Actress Karen Gillan has been named as the world’s most Googled celebrity Scot while comedian Janey Godley was top in searches from Scotland.
The Guardians Of The Galaxy star edged out fellow actor Gerard Butler, according to analysis of global online search trends throughout last year.
Outlander star Sam Heughan was third, ahead of singer Lewis Capaldi and chef Gordon Ramsay, with actors Ewan McGregor, James McAvoy, Richard Madden, Tilda Swinton and David Tennant making up the rest of the top 10 for 2021.
Godley remained Scotland’s most searched celebrity of last year, ahead of Capaldi and tennis star Andy Murray.
Tennant was fourth north of the Border, ahead of Billy Connolly, Ramsay, footballer Kieran Tierney, Line Of Duty star Martin Compston and Gillan, with Heughan completing the top 10.
Data provider Semrush analysed online search trends for more than 300 famous Scots from the worlds of film, television, music and sport between January 1 and December 31.
Vice-president Olga Andrienko said: “She truly is a Marvel – Karen Gillan has seen off tough competition to retain the world’s most searched for Scot spot.
“Janey Godley’s comedy stylings earned her the No1 spot in Scotland and it’s hard to deny how popular Andy Murray is on his home turf.
“This data underlines how beloved the Scottish influence is on the world stage, from the Democratic Republic of Congo to the icy south polar regions.”
Inverness -born Gillan, 34, averaged more than two million searches per month, peaking at 2.74million in July when her film Gunpowder Milkshake came out.
While global No1 Gillan was top in the US, the UK’s favourite Scots celebrity last year was Lewis Capaldi. Heughan was the No1 Scot in France, Spain and Brazil, while Butler was top in Germany.
But no living star comes close to the late Sir Sean Connery.
The James Bond icon, who died aged 90 in 2020, is not counted on the official list but research shows he attracted 5.175million searches in 2021.
Andrienko added: “While the list comprises living Scots, our research also shows the enduring popularity of Connery across the world.”
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