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Richard's Ten Things To Do in Glasgow

Glasgow has taken a great deal of effort over the past 25 years to reinvent itself as one of the major tourist destinations in the UK. Here is a personal list of ten of the most rewarding things to do whilst in Glasgow.

  1. The Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre and Gallery
    Tower of Babel

    Sharmanka is the, largely undiscovered, gem of Glasgow cultural life. Founded by sculptor-mechanic Eduard Bersudsky and theatre director Tatyana Jakovskaya in St.Petersburg (Russia) in 1989, it has been based in Glasgow since 1996. The gallery houses a number of kinetic sculptures, built out of scraps of metal and other material. The results are surprisingly moving and beautiful or scary and disturbing by turns. Attending the gallery means attending a 50 minute performance, either scheduled at 7pm on Thursdays and Sundays, or at another time by arrangement. I will arrange a visit outwith the conference if there is enough interest.

  2. The People's Palace and Winter Gardens
    People's Palace

    Glasgow has probably the most inteesting social history of any major British city and the People's Palace celebrates that history. The city was created by the Industrial Revolution and consequently suffered most from the exploitation that was an inevitable part of that process. It therefore was also the centre of political resistance to the worst of the excesses and now hs remade itself as a post-industrial city. The People's Palace has a wide range of fascinating exhibits illustrating that process.

  3. The Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery
    The Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery

    Sharmanka is the, largely undiscovered, gem of Gasgow cultural life. Sharmanka is the, largely undiscovered, gem of Gasgow cultural life. Sharmanka is the, largely undiscovered, gem of Gasgow cultural life.

  4. The Botanic Gardens and Kelvin River
    Kelvin River

    The Botanic Gardens are close to the University and house a number of greenhouses including the world famous Kibble Palace. Running below the gardens and through the West End of Glasgow is the Kelvin River which has a beautiful walkway along it and no shortage of wildlife to observe.

  5. The Live Music Venues
    The Barrowlands Ballroom

    Glasgow is, first and foremost, a musical city. As well as housing three first class orchestras and Scottish Opera, it has a strong folk and country music scene and has generated more top quality popular music acts over the past thirty years than any other city of comparable size. As you would expect, the city is therefore well served for music venues.

    The new Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, the Theatre Royal and the refurbished City Halls are where to find classical music. The Scottish Exhibition Centre caters for massive audiences. There are three new mid-size venues which have been created out of cinemas - the ABC, the Classic Grand and the Carling Academy - but the Barrowlands Ballroom is still the best place to see a rock or dance band which has already established a reasonable amount of popularity. There are also a large number of small venues of which King Tut's Wah Wah Hut is the most famous, while the Renfrew Ferry (which is on a ferry boat morred in the river), the 13th Note Cafe and Nice'n'Sleazy are also excellent, while Mono is the venue most frequented by the musicians themselves.

  6. The Burrell Collection
    The Burrell Collection

    Glasgow was built on trade. Glasgow traders went all over the world and often brought back examples of what they found. William Burrell was one such trader and during his amassed an enormous number of artefacts drawn from different cultures. How he would have loved the Antiques Road Show! The Burrell Collection displays a small selection of his artefacts in a purpose built museum in Pollock Park on the South side of Glasgow. The park is also home to Pollock House, an imposing 18th Century mansion.

  7. The Musem of Modern Art
    The Musem of Modern Art

     

  8. Cinemas and Theatres

     

  9. Edinburgh
    Edinburgh Castle

    OK, Edinburgh is not in Glasgow, but one of the most valuable features of living in either of these cities is the proximity of the other. Trains and buses run frequently and take 45 and 70 minutes respectively. Edinburgh boasts its famous castle, fascinating alleys and stairways around the old town and many galleries, concert halls and theatres. It also has (very personal opinion) much more intersting shops, but then I have not much interest in standard high street stores or fashions.

  10. The Highlands
    Ben Lomond

    Also not strictly part of Glasgow, the ease of getting into some of the most beautiful countryside in the world is another bonus of living here. Ben Lomond (pictured) is about forty minutes drive away, but then it takes a good bit longer to walk to the top.

    11. There is also:

  11. The House for an Art Lover
    The House for an Art Lover

    Charles Rennie Macintosh is one of the most widely recognised architects in the world and is celebrated everwhere in Glasgow. His innovative art deco style has widely influenced subsequent architecture and so should be of general interest. There are a small number of his constructions in Glasgow and the surrounding countryside of which The House for an Art Lover is probably the most interesting. Fortunately, Macintosh had very little influence on the look of Glasgow streets, which owe more to the previous generation of Victorian architects, notably Alexander "Greek" Thompson whose buildings are truly beautiful.