True pride on the Clyde

Clydebuilt is an astounding look at the shipbuilding at Glasgow's Braehead shopping centre. Dominic Roskrow reports

It's not everybody's idea of historic Scotland. It's not very bonny. It's not likely to end up on a biscuit tin. Indeed, it's very Glasgow.

But as an eye opener it takes some beating. And if you want to make a day of it, a trip down the Clyde on the Pride of the Clyde ferry, a few hours in the stunning Clydebuilt museum and then some retail therapy in Britain's second biggest shopping centre makes for an informative and impressive outing.

There's nothing very flashy about the Pride of the Clyde. You board it just down from the Central Railway Station from a small pier sited under the busy road and rail bridges that feed Glasgow's heart. The ferry makes its way between the great concrete pillars through murky brown water and you clamber aboard to be seated upstairs in the bracing Scottish open, or inside to Spartan benches and to a little retail area selling drinks, crisps and sweets.

The journey itself takes you past the sites of all the great shipbuilders, few of whom still operate. Now and again you'll pass a tug loading up with scrap metal, and at a couple of points there is serious building going on still, with mammoth-like skeleton ships acting as a stark reminder of what once put Glasgow on the map.

The ferry arrives at its own pier at Braehead and Clydebuilt is immediately in front of you. There's a children's themed play area and outdoor seating area, and an indoor waiting room.

Clydebuilt itself is an excellent attempt to reconstruct the sheer scale of the shipb...

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• By : Dominic Roskrow
• In : Best of Scotland
• Issue : 17
• Page : 44
• Words : 557