Summer in Glasgow: Waiting for the sunshine

parade 1The weather has not been clement this summer and last month has got to be one of the wettest June’s on record but it’s not kept me in and I’ve been very busy out and about in Glasgow’s West End.

Another brilliant festival this year. The Parade Day was a particular highlight. I went along with Jim, Ryan and Frances and we landed the perfect spot to watch the parade go by  – just outside the Kibble Palace.

It was vibrant and colourful and the participants showed fantastic creativity in portraying the bloom theme.

See more great West End Festival images in Jim’s photo-gallery

The Gibson Street Gala

nicola godsal and ruth morrisAlways an good opportunity to see well kent faces, browse the many stalls and listen to the music. Allan Richardson’s Art showing iconic Glasgow images was as popular as ever.

We also enjoyed a chat with Nicola Godsal and Ruth Morris at their stall promoting Kelvingrove Bandstand and the event A Trip Through The Twenties.

We were delighted to see them using the photo they took of us to promote this event. 

Wilton Street Fete

wilton street feteRyan and I met up with Maggie Graham to spend a very pleasant afternoon at Wilton Street Fete.  It’s great seeing the local community pull together to put on such a super event and we spent a leisurely afternoon listening to music, picking up bargains and trying out the home baking.  It was also good to see my old neighbour Lala Manning,  her vintage jewellery is amazing.

The Mela

mela crowd tromboneThis year the Mela, Scotland’s largest multicultural festival. was even more spectacular and busier than ever before.  Jim, Jimmy and I enjoyed a walk through Kelvingrove amid all the bustle.  Great to see Glasgow’s rich cultural mix coming together for another super event.

On our way home we walked up to Hillhead, where we caught some superb entertainment at CC Music, where the country band Raintown were performing. It’s always a pleasure to run into the fabulously talented musician, Stevie Lawrence, who was playing with the band also the musician Scott Nicol, who blogged on the site when he toured America a year or so ago. Read the review.

Queen Margaret Drive Festival

kelpies at the kibbleWe didn’t quite manage to avoid the rain for the Queen Margaret Drive Festival but despite the poor weather it attracted a decent crowd.  The entertainment was particularly popular – both Jim Byrne his brother Peter were playing and it was also good to see Mic Clarke on the bill. 

Rhona Fleming and the team from Queen Margaret Drive Community played a key role in this year’s West End Festival, as they got their G20 Conservation and Heritage Project underway. The launch at the Kibble Palace, was quite spectacular as it coincided with the arrival of the Kelpie Maquettes..

thistle-gallery.jpg-300x228West End Art

Another impressive festival event was The West End Art Trail, which included seven west end galleries, including the wonderful Thistle Gallery in Park Road. Try and catch their Summer Breeze Exhibition, which runs until the end of August. It’s fantastic and this beautiful gallery is really worth a visit.

Jaunts to the Theatre

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Kings

I had a smashing night out when I went along with Mary Irvine to the Kings to see Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, which was great fun. Prior to the show we met up with some of the marketing team at the Theatre Royal in the new rooftop cafe. I’ll be heading back as soon as the sun comes out.

The Drivers Seat at the Tramway

This was a super production by the National Theatre of Scotland.

I also enjoyed the talk beforehand and a bonus was running into Dini Power and Willy Maley.

Literary Events

Glasgow is always jumping with book launches and I’ve been to quite a few recently.

I went along with John to the launch of Maria Venditozzi’s first poetry collection – ‘Tendrils of Intention‘.

ALIYYAH-cover-210-x-140_smallerI also had fun, when Jim and I went along to the CCA for the launch of Chris Dolan ‘s new book Aliyyah, which you can buy at Vagabond Voices

I met up with Chris prior to the event for a coffee and a chat as he had been on my list of candidates to add to my Glasgow Writers  for quite some time.  At the book launch we bumped into Graeme Macrae Burnet, whom we’ve known for some time through his band The Dirt. More than one string to his bow; his book The Disappearance of Adele Bedeau was published in 2014 and he is now busy working on the follow up.  I’m hoping to meet Graeme again very soon so that I can also add him to my list of writers.

Peter Gilmour’s Spring Manoeuvres

Gillian and I went along to the launch of Peter Gilmour’s book, Spring Manoeuvres, a tale of geriatric radical pacifists in the Faslane area, also published by Vagabond Voices’.  Told with the author’s usual ‘dry wit and subtle observation’, the launch in the Club Room at the CCA, attracted a sizeable crowd and Peter kept his audience well entertained. 

tales-from-a-cancelled-country.jpgthi wurd – Tales from A Cancelled Country

It was very exciting being at the launch of thi wurd’s first book, Tales of A Cancelled Country, and the book lives up to its amazing title. I can thoroughly recommend it. You can buy it online at thi wurd shop  It was good to catch up with some of the authors, including, Samina Chaudry, Kristen Anderson, Stephen Clark and Micheal Norton.

