Glasgow City Guide

Introduction

Built around the banks of the mighty River Clyde, Glasgow was once one of the industrial giants of the British Empire. Shipbuilding and tobacco trade were its main industries in its heyday, but the city saw a period of significant decline in the 20th century until the ‘Glasgow’s Miles Better’ campaign of the 1980s lifted it out of the doldrums and brought about a series of rejuvenation programmes. Since then Glasgow’s status as a vibrant and dynamic cultural centre has been confirmed with its award of European City of Culture in 1990 and the title of UK City of Architecture and Design in 1999.

The city boasts some of the best museums and galleries in Britain, most of which are free, and the diversity of the architecture is incredible. You’ll find everything and anything from neo-gothic spires and neo-classical columns carved in beautifully bright red and gold sandstone to the geometric Art Nouveau style of Rennie Mackintosh and stunning ultra-modern shiny glass and steel structures.

Attractions

George Square
Glaswegians take great pride in their civic and social heritage, and George Square is one of the main focal points of the city. Lined with marvellous 19th century municipal buildings, it has been the site of many public gatherings and meetings. The City Chambers building stretches majestically along the entire east side of the square. Built in the late 1800s, it’s testament to the might and confidence of Victorian Britain. 

Argyll Street to Sauchiehall Street
Arguably one of the best destinations for shopping in the UK, Glasgow’s main shopping streets are the long stretches of Argyle Street and Sauchiehall Street, which are connected by Buchanan Street. Lined with a wide variety of different retailers, these streets also boast several excellent shopping centres – the St Enoch Centre just off Argyle Street, the swanky Princes Square and enormous Buchanan Galleries on Buchanan Street, and the Sauchiehall Street Centre.

Dotted among the shops on these streets are various other places of interest. The Royal Concert Hall on the corner between Buchanan Street and Sauchiehall Street is an excellent entertainment venue with a prestigious programme of events.

Just between Buchanan Street and Queen Street on Royal Exchange Square is the Gallery of Modern Art. Housed in an imposingly grand neo-classical mansion which was once home to a wealthy tobacco merchant, it’s now a weird and wonderful collection of innovative and unusual pieces of contemporary art and sculpture.

Fans of Charles Rennie Mackintosh will love the interior design of the Willow Tea Rooms on Sauchiehall Street. Originally opened in 1904, it was refurbished in the 1980s in authentic Mackintosh style and the design of every little detail, from the chairs to the cutlery, was created by Mackintosh himself. Due to the popularity of the tea room, another one has been opened up in Buchanan Street and is again decorated in authentic Mackintosh style.  

For a superb example of Rennie Mackintosh’s architecture, visit the beautiful Glasgow School of Art just behind Sauchiehall Street on Renfrew Street. It’s one of the most influential art schools in the country, with a number of famous graduates. The interior of the school can be viewed on guided tours led by art students. 

A fascinating glimpse into 20th century Glasgow life can be seen at the Tenement House on Buccleuch Street just behind the School of Art. It’s a flat that was occupied by shorthand typist Agnes Toward for over 50 years until 1965. She led a quiet and traditional life and the interior of the flat changed little over this period. It’s now preserved by the National Trust for Scotland as an excellent example of this typical type of Scottish urban housing.

Merchant City
Heading east from George Square, the lofty sandstone warehouses signal the boundary of the Merchant City, which has seen an incredible transformation over recent years. Dilapidated mercantile buildings have been converted into luxury apartments and spacious designer bars and restaurants. The Candleriggs, not so long ago a scruffy indoor fleamarket, is now a wonderful indoor plaza with cobbled floors and ‘terrace’ cafes, bars and restaurants.

East End
The boundary between the gentrified Merchant City and the East End of the city centre is quite distinct. Beyond Glasgow Cross (the junction of the Gallowgate, High Street and Trongate), the city suddently becomes altogether more tatty and down-to-earth. The hub of working class Glasgow is The Barras, just off London Road. It’s a large bric-a-brac market with a lively atmosphere. Further along London Road is Glasgow Green, which claims to be the oldest public park in the UK. It’s been the site of many public gatherings and demonstrations over the centuries, as well as playing an important part in everyday life – there are still washing poles dotted across parts of the park.

Two buildings of note around Glasgow Green are Templeton’s Carpet Factory, an ornate Victorian Italianate building modelled on the Doge’s Palace in Venice, and the People’s Palace, a social history museum outlining social life in the city and the development of workers’ movements.

The High Street
Winding its way from Glasgow Cross up the hill towards the Cathedral, the High Street is one of the oldest streets in the city.  although it although it has long since been overshadowed by grander central thoroughfares to the west. At the top is Glasgow Cathedral, a late Gothic building dedicated to the city’s founder, St Mungo. Across the road is the Provand’s Lordship, the oldest house in Glasgow. Dating from around 1470, it is now a museum of 15th century life.

West End
Since the University of Glasgow relocated here from the High Street in the 19th century, the West End has become an attractive central suburb, with beautiful sandstone townhouses and tenements surrounded by leafy parks and gardens.

The main street in the West End is Byres Road, which is lined with  lively student pubs and a variety of eclectic clothing boutiques, gift shops and delicatessens. 

