Glasgow's economy given £166m boost from film and TV productions

Glasgow’s economy has benefited from more than £166.1 million in revenue as a result of filming in the city over the last five years.

During a previous economy, housing, transport and regeneration committee councillor Robert Mooney asked officers how much revenue filming brought into the city each year.

Recent figures reveal that the number of productions and direct local expenditure to the city economy for the five years up until 2025.

In 2021, direct local spend sat at £42.2m before rising to £57.7m in 2022. The figure settled at £22.2m, £21.9m and £22.1m in 2023, 2024 and 2025 respectively.

These figures have been gathered directly from the production or funder with types of production including low-budget feature film, mid-budget TV drama, TV light entertainment, documentary and children’s TV.

Glasgow City Council says there are always year-to-year variations in the economic impact of filming in the city, and the numbers are not a trend.

The council relies on productions giving the Glasgow Film Office (GFO) an estimate of what they spend in the city – but not every production goes through them.

A spokesman for the city council said: “Over many years, Glasgow has been able to attract film and broadcast productions of all sizes – productions that have brought around half a billion pounds to the city’s economy over the past 25 years.

“This economic impact represents the spend in accommodation, eating and drinking out, storage, hiring buildings and spaces, transport, and a whole range of logistical services – with some individual productions spending several million pounds during their time in Glasgow.

“These productions come to the city as they know through experience that the council’s Glasgow Film Office and their colleagues in our roads and parking teams will act as a ‘one-stop shop’ to allow shoots to go as smoothly as possible while minimising the impact on residents and businesses.

“The range of architecture in the city – particularly our heritage buildings and the city centre’s grid system – is of particular interest to productions looking to recreate the streets of (sometimes fictional, sometimes real) American cities.

“While it is always nice to welcome major productions and see the likes of Spiderman swinging along Bothwell Street the bread and butter of filming in Glasgow is for UK broadcast productions, and these have helped to grow a thriving film sector in the city, providing jobs for local people in a variety of roles.”