Glasgow, when will you learn? If a building like St Andrews in the Square existed anywhere else in…read moreEurope, it would feature on postcards, be highlighted on guided tours and sign-posted from across the city. Tourists would flock and photograph it from every angle, creating albums on Facebook entitled "Me at St Andrews in the Square" to a sea of thumbs ups from friends who like it. Instead, this lovingly-restored 18th century church is inconspicuously located in among modern east end flats and virtually impossible to stumble across unless you are specifically looking for it. And what a pity, because when it's lit at night, it provides one of the most spectacular photo opportunities in the city. Those who do know this building, know it's one of the greatest classical churches in Europe with a truly sumptuous interior. Now used as a performing arts centre, St Andrews in the Square can also be hired as a spectacular setting for ceilidhs, concerts, weddings and receptions. Just go. I promise you will not be disappointed.

Despite living in Glasgow my entire life, I had no idea this place existed until a few weeks ago…read more This is incredible considering it is one of the most stunning buildings in the city. It seems to live in a sort of parallel universe, stuck in the middle of blocks of flats. I visited the cafe a few Sunday ago and, despite the sophisticated art deco style interior and impressive menu, the place was dead. I think this is because most people don't realise it's there.

It took me an embarrassingly long time to actually visit The Lighthouse, and I'm even more…read moreembarrassed to admit that I *still* haven't been up the top to look at the view over Glasgow! Next time, I promise! The Lighthouse is tucked down Mitchell Lane and has a wonderful gift shop on the ground floor. I am a certified museum-gift-shop addict and this one is nearly as good as the one at GOMA. At the moment, they're selling some great stuff to accompany the "Hello My Name is Paul Smith" exhibition and I couldn't resist getting a couple of the pencils, an eraser as well as a nice card from the range. There's a lot of nice Scottish stuff if you're looking for a gift so it's worth a browse even if you're not planning on going to an exhibition. We were there to see the Paul Smith exhibition which is on the first floor and ticketed at £6 per adult. While I think the price is a little steep, it's a fab exhibition which was really interesting, stimulating and thought-provoking - I think we were only there for half an hour or so, but really enjoyed it. I'll definitely be back sooner rather than later for a visit to the viewing platform so I'll update accordingly! But for now, I'm already a massive fan so I can't expect the rating to change for this lovely gallery.

The Lighthouse is one of Glasgow's wonder free museums/galleries. It was one of the first galleries…read moreI visited when I moved to Glasgow and I've been back a few times since, either for a specific exhibit, a general wander, or to head up the Mackintosh tower for the amazing views over the city. Much of the museum is free to access, including the permanent Charles Rennie Mackintosh exhibits and the tower. Architecture is usually the theme of most of what they're showing off, although design in general is also showcased here, especially when it's by local and Scottish artists. On the ground floor there's a fantastic gift shop with lots of Mackintosh themed gifts. Usually they have items related to other exhibits as well. There's a cafe on level 5 too and although I've not visited it in a while I remember it being light and spacious and selling pretty darn good carrot cake. It's a really cool gallery to learn a little about the history of design and architecture in Glasgow, as well as learning about some more modern themes. It's also a great place for those views from the tower to get your bearings (although it's an awfully long way up a spiral staircase, so if you don't like heights it may not be for you). For me, on a sunny day, it's one of the highlights of the city centre. If you're visiting Glasgow or you have guests in Glasgow and you find yourself in the city centre then I'd say a stop at The Lighthouse is well worth the time. It would be a shame to miss out on such a cool place.

Situated down what seems like a wee back-road in Uddingston, the Castle Rooms is a function suite…read morefor events hire. It's located right behind the Tunnocks factory. Don't trust your maps, just sneak up the back way! I went here for a friend's 21st, and was really impressed with the function room. It was held in the Mill Suite, which is a downstairs suite with 2 rooms, a coatroom, and bathroom facilities. The main room consists of a bar, a seating/lounge area, and a dance floor with long tables situated at either side. It's a lovely room, very clean, modern, and welcoming. It'd be a lovely place to hold any milestone birthday, engagement party, wedding reception, etc. The prices of drinks at the bar were pretty reasonable, and space to relax or to mingle and chat. The dancefloor is a good size - definitely plenty of room for all your friends' and families' embarrassing dance moves, and all those dance-along favourites like the (heeeey) Macarena! This is definitely the kind of place I'd think of hiring for any big special occasion.

We were here on Sunday for Mother's Day , what a great venue from the staff being very helpful and…read moreattentive, The food was excellent and warm , French martinis were fabulous and the entertainment very good , all in all we had a very good experience:-)) and will be looking out to see what's on here in the future! Well done castle rooms ! Mark Mason .

As the name suggests, it's an old factory building that is basically an empty shell waiting for a…read moredeveloper to come along and demolish the whole thing. Until that happens, they host various arty events and exhibitions, and it's quite an interesting place to explore, But bear in mind that there's nothing apart from the most rudimentary facilities - not even proper heating. Wrap up warm!