University Avenue, which runs off Byres Road up the hill towards Kelvingrove Park, is where you’ll find the main building of the University and its surrounding campus. It’s an ornate neo-gothic building with splendid courtyards, cloisters and spires. The best starting point for any visit to the University is the visitor centre under the main tower. 

One of the highlights is the Hunterian Art Gallery and Museum, the oldest museum in Scotland, which was established with the bequests donated to the University by William Hunter in 1807. The art gallery has an extensive collection of Whistler masterpieces as well as the fascinating Mackintosh House, a reproduction of the interior of the designer’s home, while the museum contains a wide range of archaeological and zoological exhibits.

The back of the University main building offers a magnificent vantage of the leafy expanse of Kelvingrove Park and the striking red sandstone Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery to the south. After three years of closure for refurbishment, the city’s favourite museum (and the most popular UK museum outside London) celebrated its eagerly-awaited reopening in July 2006. The must-sees are the spectacular collections of medieval armoury and weaponry, the excellent gallery of paintings from the ‘Glasgow Style’ movement and the city’s most famous painting, Salvador Dali’s Christ of St John of the Cross.

Almost as popular as its neighbour across the road, the Transport Museum is a wonderful collection of various vehicles, from trains, buses and trams to bicycle and prams. The recreation of a 1930s street is complete with cobble stones, shops and an underground station, is very interesting, as is the collection of model ships, miniatures of some of the magnificent vessels that were built at Glasgow’s renowned shipyards.

Clydeside
Since the decline in shipbuilding, the old docks of the Clyde have undergone somewhat of a renaissance. Trendy new apartment blocks are popping up all the time, while attractions such as the Glasgow Science Centre, the Tall Ship at Glasgow Harbour, the Clydebuilt heritage museum, Braehead Shopping Centre and events venues such as the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre and the Clyde auditorium, draw in visitors in their thousands. 

South Side
South of the River Clyde are a wealth of architectural gems such as Mackintosh’s Scotland Street School and the House for an Art Lover. The former was used as a school from 1906 to 1979 and is now a museum of Scottish school life, with recreated classrooms from different decades of the 20th century. It’s the magnificent architecture and interior design that’s the real draw, though. The House for an Art Lover, situated in Bellahouston Park, was designed by Mackintosh in 1901 but wasn’t built until 1996. It stands in Bellahouston Park and is used as a Glasgow School of Art building, although some rooms are open to the public.

Further south, the inner city shabbiness gives way to leafy suburbs where you’ll find the magnificent Burrell Collection, a vast assortment of paintings, sculpture, antiques and pottery amassed by wealthy shipping tycoon William Burrell, which is now in public ownership. It’s situated in Pollok Park, which is also home to Pollok House, a wonderful mansion designed by William Adam in the 18th century. It’s owned by the National Trust for Scotland and some of the rooms are open to the public. Even further south, it’s worth venturing out to Holmwood House, designed by another of Glasgow’s most famous architects, Alexander ‘Greek’ Thomson, whose distinctive neo-classical style exudes elegance and sophistication. Again, it’s owned by the National Trust for Scotland. Many of the rooms contain original features and there’s also an interesting exhibition Thomson’s life and work.

Eating Out

You’ll find just about every type of cuisine imaginable in Glasgow, where the restaurant scene is flourishing. New restaurants are popping up all the time, but there are plenty of old favourites.

Rogano on Exchange Place is a Glasgow institution. It’s been around since the 1930s, and its original art deco interior is a replica of the furnishings used to decorate the Queen Mary passenger liner, built at one of the Clyde shipyards. Although the original features are now a little tatty around the edges, this only adds to its charm. The restaurant specialises in fish and seafood dishes and is rather expensive but definitely worth it. For a cheaper meal, the café downstairs is just as good.

There are a couple of excellent Scottish restaurants in the West End. The Ubiquitous Chip on Ashton Lane has an excellent reputation for fine and fresh Scottish produce, while Stravaigin on Gibson Street is renowned for its innovative modern Scottish cuisine. Neither are cheap, but offer a great dining experience.

At the other end of the price scale, another popular restaurant is Ashoka on Ashton Lane. It serves a tasty selection of curries in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere and it’s very popular with students due to its close proximity to the University.

Thanks to its large Italian community, Glasgow also boasts a great variety of Italian restaurants. Some of the best are Fratelli Sarti, which has branches on Bath Street, Renfield Street and Wellington Street, Papingo on Bath Street and Planet Uno on Stockwell Street.

Nightlife

You can’t beat Glasgow nightlife. The number and choice of pubs and bars is incredible, and there’s something to suit everyone. The city centre and Merchant City come to life at night and are always buzzing with partygoers. Big, airy converted warehouse bars such as Bargo on Albion Street are typical of the Merchant City. Tiger Tiger on Glassford Street has a labyrinthine interior of various themed modern bars and restaurants, whereas the Corinthian on Ingram street has a marvellously ornate Victorian interior and was formerly a bank building. The Horseshoe is a popular traditional pub, which claims to have the longest bar in Britain. Favourite student haunts include Variety Bar on Sauchiehall Street and Curlers and Whistler’s Mother on Byres Road in the West End.

Glasgow has an excellent club scene. Some of the best are Archaos on Queen Street and The Arches on Midland Street, which offer mainstream dance music, and The Garage, a grungy student haunt which also hosts live rock music gigs.

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Image by: Scally