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Article published 19/08/2026

Special Fringe broadcast

He’s considered the king of the British chat show and much-loved by the public so Graham Norton was the perfect fit to help us encourage more Brits to staycation in Scotland. 

We sponsored his return to Virgin Radio for a one-off special live broadcast from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe on 9 August.

Norton, who was named an official Ambassador of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe last year, performed on-air ad reads encouraging listeners to explore Scotland this summer, during the three-hour show. 

In the run-up to the broadcast, there were social clips and posts promoting the show and things to do in Scotland this summer, pointing readers and listeners to a campaign page.

The sponsorship was part of a wider domestic tourism marketing campaign, centred on Scotland’s events calendar, to get more people booking this summer. 

It was actioned in response to visitor research that revealed booking intent for summer and autumn breaks from UK holidaymakers had fallen slightly compared to the same period in 2025, coupled with a rise in last-minute booking behaviours. 

  

 

 

News UK

Throughout July, we placed advertorials and adverts across the News UK network. 

They appeared online and in print in The Sunday Times, The Sun and The Times. 

News UK was chosen for the media partnership due to its large UK readership and previous successful partnerships. 

Each advertorial focused on music, food and drink, culture and sporting events and festivals taking place in Scotland over the summer months. 

Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival, Wigtown Book Festival, Stirling Highland Games, Summer’s End Festival, Shetland Fiddle Week and Hebridean Whiksy Festival, plus golf and the Commonwealth Games, were mentioned, to name just a few. 

Insight drives our work to support sectors and regions across the country and grow the visitor economy. The staycation campaign with Virgin Radio and News UK is a clear example of how we can quickly adapt our marketing to the changing behaviour of visitors.

Scotland excels in its events and festivals which are a key driver for visitors over the summer months. Leveraging the reach of our media partners with inspirational travel content, we are hopeful the campaign will influence last-minute bookers to plan a trip to Scotland.

Jill Walker, Director of Marketing, VisitScotland

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