THOUGH it still has its share of social and economic challenges, Glasgow is now correctly recognised as one of the UK’s, and indeed Europe’s, most vibrant cities – and its rich cultural life has been a significant factor in that revitalisation. More than three decades ago, when it became the UK’s first European Capital of Culture (beating eight other British cities), that was not a widespread perception. Its rich artistic and architectural heritage was overshadowed by Edinburgh – in part because of the Festival, and the national collections housed there. At the beginning of the 1980s, the city struggled to attract just 700,000 tourists a year; in the year before the pandemic struck, there were two million international visitors to its museums alone, which made it the most visited civic museum service in the UK.
The attractions run by Glasgow Life for the council include the People s Palace.
The statement said the recovery package was being supported by Glasgow City Council through its £100m funding guarantee for the next five years.
However, it stressed it was “unrealistic to expect that it can raise significant additional income this year that will support the reopening of venues beyond the 91 already announced”.
The spokesperson added: “Glasgow Life will be a very different organisation at the end of this period.
“We are asking staff for flexibility during this process and are regularly updating them through internal communications and briefings from their managers; and unions are also regularly updated.”
Covid in Scotland: Glasgow Life to cut 500 jobs due to venue closures bbc.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from bbc.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Our readers had plenty to say on a union boss’ warning that Glasgow is not fit to host COP26 (July 1) HE’S quite right. Many places look like a midden. Take a walk past Candleriggs Park/Square at the moment and the most appalling, sewage smell hits you. I don’t know how people can sit out eating and drinking at the establishments nearby. On parts of Argyle Street too, the stench is horrendous. There also needs to be a big drive to tackle littering, with harder fines for those who drop litter in the street, or fly tip beside street bins, backcourt, laybys and country roads.
John Hamilton Mortimer and the discovery of Captain Cook
John Hamilton Mortimer (1740-1779),
Captain James Cook, Sir Joseph Banks, Lord Sandwich, Dr Daniel Solander and Dr John Hawkesworth, c. 1771, oil on canvas, nla.pic-an7351768
The National Library of Australia holds within its large collection of artworks a most intriguing eighteenth century painting, the bequest of Dame Merlyn Myer. A beautiful work in good condition, the painting is unsigned and lacks its original title. Early research into the painting revealed that it had hung unremarked in private collections for 150 years and then suffered a misattribution to Johann Zoffany which, while initially inflating its value in the art market, had obscured the painting’s true identity and significance. Rejection of the Zoffany attribution also cast doubt on the subjects Joseph Banks and Captain Cook and the date 1771