Belladrum Festival adds millions to Scottish economy

The biggest event in the Highlands and Islands is now worth almost £6.6 million to the Scottish economy, new figures have revealed.

Grandmaster Flash at this years Belladrum Festival

The Belladrum Festival – first staged on a country estate in the Beauly area near Inverness a decade ago – has revealed the figure ahead of a major expansion of the event in 2015.

According to consultants brought in by the festival, which has sold out for the past six years and has a current daily capacity of 16,500, the event supports the equivalent of 66 full-time jobs.

Belladrum is by far the biggest event in the Highlands since the demise of Rockness, the event which used to be held on the banks of Loch Ness.

CONNECT WITH THE SCOTSMAN

• Subscribe to our daily newsletter (requires registration) and get the latest news, sport and business headlines delivered to your inbox every morning

• You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Google +

Of the £6.6 million generated by the event, some £4.6 million is said to be retained in the Highlands by the event, which was headlined by Sir Tom Jones and Razorlight last year.

The Proclaimers were recently announced as the headliner for the festival’s extra day, on Thursday, 6 August, with tickets for the event already on sale.

Festival organiser Joe Gibbs said: “In the 12 years of its existence, Belladrum has always remained firmly rooted in the Highland community and it is rewarding to see this is reflected in the cash benefit transferred back to the Highlands, and Scotland as a whole, by the event.”

Earlier this year, the organisers of T in the Park revealed that the event was worth £15.4 million to the national economy.

SCOTSMAN TABLET AND IPHONE APPS

• Download your free 30-day trial for our iPad, Android and Kindle apps

• Keep up to date with all aspects of Scottish life with The Scotsman iPhone app, completely free to download and use