Antiques Roadshow is heading for New Lanark!!

Sunday nights for most of year in the UK on BBC 1 at 8pm means only one thing: the Antiques Roadshow. Of course they're already out & filming the NEXT series (which will probably start showing end of 2016) and they are once again venturing into Scotland for one of their days.

The Antiques Roadshow will be stopping off at New Lanark World Heritage Site on the 28th July 2016 between 9.30am - 4.30pm. What makes this more special is that this is the ONLY stop in Scotland for the current series that they are filming.

No tickets are required for the day but they do work with lots of queues (you've probably seen them if you're an avid viewer of the show) so if your thinking of attending then be prepared to waiting for a bit though they do try to get through the queues as quickly as possible. And of course, with it
being Scotland, be prepared for whatever the weather could throw at you. And don't worry, they'll be plenty of helpful stewards around to help you navigate the site too!

In fact, back in 2014, the BBC made a behind the scenes video at their filming in Kelvingrove Museum, Glasgow: http://bbc.in/1bIslW7

So why not come along and see it in real life! It should be an interesting day out and a chance for you to maybe see if you have a wee fortune in something.

New Lanark has a dedicated page for the event which will be updated with regards to parking on the day and other arrangements. You can find it here: http://newlanark.org/visitorcentre/antiques-roadshow.shtml

And the BBC has a FAQs section here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4rtf8YKPv6XDbThQMSfWVjX/attending-antiques-roadshow

And another wee note is that the New Lanark will still be open for those not attending the roadshow, but do keep in mind the parking/travel on the day

Lego® exhibition a brick short…

So back at the start of June I while volunteering at the Pearl Izumi round in Motherwell, I noticed a poster advertising a Lego® exhibition called Let’s Go (also known as Brick Built...apparently). Great, I thought. I’d been to the Brick City exhibition last year in Low Parks Museum in Hamilton and loved it (and missed the follow up one, Brick Wonders, at the start of the year in Paisley Museum). So seeing another exhibition in the local area, I knew I wanted to visit. After all, Lego® isn’t just for children!

So I finally got to visit it on Friday…and have to say I was a little disappointed. The main ‘exhibition’ was housed in a small room with it being made up with more of smaller models (not that these aren't as impressive as the larger models that I've seen). Though the highlight is right in the centre with the section of the Forth Road Bridge (that rarely gets a viewing given to the size & weight).

Getting in to see the models is free. It is the other activities that they provide where the money: photo booth, wall art & an animation workshop. This is probably where they are making the money in order to host this event (along with the donations box in with the models)

Overall, it feels that there seemed to be a 'build up' before the event but that like a single high tower of Lego® bricks, it's fell flat. It feels that maybe it could have been more. Maybe this event was more aimed to children rather than AFOL (that's Adult Fan Of Lego® by the way) given that it's happening over the summer holidays.

If you want to pop along and be inspired to what you can do with the little Danish bricks, Let's Go is on at the North Lanarkshire Heritage Centre until the August 15th (Monday to Saturday 9.30am to 4.30pm, Sunday 10am – 4pm)

^{Images (top to bottom, left to right):
Forth Road Bridge
Guttenberg Press
Arc de Triomphe}

Things To Do: Glasgow Central Station Experience

Railway stations: some of us pass through them everyday without probably giving a second thought to how they were built or the stories behind them. Some of them are just beautiful structures in their own right. Well, here in Scotland, one station has decided that it’s time to peel back the curtain and give people the chance to see the station in another light.

Here in Scotland, there is an event every September called Doors Open Day. It’s a time where places literally open their doors to the public for a weekend to see inside. Some events are ticketed and go quickly (like the Irn Bru factory….then again, you’d probably never get me out of there). Until recently that was the case with Glasgow Central. But now the opportunity to explore this Victorian station, which operates more than 1,000 journeys a day (making it the busiest in Scotland and the 2nd busiest station in the UK outside of London) out of it’s 17 platforms.

When the tours originally popped up at Christmas, I was desperate to get on the tour as this is a station I pass through whenever I travel to Glasgow on the train. For a fortnight last year, it was basically a second home to me! So I was gutted that by the time I had found out that all the available dates at the time were SOLD OUT! Roll on the end of February 2015 and the announcement of more dates…so I treated myself to tickets as a birthday present. The price: £10 per person. But more on the price later.

Now, I’m not going to give you a running commentary because…well, I want you to go and experience this for yourself! Be prepared to be sporting a hard hat (and hat hair afterwards!) and blue jacket (we are in a working station after all). Our guide Paul started on the concourse with some history before taking us up to the roof* for the views. This was worth the ticket price in itself for me…did I mention I was scared of heights? From the towering heights it to the depths below through snaking corridors below thundering trains. At one point I actually had to take a moment to realise where I was and it was a corridor I’ve walked many a time!

Our guide Paul was very knowledgeable about the history of the station,with added brightness of tales of celebrities who have graced the station to the dark tales of other uses of parts of the underground of the station.

So I said I would mention the price: to be honest, I would have easily paid double what it was for the experience. Shortly they’re looking at expanding what’s on offer to include visiting the Victorian platform as well as the Broomielaw, which I have to say I’ll be going back for.

So, if you’re heading to Glasgow and fancy something a little different, why not think about this. Booking can only be done online and I do recommend planning in advance particularly if it’s holiday time

*access to the roof is dependant on weather & maintenance

Book tickets on Glasgow Central Tours