Barras exhibition marks 100 years of Glasgow's famous market

“I remember coming down with my mum and my dad - we’d get hot peas and vinegar and a fish supper on the way home, and The Barras was mobbed,” he says.

“My dad had me and my brother’s hands and my mum had my sister’s hand.”

Jean Bradford loved the jewellery stalls.

“I’ve been coming to The Barras since I was 15,” she smiles.

“I’m 78 now. I used to come for all the bangles and the rings. The trader went to London to get stuff and bring it up to Glasgow. She got what I wanted.”

Victor Eadie recalls the butcher, “the blood running through the guy’s fingers when he was selling the meat,” he grins.

“It was brilliant. The whole thing - it was the theatre of it, it was a pure performance…”

William, Jean, Victor and more have shared their memories of Glasgow’s famous Barras market for a new exhibition which opens on Saturday as part of a celebration involving local young people, traders and customers.

Barras100 is a year-long arts and heritage programme marking the centenary of the world-famous market.

Funded by Creative Scotland, Glasgow City Heritage Trust, Glasgow City Council and Scotland Loves Local, organisers have been working with local people on creative activities to ensure the market’s important heritage is preserved for future generations.

On Saturday (December 11), from 12pm until 4pm, The Pipe Factory and Barras market will host a showcase of activities, including the unveiling of a permanent exhibition detailing the history of the place.

Pictures from the Glasgow Times and Herald’s own archive have been included in the exhibition, which details the early days of the market, founded by Maggie McIver in 1921, right up until the present day.

Alison Thewliss MP and Tom Joyes of The Margaret McIver Company will unveil the display, which has been fabricated from an old stall.

There will also be a short documentary film made by young people, recording fond memories of the market, and the reasons why it has such a special place in the hearts of so many at the Pipe Factory, an architectural gem in the heart of the market.

The former clay smoking pipe factory which, at its height employed 500 people and produced up to 14,000 clay pipes a day, was purchased by the Friends of The Pipe Factory CIC, with the support of Nesta’s Arts and Culture Impact Fund in March 2021, to create a cultural hub rooted within Calton and the Barras.

Saturday’s launch day will also include a heritage talk by local historian Peter Mortimer, a photography exhibition by Peter Degnan and Stuart Edwards, which features hawkers from the 80s alongside current Barras traders, and pupils from St Mungo’s Academy will appear in costume as young traders with the gift of the gab in three performances happening in and around the market.

Stephen Sheriff, Director of Friends of The Pipe Factory, said: “It’s been fantastic to see all the incredible work the young people have produced during Barras100.

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“While the pandemic prevented us from having the larger celebration that we had hoped for, we are hugely excited for this weekend when we can unveil the permanent heritage exhibition and watch the young performers turn into Barras hawkers for the afternoon.

“The Barras is known for its wit and guts and it’s been a joy to see this come through in the various creative activities.”

Don’t miss Saturday’s Glasgow Times for more historic images from our archive which capture the Barras in all its glory. You can also see more online at www.glasgowtimes.co.uk.

Send us your Barras memories and photos - we would love to hear them. Email ann.fotheringham@glasgowtimes.co.uk or write to Ann Fotheringham, Glasgow Times, 125 Fullarton Drive, Glasgow G32 8FG.