Paisley Town Hall Archives - Paisley Scotland

Paisley celebrated the return of its award-winning Halloween celebrations as thousands of visitors enjoyed a spectacular Out of this World experience.

Over 17,000 people flocked to the town for the free, immersive trail of intergalactic installations and light displays around some of Paisley’s most famous buildings, with the extravaganza taking place across five nights from Thursday 28 October – Monday 1 November.

Paisley Halloween Festival presents Out of this World also formed part of Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 20/21 celebrations, with the area beside the town’s White Cart River becoming a centrepiece attraction for locals and visitors.

An eye-catching sight on the family-friendly trail was the striking alien invasion of Paisley Town Hall, with an enormous Creature from the Cart bursting out from the front of the iconic structure.

Visitors were left dazzled by the ‘Nova’ and ‘Ursula Lassos the Moon’ sculptures at the heart of the trail, with many taking the time to capture selfies and photos at the mysterious and enchanting light displays. Meanwhile, ‘Orionids’ echoed the breath-taking beauty of a meteor shower across the White Cart River, creating a stunning, luminous effect on the water.

Young people’s hopes and dreams for the future of the planet were showcased on the spectacular Earthship1 installation, with many event goers taking the time to marvel at the spacecraft’s beautiful lighting, music and special cargo of hopeful messages and artworks created by youth and community groups across Renfrewshire.

Cheryl Fraser from Linwood said: “As soon as we pulled up in the car, the kids were saying ‘wow, this is amazing’ because we could see the big tentacles at the Town Hall. We’ve really enjoyed it all, took so many pictures and the kids have had a great time.”

Jodie Murray from Edinburgh said: “It’s been really cool and something different getting to see all the light displays – it’s really lovely. My family come every year and say it’s always amazing, so I thought I’d come and have a look too.”

The Paisley Halloween Festival presents Out of this World trail was delivered by Renfrewshire Council and curated by sustainable, not-for-profit creative contractor, Cirque Bijou.

Pauline Allan, Events Manager for Renfrewshire Council, said: “It’s been fantastic to welcome so many visitors to our Halloween celebrations in Paisley once again, as they were greatly missed by all last year.

“The festival is one of the highlights in our events calendar and has really cemented the town’s position as a key destination in Scotland for Halloween.

“We’re delighted to see such a positive reaction to this year’s five-day Out of this World spectacular and we’d like to thank everyone who came along and enjoyed the festival, as well as all of the talented artists involved for making it such a huge success.”

Julian Bracey, Artistic Director of Cirque Bijou, said: “It’s been a pleasure to work on this year’s Paisley Halloween Festival and make it a truly ‘Out of this World’ experience for everyone to enjoy. It’s been a massive team effort between the Cirque Bijou crew, Renfrewshire Council and the many local people involved.

“We’ve loved working with young people and community groups in the area to be part of the creative process and their contributions towards the artworks and installations have made the whole event really special.”

Paisley Halloween Festival was supported by EventScotland through Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 20/21 and Scotland’s Events Recovery Fund.

Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events at VisitScotland said: “We are delighted to have supported Paisley Halloween Festival through the Year of Coasts and Waters 20/21 and Scotland’s Events Recovery Fund. It is great to see the event was so well received by those who got to experience the spectacular light displays and installations, with the White Cart River playing a starring role in the trail.”

Paisley Halloween Festival is widely regarded as one of the best events of its kind in the UK and was named Best Cultural Event or Festival at the 2019/20 Scottish Thistle Awards West Scotland regional finals, organised by VisitScotland.

03/11/2021/by Brian McGuire

Blog, Business, economy, Events, Newsletter, Paisley, Paisley Abbey, Paisley Events, Paisley First, Paisley Halloween Festival, Paisley Photographs, Paisley Town Hall, Paisley Visitor Attractions, Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire Council, renfrewshire events

Paisley Halloween Festival presents Out of this World

29/10/2021/by Brian McGuire

Artist Kevin Cameron, Provost Lorraine Cameron and Councillor Lisa-Marie Hughes outside Paisley Town Hall

A time capsule containing memories of life in Paisley has been placed inside the foundations of Paisley Town Hall during the £22m transformation into a landmark entertainment venue for the west of Scotland.

