George Square (Glasgow)

...good old ‘Glesga’, we have George Square.

The square was originally laid out in 1781 on what was then a marsh. Gradually, it was built around until eventually it became the centre of a bustling city which did very well in the industrial revolution and traded heavily in fabrics, tobacco and shipbuilding. Through the years the Square has evolved and changed and is now very much the heart of the city, both geographically and spiritually, ...
...directly from the airport to George Square itself! If you really must drive in then there is usually loads of parking spaces in the Buchanan Galleries Shopping Mall which is, you guessed it, behind Queen Street Train station and is signposted from the George Square exit off the M8 motorway. So it really is easy to get there no matter how you travel!

What is it like?
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Well for a start, it’s actually ... more

In most towns and cities you find that right in the middle you have a square of some description. In New York there is Time Square, In Venice there is the Piazza San Marco, in Moscow there is Red Square and in Beijing there is Tiananmen Square. These places are traditionally found in the centre of the city or town and are generally where you will find that the people will gather for various activities such as demonstrations, events, shows of solidarity and New Year celebrations. Here in good old ‘Glesga’, we have George Square.

The square was originally laid out in 1781 on what was then a marsh. Gradually, it was built around until eventually it became the centre of a bustling city which did very well in the industrial revolution and traded heavily in fabrics, tobacco and shipbuilding. Through the years the Square has evolved and changed and is now very much the heart of the city, both geographically and spiritually, and is an excellent attraction that should not be missed on any trip to Glasgow.

How do I get there?
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It couldn’t be easier. Practically every mode of transport you could take will take you here or very close by. If you are coming in by train, you will either arrive at Queen Street station which is actually on the square or to Central which is just round the corner (and there are signposts), if you are coming by bus practically all go through the square, stop round the corner, or arrive at Buchanan Bus station which is behind Queen Street Station, by underground where you get off at Buchanan Street Subway Station (which is next to Queen Street Station) or even if you fly in there is a special bus service that will take you directly from the airport to George Square itself! If you really must drive in then there is usually loads of parking spaces in the Buchanan Galleries Shopping Mall which is, you guessed it, behind Queen Street Train station and is signposted from the George Square exit off the M8 motorway. So it really is easy to get there no matter how you travel!

What is it like?
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Well for a start, it’s actually rectangular with the north and south sides of the square being the longest sides. The first building you are likely to notice will be the imposing and impressive City Chambers Buildings to the east. This building dates from 1888 (the height of British Imperialism) and today houses the many of the offices of Glasgow City Council. By day, its stands out with its three towers and by night it is lit up at various places with a soft purple glow which shows off many of its Victorian features. To the south, there is the old General Post Office building that was not long after the City Chambers. It is home to offices and apartments now and for a good few years has been covered by a HUGE advertising board that dominates the views to the south of the square and is one of the most expensive advertising spots in Scotland. The west of the square is occupied by another Victorian building which houses a large public house (well, we are in Scotland here!) called the Counting House. This is a very popular pub which is set in a very large and grand room that serves food during the day and is busy with socialising glasweigans in the evening. An interesting policy of the pub is that it never plays music of any kind and this creates a rather unique atmosphere of simply conversations going on. You cannot miss the semi circular window of Queen Street Station in the north west corner of the square which has another pub underneath it that has an area outside you can sit at. The only part of the square that is not Victorian is the North part that has the Millenium Hotel and a 1970’s building housing the Royal Bank of Scotland’s call centre operations. While this is not in keeping with the rest of the square, it serves to provide a contrast from the old to the new and doesn’t detract from the aesthetics of the square as a whole.

The square itself has a total of eleven statues to various people dotted around and these include such famous figures of history such as Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, James Watt and Rabbie Burns. In the centre of the square, stands a column reminiscent of Nelsons in Trafalgar Square however Sir Walter Scott stands proudly at the top of Glasgow’s version. It is interesting to note that the very person whom the square was named after is conspicuous by his absence because at the time, the Tobacco Barons were very put out by King George III decision to transfer the major trade in tobacco from Glasgow to the American colonies so refused to fund any of the project if a statue of him was erected!

The ground is mostly covered by red tarmac (a very controversial decision made Glasgow City Council to enable the square to them to host more events there) with a few grassed areas to enable people to relax when the weather is nice with numerous wooden benches dotted around for people to sit on.

What happens there?
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Many varied activities are on offer at many different points in the calendar. Every couple of months you will find a carnival set up in the south west corner of the square which has many classic fairground attractions like a merry-go-round and a chair swing ride and there is plenty of popcorn and candy floss available for all!! In April the annual Glasgow Art Fair has a display set up, in June the Lord Provost had a parade round the city and the square has street theatre, sports, games and exhibits on show, in July Glasgow holds an annual Jazz festival and one of the venues is a marquis set up in the square and lots of other festivals and events are held year round.

At the end of November the city’s Christmas lights are turned on by some form of celebrity and the square is transformed into a winter wonderland. In the whole month of December the funfair returns and the city build a real ice rink for people to enjoy open air skating and the atmosphere in the area is fantastic! I would highly recommend a vist at that time to do Christmas shopping in the excellent shopping Glasgow offers and to then end the day in the square to enjoy the fantastic atmosphere generated by the activities on show.

The council then clears the square in the week between Christmas and New Year to set up what is one of the biggest and most popular (apart from Edinburgh) Hogmanay celebrations in the UK (that’s New Years Eve to the non Scots among you!). The Radio One roadshow takes up camp in the square and provide the entertainment for the evening with various chart topping artists from all over the world taking the city to the culmination of the year with a spectacular fireworks display from the City Chambers. The atmosphere is out of this world and I defy anyone from around the world to come to Glasgow (or anywhere in Scotland for that matter) and not have a magical time leading up to the bells on the 31st! New Year is Scotland’s night and Glasgow is the perfect place to see it in.

The square also plays host to many demonstrations that happen for whatever reason and is very often either the meeting place or the end of many organised walks and when anything happens that people feel they would like to commemorate or show solidarity, it is very often used for large groups of people congregate with this in mind. There are also more than a few candle lit virgils held and these can provide a very poignant and reflective atmosphere for people to openly grieve or commemorate.

From the square it is also possible to start the Glasgow Tour which is provided courtesy of a red open top bus like the ones you see in most city’s now and will take you on a tour of various sights around the city and is a highly recommended way of getting your bearings if it is your first visit to the city.

So there you have it. Glasgow’s George Square is more than the just the centre point of a large city, it is the social heart and soul of a community. It is a great place to start a city break here or can be used just to come and relax in the summer to let the world go by and maybe feed a few pidgins!

If you have any question on the square or Glasgow as a whole, please let me know and I will do my best to answer them!

Thanks for reading and take care.

drew x

Here is a link to a site where you can see two different live webcams of George Square

http://www.glasgowguide.co.uk/webcams.html 

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