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Brexit Harry Potter UK Government

Campaign to promote Brexit Britain leans on Harry Potter and Sherlock Holmes

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By Tony Connelly, Sports Marketing Reporter

January 2, 2017 | 3 min read

The UK government is readying a campaign to promote Britain in a post-Brexit Europe with the help of Harry Potter and Sherlock Holmes.

Harry Potter

Harry Potter

The 'Great Britain' campaign, will celebrate a Year of Literary Heroes, marking a number of key milestones including the 20th anniversary of the first Harry Potter book – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, the 200th anniversary of the death of Jane Austen and the 125th anniversary of the first Sherlock Holmes collection.

A series of events are planned throughout the UK in places like Hampshire, where Jane Austen spent most of her life, and Bath which will host a week-long festival celebrating her work.

A new exhibition at the British Library will offer Harry Potter fans the chance to see previously unseen material from author JK Rowling and is the first of its kind to celebrate a single series of books by a living author.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's work will be promoted by encouraging tourists to visit locations in London associated with the detective, and in Bristol where the BBC series starring Benedict Cumberbatch is filmed.

The move is intended to capitalise on what is forecasted to be a record year for inbound tourism due to a weak pound which is encouraging more people from overseas to visit the UK.

At the heart of the campaign is diversity with different countries within the UK promoting a different aspect of what the UK has to offer.

England will commemorate the UK's literary greats while Wales will promote a Year of Legends, paying tribute to the country’s epic myths, and Scotland will celebrate a Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology.

Using literary anniversaries in online marketing campaigns to promote Britain abroad has become common practice in recent years. Last year, major anniversaries associated with Shakespeare, Beatrix Potter, Charlotte Brontë and Roald Dahl were used in foreign tourism campaigns.

VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, claims that for every £1 the government invests in marketing the UK abroad, an overseas visitor will spend £23 in Britain.

Brexit Harry Potter UK Government

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