Arty Events

The Burrell

Jim and I had a lovely day out at The Burrell Collection. In Glasgow we are so lucky to be able to visit such fabulous museums and galleries for free. The art collection left to the city by Sir William Burrell is truly outstanding and any visitors to the city should make sure to include it in their itinerary. 

Leith Art School – Final Year Graduate Exhibition

leith sean jim

We traveled through to Leith especially to see our nephew Sean Robertson’s multi-media entry in this exhibition.  We were very impressed by Sean’s work and by the whole place. We had a lovely day out, with a nice wander around Leith, some lunch followed up by the film Scottish Muscle at Edinburgh Film Festival.  We’ll be looking forward to seeing more of Sean when he starts studying at Glasgow School of Art in September.

The Lost Sister by Melanie Sim

Nearer home, Jim and I went to the Lillie Gallery in Milngavie to see an exhibition The Lost Sister by Melanie Sim.  A very impressive and evocative photographic exhibition – it runs until 14th August.

Wining and Dining in The West End

Kothel, 300 Crow Road.  

marianna basia palkaMy friend Basia Palka invited me along to the Kothel, Crow Road, for lunch. It was bustling and quirky and I spotted a few familiar West End faces, including Chris Dolan.  A special treat was Marianna, Basia’s daughter, coming along – I don’t often see her as most of her time is spent making movies in Los Angeles.

The Chip

It was lovely to catch up with Gillian and James over sharing platters in The Chip. Gillian, Pauline and I also had a great blether when we went along to Nic’s in Hyndland. 

Other outings with friends and family

cardrossI’ve also been enjoying scones and tea with Anne and Frances, and, unbelievably, we were fortunate enough to choose two very sunny days. We had tea in the tea room at the Botanics and in Nardini’s and on both days had a stroll in the Botanics.

A bit further afield John, Ryan and I went to visit Anne and Eddie in Cardross – Anne took us for a wander around the village and a walk along the shore. They also treated us to a delicious lunch. 

Jim, Jimmy, Ryan and I headed in the same direction when we spent an afternoon in Helensburgh. Not such a bright day but the boys managed a game of football in the square.

We had another family outing when John, Ryan and I had a barbeque on the shore in Old Kilpatrick, under the Erskine Bridge. It was a bit blowy but we lit a wee fire so that was fun.  The three of us also met up for a swim after Ryan’s trip down to Scotstoun Leisure Centre to the Football Club.  Well done to Ryan on being Player of the Year at his own club.

We also had a wee trip down to Issie and Davy’s to meet their beautiful new grandson, Joel, home from New Zealand.

I am now looking forward to a visit from Alastair, my brother in law, and Sean, my nephew, who have travelled from Toronto and Halifax, Nova Scotia to meet up in Scotland. They’ve been to Peebles and now off for a jaunt further North. We’ll see them at the week-end when we meet up at The Twisted Thistle in Old Kilpatrick. Then Sean will spend a week in Glasgow with us.  I’ll be taking him along to the Merchant City Festival and we’ll definitely go for a stroll around Glasgow University. If he’s still here he’ll likely come along to Southside Sessions Sweeneys in the Park , where Jim will be playing on 6th August.

Big Date in My Calendar for August

something cruel

Jim will also be playing with Bearpit Brothers at the launch of their new E.P.Something Cruel at The Glad Cafe – Saturday 22 August.

Hope to see some of you there. 🙂

As usual there’s lots of new stuff on the site, including, updates on our Best in the West  – where you will find some of Glasgow West End’s best jewellers, gift shops and opticians.  Please get in touch if you are interested in promoting your business.

Congratulations and good luck to The Clutha Bar on its reopening after the tragic accident.

Also check out What’s New on the site.

Including:

Jim’s Photodiary

Fox Star Community Arts Festival– 25 and 26 July

Summer Daze at GFT

 
Glasgow Sport Summer Activity Programme until 7 August
 
Mary Irvine Blogging about writing and Greece
 
Fiona Alderman blogging from rural France
 
Bob Law photographer and blogger
Bob Law: walking in the Scottish Borders – Peebles.
Southside Sessions Sweeneys in the Park, 6 August, 2015

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Avatar of PatByrne Publisher of Pat's Guide to Glasgow West End; the community guide to the West End of Glasgow. Fiction and non-fiction writer.

3 responses to “Summer in Glasgow: Waiting for the sunshine”

  1. Violet-Ann Woods says:

    Great blog Pat really enjoyed reading this. xx

  2. Mary Irvine says:

    Reading about all the activities available in Glasgow and environs makes me wish I had a pied-à-terre up there. Would certainly be attending more events. Never mind. Have written ‘Could do better’ in my memory bank to remind me it’s only a short train ride away…

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