Top Scottish Twitter users revealed - how many do you recognise?

Martin Compston, John McGinn, and Jamie Genevieve have been revealed as some of the most influential Scottish Twitter users, but comedian Fern Brady took the top spot.

Author: Alice FaulknerPublished 22nd Dec 2021
Last updated 22nd Dec 2021

Martin Compston, John McGinn, and Jamie Genevieve have been revealed as some of the most influential Scottish Twitter users, but comedian Fern Brady took the top spot.

A verified blue tick or a high follower count is “only part” of what makes Twitter users popular. Instead, what matters is what we engage with most – for Scots, footballers and comedians dominate the list.

Fern Brady, a stand-up comedian from West Lothian, topped the list by tweeting out funny stories and opinions, often getting thousands of likes, retweets, and comments.

Football fell second to humour as Aston Villa player and Scotland captain John McGinn claimed second place, and Arsenal and Scotland footballer, Jen Beattie, coming third.

Others in the top 10 include comedian Eleanor Morton, rugby captain Stuart Hogg, broadcaster Neil Oliver, and Line of Duty star Martin Compston.

Tik Tok personality, Paul Black, and Deacon Blue drummer, Dougie Vipond, also made the list.

Communications agency, Spey, compiled the rankings by looking at Scottish Twitter users who had more than 10,000 followers and had tweeted more than ten times in the past year and tracked how many likes, comments, and retweets they had.

Politicians, groups, associates, and clubs were exempt from the list as Thom Watt, head of digital at Spey, explains they wanted to find individuals who had the most impactful content.

He said: We wanted to understand how active and interested followers were in the tweets of different Scottish personalities.

"We looked at the engagement on the tweets of high-profile Scots, and it's clear to see that we're a country of sports lovers with strong opinions, but we obviously don't like to take ourselves too seriously, either.

"Our list reflects the Scottish people who have entertained, interested and provoked us throughout the year."

The top 20 list in full is;

  1. Fern Brady (@FernBrady)
  1. John McGinn (@JMcGinn7)
  1. Jen Beattie (@JBeattie91)
  1. Eleanor Morton (@EleanorMorton)
  1. Stuart Hogg (@StuartWHogg_)
  1. Andy Robertson (@AndrewRobertso5)
  1. Neil Oliver (@TheCoastGuy)
  1. Martin Compston (@Martin_Compston)
  1. Paul Black (@PaulBlack)
  1. Amy Macdonald (@Amy_Macdonald)
  1. Calum Maclean (@Caldamac)
  1. Storm Huntley (@stormhuntley)
  1. Rachel Corsie (@RachelCorsie18)
  1. Jasper James (@JasperJames_)
  1. Jamie Genevieve (@JamieGenevieve)
  1. Dougie Vipond (@DougieVipond)
  1. Susan Calman (@SusanCalman)
  1. Darren McGarvey (@LokiScottishRap)
  1. Christopher Brookmyre (@CBrookmyre)
  1. Alex Kapranos (@AlKapranos)