I think your question has been answered, but I'll chime in too, for what it's worth. When spoken fast enough, "Goran no sponsa" runs together and can sound like "Gran Sponsor" to the untrained ear, so that's probably what you heard but it has nothing to do with the word "Gran". In my early days in Japan, the commonly used phrase 実施中（jisshi chu) in TV commercials to mean that some sales campaign is "now underway" always sounded to me like the Japanese pronunciation for "beef stew" (ビーフシチュー) and confused me, so I understand your confusion.

They're not offering juicy stew?

I think you’re right. So NHK isn’t saying “grand” by English definition but what about the Shinkansen?

At least 4 of us are "right".......I used think the elevators were saying "Gweditbairibus" , when they were actually saying "Ue ni mairimasu". :D

In some Japanese dictionaries, you'll find that グランド （grand) and グラン (gran) are listed together to mean "large," "big" or "important". Jib71 touches on it above, for example, Grand Prix in Japanese is written グランプリ （Gran Pree) with a silent "d" just as the original French is pronounced, so you can think of "gran" and "grand" as meaning the same. So "Gran Class" on the Shinkansen is an "important" (VIP) class.

Interestingly, “gran” in French translates to “great” in English.

Thanks for the reply, that helps clarify things. Appreciate it.

It IS worth it.

That’s not a regular run. That’s a tourist cruise!

For decades I too thought it was Gran Sponsor (as opposed to lessor sponsors)

Definitely not.

Try it. Best regularly scheduled train seat on the planet. By planet, for you extraterrestrials out there, I mean Terra.

As commented below, I rode it a couple of dozen times earlier this year.

There are a number of compartments on regularly scheduled non-overnight non-cruise trains in Japan. Some are very nice.

I'm a bit partial to JR Kyushu, especially the sightseeing trains. But the other JR regionals have also come up with some really nice competition. I'd love to ride the Iyonada Monogatari again in the Green Suite with the 270 + virtual back view https://youtu.be/zstQ4O9D8Fo?t=1051

You might enjoy Solo Solo Travel and Kuga's Travel on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTp4KZmCI90
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDa...kDtbRmdlqBD3g/

If you like watching in Japanese, Suit Train has a lot of JP train videos over many years, routes, and classes.
The posh stuff https://www.youtube.com/c/%E6%97%85%...8F%AF%E3%81%AA

Food wise, there are sightseeing trains with food emphasis. Aru Ressha 或る列車 aka "Sweets Train" is pretty impressive https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFNTDLoAqu4

Some people on the Japan FT started riding the JP rails when dining cars were more a thing and have shared photos, so I can see why the Gran Class food doesn't tip it into the "worth it" category for them.

These are all mostly irregularly-scheduled scenic tourist trains and are not to be compared with regular commuter and long-distance trains.

Gran Class has to be compared with other train cars that ride the rails NOW! Not everyone had the opportunity to meet Agatha Christie on the Orient Express in 1927.

The Narita Express had four-person private compartments in the late 1990s. Do these still exist? (I chose to take the Keisei Skyliner when I discovered that it was cheaper and faster and cleaner!)
Still - Not even close to Gran Class.

Train travel appears to be getting more luxurious in many places. I would like to try the Swiss Glacier Express:
Glacier Express - Excellence Class
Frecciarossa - Executive Class
China Railway - Business Class

Not to get into possibly misguided pedanterizations, but I always understood the ご覧のスポンサー translated as the sponsors of the show that you (the esteemed viewer) is ご覧nning, as 覧 means to view or peruse (or even read something, like a pamphlet or an instruction manual). So the 覧 refers to the TV program being viewed, that is sponsored by the list of companies mentioned right after.