The unprecedented interest in a royal romance which has captured the imagination of a worldwide audience will bring “incalculable” benefits to Scotland over many years, tourism chiefs have said.
It would appear there is an almost insatiable global appetite for all things related to Wills and Kate and St Andrews, where the pair met, is set to enjoy the multi-million pound benefits.
Experts predict that the royal wedding will boost the UK’s coffers by up to £600 million.
While officials have been unable to put a specific figure on the likely economic boost to Fife, it promises to be “enormous.”
Television crews from every corner of the planet have descended on St Andrews in recent weeks and, with just two days to go until the big event, interest is continuing to intensify.
Patrick Laughlin is a former chief executive of the Kingdom of Fife Tourist Board and, as manager of the St Andrews Partnership, has played a key role in planning the town’s wedding day celebrations.
“The value in future months and years of all the exposure will be absolutely enormous,” he told The Courier.
“I have worked in St Andrews during major Open golf championships and during the time when Prince William was at university in the town but, in my experience, the level of interest now is unprecedented.”
Mr Laughlin said the appetite for all things associated with St Andrews had seen film crews from “practically every country in the world” visiting.
“The benefits all of this brings to St Andrews is really incalculable,” he said.
“Journalists are, quite rightly, researching the history of the royal romance but they are also genuinely interested in the community event being staged in St Andrews to celebrate the royal wedding.
“The wedding breakfast (to be held in St Salvator’s quadrangle on Friday) may have started as a community get-together but there is no doubt it now has a worldwide profile.
“Foreign audiences seem fascinated by that fact that such a small town in Scotland is doing something so big to commemorate the wedding.”
Mr Laughlin said it was an “exciting time” to be in Fife.
“The way in which the whole community has come together has been incredible,” he said. “I cannot remember anything quite like it.”
Around 1600 tickets were available to the public for Friday’s event in St Andrews, but applications were four times higher.
The breakfast event has now been extended to run into the afternoon, allowing many more locals to come along later in the day.
A VisitBritain spokesman confirmed that the UK-wide economic boost associated with the royal nuptials would be “well above” the £500 million mark.
Meanwhile, VisitScotland regional director Richard Pinn said the wedding had provided “fantastic opportunities” for Fife.
“The wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton is wonderful news for Fife, and particularly St Andrews, where the happy couple first met,” he said.
“Television crews from around the world have already descended on the town as royal wedding fever grips the nation.
“With Scotland’s links to the royal family already a huge draw for visitors to this country, the wedding is a fantastic opportunity for the whole tourism industry.”
More than a billion people are expected to tune in to coverage of the wedding and VisitScotland is using the opportunity to promote the nation’s romantic credentials to millions at home and abroad.
Over a million people have been targeted through direct marketing, while millions more across the globe have viewed coverage generated by royal-themed press trips to Scotland.
With the wedding imminent, interest in St Andrews looks set to hit fever pitch over the next 48 hours.