Dorset tourism agents hope to reap the benefits from new TV drama Broadchurch’s current success.
The ITV show aired on 4 March and the first episode attracted nearly 9 million viewers.
https://twitter.com/ChrisChibnall/status/311507373552443392
Robert Gould, Leader of West Dorset District Council, said: “Broadchurch represents a unique opportunity for Dorset’s fantastic Jurassic coastline to gain national media coverage and it’s promising to see that the initial response to the series is generating a large amount of interest in the area.”
The eight episode drama, staring David Tennant and Olivia Colman, is written by Chris Chibnall and takes place in the fictional town of Broadchurch, situated in Dorset.
The drama was filmed on many locations along the Dorset coast including West Bay, Eype and Freshwater near Burton Bradstock.
According to Jessica Thornton, Tourism Marketing Officer at West Dorset District Council, the Visit Dorset tourism team worked closely with ITV’s press team, production company and the writer of the show to maximize the benefits of showing off the Dorset scenery.
She said that such a high profile TV drama gives Visit Dorset an angle to promote the area, for example through competitions with local accommodation, and provides them with a good hook to raise awareness and target people who may not have thought about the area before.
Since its initial broadcast, the Broadchurch page on visit-dorset.com has received 17,000 page views and is currently the highest viewed page on the site.
All images from Dorset Tourism.