The striking Victorian-era town hall – part of the legacy of Paisley’s proud past at the centre of the world’s textile industry – is undergoing a major redevelopment to preserve it for future generations.

The project is part of a wider investment by Renfrewshire Council in Paisley’s cultural venues aimed at driving new footfall to the town, including the work to turn Paisley Museum into a world-class visitor destination, retelling the unique stories of the town’s people, Pattern, and more.

Local artist and filmmaker, Kevin Cameron, worked with residents, local schools, and former employees of Paisley Town Hall to collect stories and memories of activities and events that have taken place at the venue.

Inside the time capsule, the memories are contained within a scroll consisting of over 30 pages that can be unravelled, read and easily displayed. The scroll is wrapped around a bobbin as a symbol of the town’s thread-making heritage.

Paisley Town Hall has been a unique landmark at the heart of life in the town since 1884, having been gifted to the town by Sir George Clark, owner of one of the firms which at that time had made the town a global thread-making hub.

Building contractors Morrison Construction are currently on site, with work due to finish in late 2022 and the building due to reopen in early 2023.

Councillor Lisa-Marie Hughes, chair of Renfrewshire Leisure Ltd, which will operate the reopened building, said: “Everyone in Paisley will have their own special memories of the town hall and I’m delighted that we have been able to preserve some of those to be shared with future generations.

“The town hall is a key project within the council’s wider investment in the town aimed at using Paisley’s internationally-significant cultural and heritage offer to change its future.

“Once reopened the town hall will build on the work already done to make Paisley one of Scotland’s key destinations for heritage, culture and events – driving new footfall and visitors to the town centre, day and night, and helping the local economy build back from the effects of the pandemic.

“We look forward to helping people make memories at Paisley Town Hall for many years to come.”

Provost of Renfrewshire, Lorraine Cameron, who added a letter for future generations to the time capsule, said: “Paisley Town Hall is special to so many people and it was important to involve the local community.

“At a time where our lives are still disrupted due to the Covid-19 pandemic and normal events have been unable to take place as planned, the creation of the time capsule has given many people a chance to look back on some of those times they hold most dear.

“The scroll includes memories from some of our oldest citizens collected through workshops with ROAR, and stories from some of our youngest citizens, with pupils from Williamsburgh and West Primary Schools contributing accounts of their life before and during the pandemic.

“I am honoured to be asked as Provost of Renfrewshire to contribute a letter and share my hopes for a future Paisley with generations still to come.”

The town hall redevelopment will deliver:

– preservation of its unique 19^th-century architectural features while adding 21^st-century performance facilities, guaranteeing the building’s long-term future;

– the capacity of the main hall expanded to 1,200, allowing the venue to host bigger and better events and help make the town a stop-off on musical tour schedules;

– entirely new rooms created within currently-unused spaces, including a café-bar, dance studio, and screening room, widening the building’s range of uses;

– new performance facilities, a much-improved audience experience, and a complete replacement of the venue’s electrical and mechanical systems;

To be kept up to date on the use of the building when it reopens, register your interest with Renfrewshire Leisure via https://mailchi.mp/renfrewshireleisure/paisleytownhall

The town hall redevelopment is part of a wider investment by the council in Paisley’s venues and outdoor spaces. Projects due to complete over the next couple of years also include:

– the £42m project to transform Paisley Museum, expected to help drive 128,000 visitors a year, to see the town’s internationally-significant collections;

– a new modern home for library services within the Paisley Learning and Cultural Hub, currently being built in a vacant former retail unit on the town’s High Street;

– work to upgrade Paisley Arts Centre;

– a redesign of Abbey Close to create an expanded outdoor events space set against Paisley’s town hall and 12^th-century Abbey, plus work to turn County Square into an attractive hub for small events and provide a welcome showcase for larger events, festivals and attractions in the town.

More information is at http://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/PaisleyTownHall

10/09/2021/by Brian McGuire

A new fly-through video has been released giving the first look at how Paisley’s A-listed Town Hall will look after a £22m transformation into a landmark entertainment venue..

