Glasgow....Always an Eventful Experience!

 

 

Glasgow has one of the richest civic art collections in Europe, and for over a hundred years, their principal showroom has been the beloved Art Gallery & Museum, Kelvingrove.  Kelvingrove is now closed for refurbishment until 2006, so the best of the collection - including works by Botticelli, Whistler, Turner, Rembrandt, Reubens and Charles Rennie Mackintosh - is on show at the McLellan Galleries. www.glasgowmuseums.com

 

Iconic American artist Barbara Kruger is best known for combining images with text to confront the viewer with issues of power and control in relation to sexuality and politics.  The exhibition at the Gallery of Modern Art features a new installation utilising walls, floor, columns and skylight window areas of the top floor gallery.  www.glasgowmuseums.com

 

July sees the return of the festival celebrating the mighty River Clyde, following the enormous success of the first festival in 2004. Special events will take place throughout the long-weekend at venues along the waterfront and on the river itself, including Glasgow Science Centre, The Tall Ship at Glasgow Harbour and the SECC.  The Glasgow Clipper is also set to make a guest appearance at this year’s festival.  Later this year, this magnificent yacht and her crew will take part in the prestigious Clipper Round the World Yacht Race 05-06.    www.glasgowriverfestival.co.uk

 

Gourmet Glasgow is back and bigger than ever!  As well as discount Dine Around offers there will be special events in selected city restaurants and - new for 2005 – 4-day public Food & Drink Festival will be held in George Square with celebrity chef demonstrations and specialist food and drink stalls.  www.gourmetglasgow.com

 

 

A global celebration of the diversity of piping music will take place in Glasgow as more of the world's best and emerging pipers descend upon the city for the second year of Piping Live!, the Glasgow International Piping Festival.  For one week across nine different venues and outdoor spaces, Piping Live! will showcase the best that international piping has to offer with over two dozen different nationalities and piping traditions being represented. www.pipingfestival.co.uk

 

The World Pipe Band Championships have been associated with Glasgow since 1948 and are a celebration of the very best of Scottish music, culture and dance.  The event will see over 8,000 pipers and drummers from across the globe competing for the coveted title of World Champions 2005.   

 

The Glasgow Clipper is sailing into Glasgow before it competes in the world’s longest circumnavigation race, the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race 05-06, which sails from Liverpool on Sunday 18 September 2005.  This magnificent 68ft Glasgow: Scotland with style racing yacht, along with other new yachts designed by Dubois Navel Architects, will be moored at the Moat House Pontoon at the SECC on the River Clyde.  www.clipper-ventures.com  

 

This 500 mile cycle race will start from George Square and finish six days later in London’s Whitehall.  The race will feature riders from the world’s top professional teams and will be viewed by hundreds of thousands of spectators along the route and on national television.  www.tourofbritain.co.uk

 

Over 500 music industry professionals from across the UK and Ireland will converge in Glasgow for MusicWorks – the International Cross-Media Music Convention and Live Music Festival.  Live music is a top priority during MusicWorks, and more than 160 national and international artist are expected to perform in over 25 venues throughout the four nights of the event.  www.musicworksuk.com

 

This new exhibition, which will be held at the SECC, showcases the very best of Scottish and international design; with professional seminars, top quality exhibitors and inspirational interior sets.  A highlight of the exhibition will be the Celebrity Tableware Feature and Auction, where visitors will be given the rare opportunity to own a unique piece of tableware designed and signed by a host of top celebrities in support of NCH Scotland.  www.homesandinteriorsscotland.com

 

The whisky tasting event of the year, providing the ultimate whisky experience to both the enthusiast and novice alike will return to George Square in 2005.  Amongst the attractions will be an education and entertainment zone filled with themed areas: history of whisky, food demonstrations, the tasting tunnel, discovering Scotland’s whisky and the mobile distillery experience.  www.whiskylive.com

 

Marimekko, founded in 1951 grew from a small textile printing firm into an international phenomenon.  Comprising more than 150 examples of fabrics, fashion clothing accessories and architecture, the exhibition at The Lighthouse explores the creation and rise of the Marimekko brand and its unique philosophy.  www.thelighthouse.co.uk

 

For four years, Arches Live! has pioneered a cutting-edge series of Scottish premiers and acted as a launch pad for a plethora of exciting new theatrical talent.  Bringing the very best, newest forms of theatre, dance and performance to Glasgow, this week long festival is a unique opportunity for audiences to catch something just a little bit different.  www.thearches.co.uk

 

Doors Open Weekend offers people the chance to explore some of Glasgow’s most fascinating buildings, many not normally open to the public.  This year, 100 buildings will welcome visitors, many including music, theatre, exhibitions and guided tours.  www.gbpt.org

 

Glasgow’s fourth multi-arts festival celebrating the cultural richness of the city’s old commercial quarter. As well as theatre, music, visual arts and comedy, the festival coincides with the Doors Open Days in Glasgow when many of the city’s splendid buildings will be open to the public. www.merchantcityfestival.com  

 

The Scottish Style Awards is one of this year’s hottest events.  Supported by Glasgow: Scotland with style, Glasgow City Council and Moët & Chandon, the awards will recognise and celebrate the style pioneers of 2005 in Scotland within the fields of fashion, music, arts, film, media and lifestyle.  The event will take place at the Tramway - one of the city’s leading contemporary arts venues - and open with a champagne reception followed by a designer catwalk show, dinner and awards ceremony.  www.scottishstyleawards.co.uk

 

Block is a week long architecture festival, which celebrates the city’s heritage and regeneration, highlighted through a programme of exhibitions, events, walks, talks and tours across Glasgow. www.blockarc.co.uk

 

See some of the world’s finest gymnasts in action at the Kelvin Hall in advance of the World Championships in Melbourne in November.   www.glasgow.gov.uk

 

Glasgow’s world music festival returns, continuing its mission to introduce audiences to new and established talent from the four corners of the globe.  www.soundsfine.co.uk

 

This unique three-day spectacular - a first for the UK - will take place in Glasgow’s vibrant Merchant City.  Radiance will place light at the centre of urban culture through a high quality programme of innovative light installations and interactive displays by some of the brightest emerging and celebrated global artists in this field, as well as the cream of Glaswegian talent. 

 

Although the festival is now spread across seven British cities, Glasgow Film Theatre remains its spiritual home and in 2005, GFT presents the usual mix of features, documentaries and shorts plus appearances and Q&A sessions by visiting filmmakers and actors.  The programme for the 14^th festival will be confirmed in August 2005.  www.gft.org.uk

 

In 2005 George Square will once again place host to the sensational Glasgow on Ice.  With the magnificent City Chambers as a backdrop, skate or spectate on one of the largest open-air ice rinks in Europe. 

 

Glasgow’s George Square provides the stunning backdrop to the city’s Hogmanay celebrations as 25,000 revellers party away the closing hours of 2005 and welcome in 2006.  This year’s line-up of top Scottish rock and pop acts will be announced later in the year and tickets for the party will go on sale in November.  www.glasgowshogmanay.org.uk

 

The cream of Celtic music talent from around the globe will flock to Glasgow for the 13th annual Celtic Connections festival.  Over almost three weeks, the city will be alive with the sound of modern Celtic rock, dance, big bands, choral performances, international folk superstars, theatre and traditional pipe bands and ceilidhs. www.celticconnections.com

 

Now in its third year, the Miller Glasgow International Comedy Festival has firmly established itself on the city's cultural events calendar.  Each year, audiences young and old are entertained with the best in well-established and brand new comedy talent from across the globe.  www.glasgowcomedyfestival.com