Architecture,Scotland,Sightseeing Tours,U.K.

A Tour of Glasgow City Chambers

posted on : 21/08/2016 posted by : Tilly Jaye Horseman 4 Comments

One of the best and free things to do in Glasgow is to tour the City Chambers, home to Glasgow Council. The Glasgow City Chambers building is one of the most notable pieces of architecture in the city. It is certainly one of the most photographed buildings, standing proud on George Square. It has been the council’s municipal headquarters for over a century, but the closest most people get to it, is admiring the grand and imposing exterior from George Square.

Detail of ground floor arched doorways and windows on the Glasgow City Chambers building. Each door is separated by classical columns and there are attractive floral displays in red and yellow in front. — Glasgow City Chambers entrance on George Square

You would think going inside would be off limits as it is a working council building, however it’s actually one of the easiest things you can do! Just walk in and ask to join one of the twice daily tours and you’ll be in for a treat!

Table of Contents

Glasgow City Chambers Interior

The interior of Glasgow City Chambers is even more sumptuous than the exterior. The architect had visited Rome and so was preoccupied with bringing a flavour of Italy to Glasgow.

Close up detail of the Glasgow Coat of Arms in mosaic on a floor. — Glasgow Coat of Arms

The first thing you notice as you walk through the entrance is the ‘Keramic Mosaic’ of the City’s Coat of Arms on the floor.

The use of mosaic is continued in the entrance hall ceilings and on other floors throughout the building. It is estimated that more than 1.5 million tiles were laid by hand in the vaulted ceilings and domes.

The Hallways & Stairwells

Once you’re inside Glasgow City Chambers and facing the reception desk, everything that lies to the left of the entrance is the ‘Civic’ part of the building and everything to the right is the ‘Working’ part.

It is in the civic part of the building where most of the infamous marble interior exists. There are three levels of stair-casing made from Carrara marble. The Vatican in Rome only has 2 levels, so Glasgow is very proud of its additional floor of marble. Although the whole area looks like it is made from marble, it is actually only the steps themselves. The balustrades and wall panels are made from alabaster.

View looking up a grand marble staircase, lit with low warm lighting. — The marble stairs in the civic part of the building

Needless to say, we don’t use these stairs, but instead move to those in the ‘working’ side of the building which are more suitably made from dark freestone.

Looking up a dark stone staircase through grand arches with painted ceilings and wall panels. — The stairs in the ‘working’ side of the building

Again, most of the interior looks like it’s made from marble, but is of course alabaster and plaster-work. The exception is the one piece of pure white marble on the first floor carved in the shape of a lion. This mimics the lions that stand guard of Glasgow City Chambers in George Square.

Slanted angle image of the lion sculpture head in George Square, Glasgow. Behind it is the classical architecture of Glasgow City Chambers. — One of the two lions in George Square

It is considered “lucky” to rub the lion’s nose every time you pass by. All council workers do so, as did everyone on the tour as we ascended the stairs.

View of a white marble lion sculpture carved into a staircase banister end, seen from slightly above. A person's hand is touching it as they walk past. — The white marble lion

In the corridor outside the council chamber our guide Claire introduced us to the current Lord Provost Sadie Docherty. She explained the role carried out by her which is similar to those carried out by English mayors.

The Glasgow City Chambers Council Chamber

The Council Chambers are where the council meets formally. The seating is laid out in concentric semi-circles facing a platform where the Lord Provost, Deputy Lord Provost, Chief Executive and Head of Finance sit. Each of the 79 councillors has a designated seat, each with their own individual microphones.

Dark interior of a council chamber with curved pew-like seating with microphones sticking up at regular intervals. Low lighting picks up a grandly painted ceiling in red and gold. — Inside the council chamber

Council Chamber Etiquette

On entering you are invited to take up one of these 79 seats whilst the proceedings are explained. Each councillor has a card which they insert into a panel in front of them when they want to speak. There are two clerks who sit at the front and below the Lord Provost facing the councillors who control when they can speak. The indication of time remaining is controlled by a traffic light system on a pole beside them. Green indicates: talk, Amber: windup and prepare to stop and Red: stop speaking. This allows a councillor to speak for approximately 10 minutes.

The Mace is carried ceremonially ahead of the Lord Provost on entering the chambers for full council meetings. It is commonly thought that the council rise in honour of the Lord Provost, but actually they rise to honour the mace which represents the people of Glasgow.

