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History and Modern Tour of Sauchiehall Street - Glasgow, Scotland

Scottish Travel Guides

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Join me for a full history and modern walking tour of Sauchiehall Street, exploring the hidden stories behind Glasgow's most famous thoroughfare.

In this video, we walk from Charing Cross down to the city centre, revealing the secrets you might walk past every day. We look at the "Bridge to Nowhere," the stunning red sandstone of the Charing Cross Mansions, and the hidden Georgian house tucked away inside The Garage nightclub.

We also cover the street's legendary nightlife history—from the ballroom days of the Locarno and Tiffany’s to modern icons like Nice N Sleazy and the tragic loss of the O2 ABC and Glasgow School of Art.

Timestamps: 0:00 Charing Cross & The "Bridge to Nowhere" 0:42 The Cameron Memorial Fountain 1:46 The "Pink Plastic" Office Block (Tay House) 2:37 The Lost Grand Hotel 3:41 Charing Cross Mansions (French Renaissance Style) 4:39 Sauchiehall Street Regeneration (The Avenues) 6:07 The Hidden Georgian Houses 6:40 The Piano Shop that became a Nightclub (Club 520) 8:12 Royal Highland Fusiliers Museum (Mackintosh Design) 9:09 The Locarno / Tiffany's / Casino 11:35 The Garage Nightclub (Gainsborough Hall) 13:06 The Beresford Building (Glasgow's First Skyscraper) 14:17 Why is it called Sauchiehall Street? 16:21 The O2 ABC & Glasgow School of Art Fires 18:32 City of Glasgow Friendly Society 19:36 The McClellan Galleries 20:25 Bank of Scotland Building (Beno Schotz Sculptures)

Key Locations:

Charing Cross: See the scar left by the M8 motorway and the beautiful fountain that survived.

Nightlife: A look at the buildings that housed the city's best clubs and venues.

Architecture: Discover designs by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Alexander "Greek" Thomson, and more.

If you enjoyed this walking tour of Glasgow, please like and subscribe for more history videos from around Scotland!

20 Comments

@ScottishTravelGuides Creator 1 year ago Pinned

If you would like to give a tip for the tour you can do so by clicking the 'Thanks' button. It would be greatly appreciated and would help me to be able to make more videos like this. 🙂

@billmclellan8429 1 year ago (edited)

I left Glasgow in 1969, without returning to the city until many years later. Returning and seeing the mess left at Charing Cross totally disoriented me. Apart from the older facades which are still there, and my ignorance/disinterest of a 22 year old me, Sauchiehall street is junky and not much is notable. I can't say I think much of the bar/ club scene, which these days would give a big yawn. I used to take Saturday morning drawing classes in the Rennie MacIntosh building, which was a really impressive place. One of the highlights of my teen years!

@katsura44 1 month ago

What a sad sight. Amazed to see Nico's still in business. Anyone remember The Third Eye Centre in the 70s?

@andrewmaloney9201 1 month ago

Thank you for sharing this video! It is greatly appreciated!!! 💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚💚

@MaryElizabethKerlefsen 1 month ago

Danced the night away at Tiffanys greetings from Norway

@fionaalderman4871 11 months ago

Good video but heartbreaking to see such changes in dear old Sauchiehall Street, especially the Glasgow Art School.

@Scotfoot2 8 months ago

Thanks for the memories, I saw the 'eyesore' getting built in Charing X and danced in the The Mayfair! 🙂

@ButterCupMMXXIII 8 months ago

Very impressive — thank you so much! 💯

@cowantom 1 year ago

Great video. I like the detail and the overlaying of old pictures/ drawings to help imagine how it looked in the past

@dougie6886 1 year ago

Clouds disco on the top floor of the Apollo theatre was also a great place.

@CarolineDocherty-fb4zc 1 year ago

Amazing learning stuff I never knew thank you x

@willcambeul6172 1 year ago

The Locarno was still The Locarno until the late 1960s. I saw Cream there in 1967. Also The Stax Tour, in 1967; The Who, in 1966 and 67; The Move, too. Also Glasgow bands like Dean Ford and The Gaylords, who became Marmalade. I also went ballroom dancing there - many of us in our teens and twenties could dance ballroom, as well as the latest dance crazes. Glasgow had lots of dance halls and clubs and all with great live bands/groups.

@tommoriarty8361 1 month ago

The Garage used to also be The Electric Garden, where Midge Ure used to front Salvation late 60s early 70s

@frankiebhoyz2169 10 months ago

Brilliant video. Very i informative and well put together

@andrewp4172 1 year ago

@13.10.., The Beresford. In the early 70's I was a student at Strathclyde, and stayed in the Beresford, Baird Hall as it was known then, for my first year away from home. I shared a 4th floor room with another student, that overlooked the building you mentioned as G2. The Beresford at that time was painted in something akin to battleship grey. Lovely to see it restored to the original colours that really show the beautiful Art Deco Streamline Moderne style. I can't recall the exact buildings, but in that stretch, same side of the road, that ran the 150 or so yards to Charing Cross, there was a nightclub called the Electric Garden, and also a Curzon cinema.., Curzon Classic, I think.

Thank you for posting this video. A fascinating account of some of the Street's history.

@JamesCampbell-b1w 4 months ago

Old Westway Cinema, Became The Flamingo, In The Sixties, Use Go There From Possilpark, As It Was A Great Venue.❤❤

@sarahsarah4271 1 year ago

I remember driving through their when I visited Canniesburn Hospital with my parents.

@Out_And_About1872 2 weeks ago

Sad to see so many for sale/to let signs up everywhere as well as bars/clubs from my younger days closed.

You know times are tough when even The Garage is no longer open 7 days a week!