The striking Victorian-era town hall is undergoing a major redevelopment to keep it at the heart of local life for generations to come.

The project is part of a wider investment by Renfrewshire Council in Paisley’s cultural venues aimed at driving new footfall to the town, including the work to turn Paisley Museum into a world-class visitor destination.

And the people of Renfrewshire are today getting their first detailed glimpse of how the much-loved town hall will look once reopen.

The stunning CGI animation, produced by Glasgow-based studio Visual Lane and the project’s architects Holmes Miller, shows a busy day and night in the life of the building, including how it would look hosting a wedding ceremony and reception, conference, screening, and finally a packed music gig.

Building contractors Morrison Construction are currently on site, with work due to finish in late 2022 and the building reopen in early 2023.

Councillor Lisa-Marie Hughes, chair of Renfrewshire Leisure Ltd, which will operate the reopened building, said: “We are delighted to reveal this animation, which will give the people of Paisley and beyond their first real look at what their town hall will look like once back in use.

“Everyone in Paisley will have their own special memories of the town hall – and the work we are doing now will preserve that history and make sure future generations can have the same.

“At the same time, the town hall is a key project within the council’s wider investment in the town aimed at using Paisley’s internationally-significant cultural and heritage offer to change its future.

“Once reopen the town hall will build on the work already done to make Paisley one of Scotland’s key destinations for heritage, culture and events – driving new footfall and visitors to the town centre, day and night, and helping the local economy build back from the effects of the pandemic.”

The town hall redevelopment will deliver:

– preservation of its unique 19^th-century architectural features while adding 21^st-century performance facilities, guaranteeing the building’s long-term future;

– the capacity of the main hall expanded to 1,200, allowing the venue to host bigger and better events and help make the town a stop-off on musical tour schedules;

– entirely new rooms created within currently-unused spaces, including a café-bar, dance studio, and screening room, widening the building’s range of uses;

– new performance facilities, a much-improved audience experience, and a complete replacement of the venue’s electrical and mechanical systems;

To be kept up to date on the use of the building when it reopens, register your interest with Renfrewshire Leisure via https://mailchi.mp/renfrewshireleisure/paisleytownhall

The town hall redevelopment is part of a wider investment by the council in Paisley’s venues and outdoor spaces. Projects due to complete over the next couple of years also include:

– the £42m project to transform Paisley Museum, expected to help drive 128,000 visitors a year, to see the town’s internationally-significant collections;

– a new modern home for library services within the Paisley Learning and Cultural Hub, currently being built in a vacant former retail unit on the town’s High Street;

– a redesign of Abbey Close to create an expanded outdoor events space set against Paisley’s town hall and 12^th-centuery Abbey, plus work to turn County Square into an attractive arrival point and public transport hub for the town;

More information is at www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/PaisleyTownHall

24/06/2021/by Brian McGuire

Blog, Events, Newsletter, Paisley, Paisley Photographs, Paisley Town Hall, Paisley Visitor Attractions, People from Paisley, Press Release, Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire Arts, Renfrewshire Council, renfrewshire events, Video

Transformation of Paisley Town Hall

Bid to capture Paisley Town Hall memories for future generations

PEOPLE are being given the chance to record their memories of Paisley Town Hall in a unique book that will be read by future generations.

Artist and filmmaker Kevin Cameron has been commissioned by Renfrewshire Leisure to create a book as part of a time capsule about the Town Hall.

Kevin has created a Facebook page and is urging people to post their memories of Paisley Town Hall that will be used as one of the chapters in the time capsule’s book.

The Paisley Town Hall Time Capsule is being created as part of the work to preserve the much-loved building’s place at the heart of the town by transforming the facilities on offer inside the Victorian landmark.

The time capsule will be placed under the floor of the North Minor Hall, within Paisley Town Hall.

Kevin explains: “I’d love to hear anyone who has a special memory of the Town Hall, whether it involved a dance, or concert held there, a first date, wedding, formal dinner, graduation or a special event.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for the people of Renfrewshire to become part of history and to share their memories with future generations and tell what the Town Hall means to them.”

