5+ million Germans to tune in to Rathlin Island
Spotlight on Rathlin Island and Northern Ireland’s Year of Food and Drink in Germany
Rathlin Island is set to provide the backdrop for a hugely popular food and cookery TV show in Germany called Zu Tisch, later this year.
A TV crew is filming on the island this week, as guests of Tourism Ireland. Zu Tisch – which has an audience of more than 5 million viewers – airs on national German TV, on the ARD and ZDF channels, as well as on the ARTE network, a Franco-German television channel focusing on culture and the arts. It’s also available through video on demand and catch-up TV.
The episode filmed on Rathlin Island will be a special one – the 200th episode – so it’s a really good opportunity to showcase our local produce and to highlight our special Year of Food and Drink in Germany. The crew has been filming around the island, following local kelp farmers Kate Burns and Benji McFaul. Their itinerary was devised by Tourism NI.
Zoë Redmond, Tourism Ireland’s Manager for Central Europe, said: “We were delighted to invite the Zu Tisch crew to come and film on Rathlin Island. It’s a wonderful opportunity to highlight what’s so special about Rathlin and to remind German ‘foodies’ about the superb culinary offering of Northern Ireland and this special Year of Food and Drink.
“TV and film are recognised as strong influencers on travellers everywhere, with up to 35% of people being impacted in their choice of destination by what they see on screen. Tourism Ireland regularly works with overseas TV and production companies to facilitate the making of travel and lifestyle programmes, to get positive exposure for Northern Ireland around the world.”
An article all about the making of Zu Tisch on Rathlin Island will also appear in an upcoming edition of Arte magazine – reaching more than 114,000 readers.
Germany is an important market for tourism to Northern Ireland. Figures published by NISRA today confirm that we welcomed an extra +14% visitors from Mainland Europe in 2015. Tourism Ireland is determined to ensure that growth continues and has an extensive programme of promotions under way in Germany, and elsewhere across Mainland Europe, throughout 2016.
