Sporran legion 'to return in four years'

ORGANISERS of the huge clan gathering staged in Edinburgh over the weekend have revealed plans to make it a regular fixture as it emerged the economic benefits could be more than double that anticipated.

Officials who spent more than two years masterminding The Gathering last night admitted it would be "fantastic" to try to replicate its huge success, after more than 60,000 people flocked to events in the capital on Saturday and Sunday.

They believe the event – which included the world's biggest Highland Games, a spectacular parade up the Royal Mile and a pageant on Edinburgh Castle's Esplanade – could become Scotland's answer to the Olympics.

But they have warned it would need at least four years "breathing space" between each event to help raise funds and ensure interest in the concept did not wane around the world.

Tourism leaders added their support to the idea of The Gathering becoming a regular fixture, saying it could help treble the worth of "ancestral tourism" to more than £180 million.

Bumper attendances – well over 47,000 people came to Holyrood Park over the two days of The Gathering and an estimated 20,000-strong crowd watched the Royal Mile parade – are said to have "far surpassed" the expectations of event director Jamie Sempill and his team.

There were huge queues inside and outside the main arena on Saturday as warm sunshine tempted thousands of people without tickets to just turn up.

Saturday night saw a gigantic crowd descend on the Royal Mile to watch more than 6,000 clan members parade to the Esplanade, where Aisling's Children was staged.

Predicted bad weather yesterday failed to materialise, and crowds continued to flood through the gates.

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers, Battlefield Band, Dougie MacLean and Capercaillie were among the biggest draws over the weekend, while huge crowds watched the Highland Games action unfold in the main arena.

The Gathering, the centrepiece event of Scotland's Year of Homecoming celebrations, received a total of £400,000 in public funding, from the Scottish Government, Edinburgh City Council, Scottish Enterprise and EventScotland. However, the event cost an estimated £1.5 million to stage and was heavily underwritten by commercial sponsors, including Diageo and Caledonian Breweries.

Mr Sempill said: "It would be absolutely fantastic to do the event again. It obviously couldn't be held on an annual basis because of the costs involved and the logistics of putting it all together.

"I think we would have to see it along similar lines to the Olympic Games or European Football Championships, as it is such a huge undertaking.

"Although the concept very much came out of the idea for having a Year of Homecoming, the brand is strong enough to stand on its own two feet.

"The buzz around the arena has been absolutely phenomenal all weekend and all our expectations were surpassed."

VisitScotland officials have already declared The Gathering a huge success and said the most recent estimates that it could bring an £8m boost to the economy were already being seen as "conservative".

Ewan Colville, VisitScotland's marketing manager for North America and Australasia, said: "The economic benefit estimates were based on full attendees spending around nine to ten days in Scotland during their visit. However, we have spoken to a large number of people who have been here for three to four weeks and it may be that the average stays works out at two to three weeks.

"We could be looking at an overall economic benefit of some £20m once all the final evaluations are done."

Mr Colville said it was hoped one of the main legacies of The Gathering would be to develop the nation's ancestral tourism.

"Our research shows that Scotland currently gets around 90,000 visitors a year who have been motivated to come here by their ancestral links," he said. "We believe the potential is out there to get that number of visitors up to the 300,000 mark.

"The Gathering has been a huge success … it's certainly worth looking at having one every four or five years."

Councillor Steve Cardownie, the city's festivals and events champion, said: "The Gathering has proved to be a tremendous success for the city and a fantastic welcome home to the thousands of clansfolk."

IN NUMBERS

47,000
The number of people who came through the gates to watch the Highland Games in Holyrood Park

20,000
Estimated crowd that lined the Royal Mile to watch the parade of clan members on Saturday.

124
Number of clans and societies represented at The Gathering over the weekend.

200
Number of performers to take part in Aisling's Children, the pageant staged on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle.

400
Number of participants in the official Highland Dancing competition.