First of all, I feel as though I’ve got a bit of a cheek writing about ‘my Glasgow’, since it’s not ‘my Glasgow’. I’m not even Glaswegian. I was born and raised in the town of Falkirk, which lies exactly halfway between Glasgow, to the west, and Edinburgh, to the east. People from Edinburgh think my accent is Glaswegian; Glaswegians think it’s from Edinburgh. In truth it’s a bit of both. As a child, if I’d been out playing in the mud, I’d be ‘clarty’, like an Edinburgh kid, not ‘clatty’ like a Glasgow one; but disdain for an unwarranted opinion would be met with the West Coast, ‘Aye, right!’ I supported Rangers, a Glasgow football team, but would gravitate towards Edinburgh for a summer’s day out. For a long time, then, these twin giants vied for possession of my soul. Edinburgh, I felt, was more beautiful, romantic and worldly; Glasgow more welcoming, real and vibrant. Glasgow was the Manchester to Edinburgh’s Cambridge, the Milan to Edinburgh’s Rome, the Melbourne to Edinburgh’s Sydney. I did, and still do, appreciate the differences between the two.
Once I moved to Glasgow, however, the battle was definitely over.
It’s only now I realise that the city is not a homogenous whole, but a place of fascinating contrasts. The West End is a hub of intellectual and artistic activity; the East End unpretentious and proudly down to earth. A culture of innovate literature, art and music sits alongside a passion for football matched in virtually no other city on Earth. The stylish, fashionable retail centre co-exists with a tradition of social justice and community. The Irish diaspora, which settled here in the late 19th and early 20th Century, has since been augmented by individuals and families from Asia, Eastern and Western Europe, and now form part of the fabric of everyday Glasgow.
Of course, there is no single Glasgow, but many – contradicting, defying and enriching the others. Add to this venerable universities and a School of Art which attract students from all over the globe, and a thriving clubbing and gigging circuit which has produced three of the world’s hottest bands in Franz Ferdinand, Snow Patrol and Belle and Sebastian. It is home to writers of international reputation – Alasdair Gray, Janice Galloway, A.L. Kennedy, Louise Welsh and James Kelman, winner of the most prestigious award in literature, the Booker Prize. In Charles Rennie Mackintosh we have produced an architect and designer of serious influence. It’d be difficult for your particular passion – whether sporting, cultural, hedonistic, intellectual or consumerist – to remain unsatisfied here.
The things which used to amaze me about the Glasgow ‘patter’ have become the things I champion to outsiders: the Glaswegian’s inability to stop talking; the constant joke-telling and exaggerating of anecdotes. These are the reasons, however, why Glasgow has produced arguably the world’s favourite comedian, Billy Connolly. The pride Glaswegians take in his ascent is the same pride which they take in their own city, and you can see this in Connolly too: he made his name telling stories about his Glasgow upbringing, and so will always be, for people here, one of their own. Connolly, despite being an international star, remains defiantly Glaswegian. Like many of Glasgow’s sons and daughters he has made a virtue of his roots.
Outside lights have illuminated this city too. Older football fans reminisce about the great Ference Puskas scoring four goals in the classic European Cup Final of 1960 at Hampden. Younger ones talk of Zinedine Zidane, also playing for Real Madrid, dominating the Champions League final of 2002. And of course (much to the consternation of Rangers fans!) the famous ‘Lisbon Lions’ Celtic team of 1967 became the first British side to win the European Cup, with a team full of players born, incredibly, within the vicinity of Celtic Park.
This is a city of great cultural riches, and one in which sporting memories are also worn like badges of honour. I have no doubt that the Commonwealth Games would provide stories for a new generation of enthusiasts to regale their young with. In the most exaggerated, Glaswegian way possible, of course!
Alan Bissett is one of Scotland’s most accomplished young authors. His first two novels, Boyracers and The Incredible Adam Spark earned him both critical and commercial success. He spends his time writing his next novel, teaching at Glasgow University and repeatedly watching the Spiderman movies.
Find out more at www.alanbisset.com
February 2007