Glasgow - The Old Fruitmarket

The Old Fruitmarket is one of the most unique and distinctive venues in Glasgow.  The venue is a multi purpose space that can be used for many events such concerts, weddings, award shows and galas.  Situated in the Merchant City area of Glasgow.  The venue has a capacity of 2000.
Originally it was a hugely popular wholesale fruit market which opened in 1817, through out its existence as a market, in the 1900s it had numerous restorations by multiple architects.  It was then revamped in 2006 into the venue that stands today, what makes the venue so unique is that they kept the original interior of the old fruit market and it completely captures you as soon as you walk through the doors into the venue area. 

It is home to the majority of Glasgows jazz and classical music events and is the home of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.  It has also played host to artists such as Amy Macdonald, Jake Bugg and many more.  
All the photos shown in this post are all my own, the one above and the one below were taken at Amy Macdonald's gig, the lights were dimmed hence why the quality is not the best!  The photo to the right was taken at the Scottish Music Awards and the set up was incredible, this was taken from the balcony at the back of the venue.

One thing I do particularly like about the layout of this venue is that no matter where you stand on the downstairs area you will most of the time have a great view of the stage.  The venue feels very intimate with it's small stage, the performers are very close to the audience and can have more interactions compared to that of larger venues.  One thing you do not feel is packed in, every person has a reasonable amount of space between each other.  

The picture to the left was taken at the Amy Macdonald's gig in 2016, it gives you a little more perspective of how intimate the stage was and I managed to get a spot fairly close to the stage.  There is also a balcony area upstairs where people can stand, however I found out that the upstairs area is ticketed by a different ticket vendor (This is something just to be aware of if you are ever looking to attend this venue for a gig, as I know some people are particular in what area they want their tickets for, so always check and see who is ticketing the show!).  I am unsure of what the upstairs capacity is, what I can remember from my previous visit is that it can hold a fair amount of people but unless you manage to get the balcony barrier your view of the stage could potentially be restricted.

If you do attend a gig or other type of event here in the (hopefully) not so distant future then there is plenty on offer for you pre and post show.  The Merchant city is a lively part of the city with bars and restaurants dotted around, all providing something different so you will never be stuck on where to go, whether it's for a pre show meal or post show drinks. 
If you have ever attended a show here feel free to leave a comment about your experience below or if you are hopefully wanting to attend a show in the future let me know who it is you are wanting to see!

Check out their website below for more info ↓

Glasgow Concert Halls - The Old Fruitmarket