What an interesting place…read more Currently used as an art space, this place has loads of history dating back to the late 1800's. We were here for the pop up of The Street Food Putter Club (separate review for this event on their page). We were a group of 12 and we all agree that this outing was by far the most random we've ever had, but definitely a fun one! Once inside, we were questioning whether to check our coats, but take note: you're going to need your coats as this place is only heated by floor heaters spread out in the building. The place is pretty huge and this particular event was spread out into 5 spaces- each one with areas to sit and relax, eat and drink. The toilets are bare, cold and dark and the sinks reminded me of old feeding throughs! One little warning should you find yourself at The Glue Factory: watch the white walls. Don't lean up against them or touch them really as they leave white dust marks over everything. Loads of us found out the hard way and had white stuff all over our clothes and bags. All in all, this is a great space. Super cold but if you come bundled up, it makes for a great space to hang.

Positively fantastic! Isla was our waitress and was amazing. We all loved her, she made our time…read morehere so much fun. Our group of 13 got a reservation on short notice. The food was delicious, the wait staff were attentive and really fun. Thank you again Isla, it was a fantastic evening!

It seems like a small thing, but I had the best fish and chips here. Missus enjoyed her lamb dish…read more It's a great room, too, spacious, bustling but not too loud. And where else are you going to see a big painting of Edwyn Collins, eh? Around the back of the building (separate, lower level) there's a great music club where we saw a great gig from Os Mutantes! Score!

I love the Barras Art and Design Centre (often abbreviated to Ba-Ad)…read more As a venue, it puts me in mind of a smaller version of The Briggait. It's basically a glass roofed courtyard - made up of shops, but on fair days, it's also lined with stalls. You'll find a lot of custom made jewellery, home furnishings, and reclaimed/reupholstered furniture. Also common are the vintage stalls, and general bric-a-brac. There's a good sized cafe which does some pretty good coffee. This time, we came away with a cool wee picture for home. The stallholders were all super friendly and chatty, but not remotely pushy. Next time you see a fair on here, make sure you get along.

I've been here quite a few times now for different events and overall, I think it's a great space…read more It's a little hard to describe - it's probably most like a courtyard with a covered roof and it's pretty gorgeous to look at! I've visited for a street festival-type event (with mostly food vendors), and also been here when the space is empty for a practice skating session. The floor isn't really ideal for roller skating as it's a little uneven but it's not promoted as a skating venue so that's not their fault! For the food festival, it was a great space although because it's glass-covered it got really, really warm - like a glasshouse. The area around BAaD is accessible by car Monday - Friday (no car access on the weekend due to the Barras Market) so keep that in mind if you're a vendor who's setting up for an event. If you're visiting an event as a guest, it's a little bit of a walk from the nearest train station (either High Street Station or Argyle Street Station).

This place is super unique. It looks rugged on outside, but inside nice. It has a beautiful place…read moreto sit outside for a drink. The prices are great. They offer liquor as well as beer. The service is also phenomenal.

A venue on a BOAT?…read more Without any persuasion at all, I joined my friends to see Focus play here some time ago now, and was quite excited by the idea of feeling the floor move under my feet as Focus moved my miiind... woooah.... So... I was a little disappointed when I found out that the boat stayed stationary throughout the duration of the gig, and to be honest, when I found out that novelty was never to be realised, I didn't find much else in the venue to redeem itself. It was large, and the stage had a good location in the middle of the floor, allowing a wide view for the audience. The floor above looked over the stage too, so as far as audience views went, the venue was spot on. Drinks were expensive though, and the ferry itself miles away from anywhere, so moving on to another watering hole after the gig proved somewhat difficult. Atmosphere was a bit lacking in the ferry - very little character to it, but it was very functional as a venue. So heed the warning and don't get excited about the novelty of the place - you'll only be disappointed.

This place is one of the many highlights of Govan. It's a multi-functional, friendly and beautiful…read morebuilding. This really is a tourist attraction and a must see on your travels of Govan. The building is more commonly or affectionately known as the PI. It is in the heart of the community and has been since 1906. I've been to so many various events, conferences, meetings and even a theatre production. I first started coming here to do teaching and train young unemployed volunteers about television operation. We had fun using the building as a film location for the many script ideas the young people came up with. On that note you may notice on the odd occassion a line of Arnold Clark vans lined up outside, then you know there's a film being shot inside. The PI has been used for many big budget films, proving it's such a great building. It has many rooms for office space and larger rooms/theatres split on three levels. The PI recently underwent some renovation work, especially for the return of the ship, which sits neatly at the top of the building outside. The MacLeod Hall is the largest hall, where I have arranged and attended many events and ceilidhs. It really is beautiful and a great space. I remember when setting up for an event elsewhere in the building the hall was being prepped for a wedding reception. I did say it was multi-functional. It has a lovely cafe called the Cafe Pearce, this tends to be seasonal so can close during summer and winter holidays. The staff are always pleasant and accomodating, as I have also arranged many events in there as well as it is also a suitable large room. I have also used the Lithgow Theatre for rehearsal space for singing and dancing. Back in December I went along to see a pantomine, The Govan Cat, which was brilliant. Although not a conventional theatre it worked really well with the balcony from the MacLeod Hall allowing for a dressing room for the cast. Many charities and businesses base themself from this building. There's also numerous organisations which use it from the Govan and Craigton Intergration Network to dance and karate classes for young children. It's a vibrant and active centre and it's wonderful to see how a tremendous amount of ventures and activity still occurs on a daily basis. The PI is always listed on the Doors Open Day, so if you want more of a look around I would definitely go along. Or why not just stop by for lunch for a wee cup of tea and bowl of soup.