Dark wood interior at Glasgow City Chambers. Above you can see a lavishly painted red and gold ceiling. There is a public gallery area above the main seating. — The ‘bed recess’ with the public gallery above

Features of the Council Chamber

Behind where the councillors sit there is an area known as the “bed recess”. This is a reference to an architectural feature of old Glasgow tenements. It is where further council officials sit, as well as the Lord Dean of Guild who represents the Merchants House and the Deacon Convener of the Trades House. These are the city’s second and third citizens, the Lord Provost being the first. (Details taken from Glasgow City Chambers brochure)

Above this area is the public gallery with 25 seats which we are reliably informed are a darn sight more uncomfortable than the councillors’ chairs.

The dark wood throughout the council chamber is made primarily from Spanish Mahogany. This wood actually came from Cuba, but was brought over to the UK by a Spanish ship therefore gaining the name.

The windows are made from a special Venetian glass that cuts out the noise from George Square completely.

Detail of an arched window filled with a series of mini square clear glass panels. There is an Art Nouveau style to the patterning in the window with details picked out in yellow glass. The semi circle of glass that crowns the top of the window features the design of the Glasgow Coat of Arms. — Council chamber window

Also of note in the chambers are the 2 impressive chimney pieces and the gold leaf embroideries around the top of the walls. There really is a hotch-potch of materials inside this room, but it all seems to work together.

Before moving on to the next room, we are all offered the opportunity to sit in the Lord Provost’s chair, something I relished to opportunity to do.

Glasgow City Chambers Banqueting Hall

From one impressive room to another, the tour of Glasgow City Chambers continues along the floor to the civic side and into the Banqueting Hall.

Wow, what a magnificent interior! Very regal looking, the colours gold and red dominate.

Interior of a grand banqueting hall with gold walls inlaid with paintings, an arched ceiling of lavish gold panels and a red carpet — The gold and red of the Banqueting Hall

The banqueting hall has been used for a whole host of civic functions as well as presentation ceremonies, charitable events, youth celebrations and fashion shows. Nelson Mandela received his Freedom of the City award in 1993 here, as did Alex Ferguson in 1999.

Detail of murals painted along an impressive gold wall made up of classical architectural features like columns with ornate Corinthian capitals, a frieze area built out above and deep coving to mimic temple architecture that you'd expect to see outside. Detailed square painted panels make up the curved ceiling above. — Murals line the walls

Large murals line the walls, painted by the “Glasgow Boys” artists including Sir John Lavery, Alexander Roche and George Henry. The paintings depict scenes of Glasgow’s history and culture, with the four paintings above the entrance doors representing the four principal rivers of Scotland – the Tay, the Forth, the Clyde and the Tweed.

View of an interior wall of a large banqueting hall with an arched roof above. There are four dark wood doors in the classically styled gold wall with small paintings above each which depict the main rivers of Scotland. — The murals above the doors depict Scottish rivers

The guide will provide a lot more information on the individual paintings in the room. Unfortunately I was slightly distracted by the beauty of it all, so I only took in small amounts of information. One thing I did glean however is that the carpet, (split into four sections due to its size) mimics the ornate ceiling pattern. No wonder it all seems to gel perfectly.

Detail of red carpet patterning in Glasgow City Chambers Banqueting Hall. The carpet has a regal gold pattern in squares and circles with hints of blue detail. — The Banqueting Hall flooring

Third Floor Dome and Ceiling

Unfortunately the tour did not include the third floor at the time I visited. This is where the dome and impressive ceiling that is visible from lower floors can be viewed better. So a wee glimpse from below had to suffice.

Looking up through an oval shaped hole in a ceiling to a gallery level above and an impressive patterned domed ceiling above. — Looking up at the domed ceiling

Glasgow City Chambers Visitor Information

Once back down on the ground floor and the tour ends, you can leave comments in the visitors book and pick up a free visitor brochure. This offers information on other rooms not included on the tour, a brief history of how the council came to be located here and details on the design and construction of the building. It also provides a brief overview of the council’s purpose.

I can thoroughly recommend adding the tour of Glasgow City Chambers to any Glasgow itinerary.

Tour Times and How to Get Tickets

Public tours are held on weekdays only at 10.30am and 2.30pm. Occasionally a tour will be cancelled if a council meeting is in progress. Unfortunately there is no hard and fast rule as to when this happens, so ring ahead if you need to check a certain day.

There is sadly no pre-booking facility. Tickets can only be obtained from the City Chambers reception up to half an hour before each tour. Tickets are allocated on a first-come-first-serve basis. At busy times, numbers are limited to 25 visitors on any one tour.

Regal looking interior of Glasgow City Chambers ground floor corridor where there is a green mascot character on display. — Come meet this chap inside!

Get in Touch…

Have you been inside this magnificent building? If not, have I convinced you it’s worth a look next time you’re in Glasgow? Drop me a line in the comments below and let me know – I’d love to hear from you!

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A Tour of Glasgow City Chambers