Glasgow Festivals

Glasgow Festivals include festivals for art, film, comedy, folk music and jazz. Glasgow also hosts an annual queer arts festival in November.

Unlike the Edinburgh Festival (where the main festival and fringe festivals all occur around about the same time in August), Glasgow's festivals are spread evenly across the year, therefore ensuring a continuous annual programme of events.

Past Festivals

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Glasgow held several Great Exhibitions. They were the International Exhibition of Science, Art and Industry in 1888, the Glasgow International Exhibition in 1901, the Scottish Exhibition of National History, Art and Industry in 1911 and the Empire Exhibition in 1938. The latter attracted 12.6 million visits, easily eclipsing the Festival of Britain (1951) or the Millennium Dome in London (2000). Glasgow also hosted the Industrial exhibitions as part of the Festival of Britain in 1951.

Glasgow's Mayfest, held annually in May, started in 1983 became Glasgow's first main festival, covering theatre, music, dance, and visual arts and was Glasgow's attempt to rival the Edinburgh Festival in August. However due to three years of massive losses and increasingly controversial management it came to a close in 1997.

In 1988, Glasgow hosted its very successful Glasgow Garden Festival on old docks opposite the SECC, now home to the Glasgow Science Centre at Pacific Quay. Over 4.3 million people attended over 5 months, making it by far the most popular of the UK's five Garden Festivals held between 1984 and 1992.

Following the success of the Garden Festival, Glasgow was crowned European City of Culture in 1990 and featured an impressive year-long calendar of special events, inspiring the creation of several festivals which still continue today.

Main Festivals

Glasgow's main festivals are Celtic Connections,(founded 1993), the Jazz Festival (founded 1989), the West End Festival (founded 1996), Merchant City Festival (founded 2002), and Glasgay! (a queer arts festival which is one of the biggest gay and lesbian multi-arts festivals in Europe)(founded 1997).

Glasgow also hosts the annual World Pipe Band Championships in August on Glasgow Green, with over 8,000 musicians.

Calendar of Festivals

As part of Glasgow's cultural renaissance, Glasgow is host to a variety of festivals throughout the year:-

January

*Celtic Connections - Celtic folk music festival

February

*Glasgow Film Festival

March

*Glasgow International Comedy Festival

April

*Glasgow International Festival of Contemporary Visual Arts
*Glasgow Art Fair - Scotland's Art Fair
*Triptych - Music Festival across venues in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow, embracing genres as diverse as Indie, Jazz, Neo-Classical, Reggae and Dance.

May

*Big Big Country - Americana Music Festival (last held in 2006)
*Maydaze - Free day of music, dance and family entertainment which is centred on Glasgow Green and usually takes place during the first weekend in May. Includes the traditional May Day Rally and Parade.

June

*West End Festival - Originally a small local festival centred around Byres Road, it is now Glasgow's biggest event with over 150,000 attending 500 events
*Lord Provost's Procession - Annual parade of the Lord Provost (discontinued in 2006)
*Glasgow International Jazz Festival
*North Glasgow International Festival - (last held in 2005)
*Bard in the Botanics

*""Southside Festival

""'The Southside Festival 2008 takes place on Saturday 28th June, starting with a parade leaving from ""'Shawlands Academy, Moss-side Road at 12noon. The first ever Southside Festival will be supported by ""'numerous local organisations.""'There promises to be a carnival procession with floats, heading for the glasshouses in Queen's Park,""'where lots of other fun events and activities will also take place.""'http://www.southsidemedia.org/g41/taxonomy/term/241

July

*Glasgow's River Festival
*Glasgow Mela One day celebration of Glasgow's Asian cultures held during the West End Festival in 2006 and 2007

August

*Piping Live
*World Pipe Band Championships
* [http://www.kic.me.uk/ Kilsyth International Carnival, 12th August 2007]

eptember

*Doors Open Day - unique chance for the public to visit some of Glasgow's most interesting buildings over one weekend in September.
*Merchant City Festival

October

*Big Big World - World Music Festival founded by the late Billy Kelly (last held in 2006)

November

*Glasgay! Festival

December

*Glasgow's Hogmanay
*Glasgow On Ice

References

* [http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Residents/Leisure_Culture/ArtsDevelopment/festivalsandevents.htm Glasgow City Council list of Festivals]

ee also

*Culture in Glasgow

External links

* [http://www.glasgowcomedyfestival.com/ Glasgow Comedy Festival]
* [http://www.glasgowartfair.com/mod_5/pages/ Glasgow Arts Fair]
* [http://www.soundsfine.co.uk/bbc.htm Big Big Country]
* [http://www.glasgowinternational.org/ Glasgow International]
* [http://www.westendfestival.co.uk/ West End Festival]
* [http://www.jazzfest.co.uk/ Glasgow Jazz Festival]
* [http://www.endlessfestival.com/ Endless Festival]