‘Disney Land’
Although Glasgow and the Merchant City were relatively unscarred by World War II, the heavy industry of the city (ship building, iron foundries, locomotive and car manufacturing etc.) were in decline and thousands of skilled men found themselves on the ‘dole’. The notorious ‘single ends’ of Glasgow had become unacceptable hovels in post war Britain and bulldozers began to clear the slums; by the late 1950s people were being moved to the new housing schemes such as Easterhouse and Castlemilk on the edge of the city. These high-rise villages could not, however, replace the close-knit tenement communities where everyone knew their neighbour and the pub, shop and school were on the doorstep. The new tower block communities were quickly nicknamed “Disney Land” - not because they were designed by Mickey Mouse, but because, as they used to say “it dis ne hae’ a shop, it dis ne hae’ a pub ...” *Dis ne = does not
In the Merchant City entire streets were demolished and some of the markets, (such as the Old Fruitmarket.) were moved to new locations. By the 1970s the Merchant City was a ghost of its former bustling self and many of the grand buildings appeared neglected and badly run down.

Rebirth
In the early 1980s Glasgow saw the start of a Merchant City and Glasgow-wide regeneration symbolised by the “Glasgow’s miles better” campaign. This was further enhanced with the 1988 Glasgow Garden Festival and two years later, the accolade of European City of Culture. Investment increased – led by a strong partnership between the City Council and the then Scottish Development Agency, and Glasgow began to celebrate its old buildings and the architects who built them.

Old warehouses became modern fashion houses (the Italian Centre on Ingram Street, designed by Page & Park Architects is an award winning example); empty market buildings were given new life as restaurants or bars and loft living arrived with the Todd building (Ingram Street) which is so cool even the pigeons wear shades!

The Italian Centre is a bold and popular re-claiming of derelict early 19th century tenements by Classical House Ltd. and the award winning architects Page & Park which saw creation of a sunny, sheltered courtyard around a mixed-use scheme of housing, offices and 'haute couture' shops and cafés with a heavy dose of classical and more contemporary versions of public art. Particularly noteworthy are the trademark Sandy Stoddart's 'bronzes' of Mercury and Italia sitting atop the wallheads and the playful response of Shona Kinloch within the courtyard with her 'wee dug' and 'wee man' - the latter a budding Romeo throwing a kiss to his imaginary sweetheart (check out the tattoo) on one of the upper balconies...aaahh!

Artists colonised run-down workshops and empty shop units; vacated merchants houses became hotels and eateries (Babbity Bowster, Merchant House Hotel and Rab Ha’s) and redundant churches found a new congregation in the theatre-going and music-loving audiences of the city; namely the Tron Theatre (Trongate), Ramshorn Theatre (Ingram Street) and St. Andrew’s in the Square (St Andrews Square).

The Tron Theatre is located behind the recently restored medieval Tron Steeple. It is the superbly re-modelled and dramatically re-invented Adam brothers' church. Boasting a range of superb café/bar/restaurant facilities in ultra modern surroundings, not to mention the most stylish box office in Scotland for its' brilliant theatre.

In 2000 the Merchant City Initiative was established with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Glasgow City Council and Scottish Enterprise, to help the Merchant City retain its architectural integrity, whilst developing the area into a dynamic cultural heart for the city centre. Wide pavements have been re-laid with Caithness slabs and pulse with new life and with Glasgow now nominated as the centre for the Commonwealth Games in 2014 the regeneration of the Merchant City continues.

So come and feast your eyes, ears, and appetites with all the Merchant City has to offer (even your sixth sense can be tantalised with a tour around its most haunted streets!)




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