensive enquiries continue to establish the full circumstances and explore any potential motivation.”
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described it as a “serious violent incident” and said she was being kept updated by police.
“Thank you to the police and emergency services for their swift response,” she said. “My thoughts are with the victims and all those affected by this attack.”
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Wrexham AFC have been promoted for the third season in a row.
The North Wales-based side has gone from the National League to the Championship in just three seasons, under its Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
Wrexham were second in the table and had a run of eight games unbeaten ahead of their match against Charlton Athletic on Saturday, which they won 3-0.
Wrexham’s James McClean lifts the League One trophy. Pic: PA
Wrexham’s Dan Scarr celebrates with the fans on the pitch after Wrexham won promotion to the Championship. Pic: PA
It is the first time any club has been promoted for three consecutive seasons within the top five tiers of English football.
The third oldest association football club in the world, Wrexham AFC was bought by Reynolds and McElhenney in 2020, and has since been the subject of a Disney+ documentary, Welcome To Wrexham.
Reynolds, wearing a Wrexham sweatshirt, and McElhenney were pictured celebrating each goal, and after the game, as the fans came onto the pitch at the SToK Cae Ras (Racecourse Ground) to celebrate the victory with the players.
Wrexham co-owners Rob McElhenney (L) and Ryan Reynolds and Ryan’s wife Blake Lively, before the match. Pic: PA
Both stars came onto the pitch after the supporters returned to the stands.
Speaking to Sky Sports, McElhenney praised those behind the scenes, referring to “so many that don’t get the credit they deserve, people who aren’t talked about”.
Reynolds said bringing success back to the club “seemed like an impossible dream” when they arrived in North Wales in 2020.
Wrexham’s Sam Smith celebrates in front of the fans after Wrexham won promotion to the Championship. Pic: PA
He put the three promotions down to “the coaching staff, the greatest dressing room” and an “all for one, one for all” attitude throughout the club, adding he was “speechless with their commitment and their emotion”.
As for the mouth-watering prospect of another promotion to the promised land of the Premier League, the pair agreed it was “for tomorrow”, before ending the interview with a joint mic-drop.
Veteran striker Steven Fletcher said, “as soon as I came to this club, I knew it was something special. We want to go again. We’ll reset in the summer, take a break and go again”.
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