Da Vinci Code film profitable for Rosslyn

Published on Thursday 18 January 2007 00:08

ROSSLYN Chapel, the iconic 560-year-old centrepiece of the blockbuster movie The Da Vinci Code, made a profit of more than £500,000 last year.

Latest accounts lodged with Companies House for the Rosslyn Chapel Trust Ltd reveal the beneficial effect publicity from the film generated for the chapel which is desperately in need of restoration.

The previous year, the charitable trust, formed 11 years ago, made just over 300,000.

Donations from third parties leapt noticeably from 9,000 in 2005 to 56,000 last year.

Meanwhile, the chapel, in Midlothian, saw visitors increase fivefold to more than 170,000 in 2006. Visits previously averaged 30,000 a year. The admission charge is 7 per visitor.

Colin Glynne-Percy, the trust's new director who took up his post on Monday, has indicated that profits will be reinvested in the 12m ongoing restoration programme including an extension to the existing visitor centre which is expected to open in 2008.

Mr Glynne-Percy, formerly development manager for the Edinburgh Park business development, has acknowledged improving the experience for visitors is vital to ensure income is safeguarded as interest in the chapel, generated by the film, may begin to wane.

The financial benefits of the film have also been experienced further afield.

It is estimated Scotland enjoyed 6 million worth of global publicity thanks to a unique deal between VisitScotland and Sony to promote the locations used in the production, based on Dan Brown's best-selling novel.