Kevin, who is being supported in the project by Renfrewshire Leisure’s film producer, Richard Weeks, added: “The Town Hall is steeped in history and the popular culture of Paisley and Renfrewshire.

“Music star, Paolo Nutini was discovered by his first manager when he gave an impromptu performance on the Town Hall stage while hundreds of teenagers were waiting for Fame Academy TV show winner, David Sneddon to appear. It would be great to hear from people who were in the audience that day.

“And thousands of football fans turned up at the Town Hall to see the victorious St Mirren team arrived there on an open-topped bus when they won the Scottish Cup in 1987. I’m sure that memory remains with everyone who was there that day.”

Go to www.facebook.com/PTHTimeCapsule/ to post your memories of Paisley Town Hall and your story could end up being read by someone in the future.

The refurbishment of the Town Hall is one of the key projects within Renfrewshire Council’s £100 million investment in venues and infrastructure, as part of a wider plan to use the town’s unique heritage and cultural assets to transform its future.

That includes the transformation of Paisley Museum into a world-class visitor attraction showcasing the town’s internationally-significant collections and story, and a new Learning and Cultural Hub bringing library services to a formerly-vacant unit at the heart of Paisley High Street.

05/10/2020/by Brian McGuire

Access to gyms, fitness classes and swimming pools will be via pre-booked time slots only

Bookings for sessions at gyms and swimming pools being reopened by Renfrewshire Leisure can be made from today (Monday September 7th).

The local leisure charity’s online booking system has gone live ahead of the first phase of services restarting at its leisure centres from next Monday (September 14th) following their Covid-19 lockdown closures.

Its team will provide 110 fitness classes, 4,800 fitness class slots, 4,011 swimming slots and 10,665 gym sessions at its reopened venues every week.

By logging on to https://bookings.renfrewshireleisure.com/ people will be able to book slots for sessions and classes up to seven days in advance. These will be filled on a “first come, first served” basis.

Renfrewshire Leisure has repeatedly stressed that the safety of customers and staff is its top priority. Pre-booking ensures that all Scottish Government guidelines on social distancing and hygiene are adhered to.

Mark Tokeley, Head of Leisure and Community Services at Renfrewshire Leisure, said: “We know how much our services have been missed since their closure in March and are very much looking forward to their return.

“The pre-booking system will ensure that we can manage numbers in our venues at any one time to ensure that social distancing will be maintained. When each booking is made, we will issue advice on the measures we have put in place for people’s safety and instructions of what to do at the venue when they arrive.

“Our team has been working incredibly hard to prepare to welcome everyone back in the safest way. While things will operate differently to what we are all used to, by working together, we are sure that everyone will enjoy being able to benefit from our on-site services once again.”

For those without internet access, bookings can be made by calling 0300 300 0250.

On September 14th, ON-X in Linwood, the Lagoon Leisure Centre in Paisley, Renfrew Leisure Centre, Renfrew Victory Baths, Erskine Sports Centre and Erskine Swimming Pool will reopen, complying with all Scottish Government guidance on hygiene and physical distancing.

Shared leisure facilities at Park Mains High School in Erskine and at the Johnstone Community Sports Hub will open in a second phase, with strictly controlled public access. This will involve detailed health and safety reviews and will ensure there has been sufficient time to settle pupils and staff safely back to school. Planned investment work in maintenance of the swimming pool at Johnstone means that this part of the venue will not be ready to reopen alongside other areas of the site, but will follow later.

It has previously been confirmed that members will not be charged any membership fees until November.

Details on restarting the Learn to Swim programme are being reviewed. An update on this will be provided shortly.

Information about all Renfrewshire Leisure services and how they are operating can be found at www.renfrewshireleisure.com/coronavirus.

Throughout lockdown, Renfrewshire Leisure has been operating an innovative programme of online services to help people stay fit and healthy. For more details about how to take part in them, go to www.renfrewshireleisure.com or follow the charity’s channels on social media.

07/09/2020/by Brian McGuire

Work to transform the future of Paisley’s much-loved town hall is due to restart – with construction workers due on site at the start of August.

The project will create 21^st-century facilities inside the striking Victorian landmark while delivering improvements essential to keep the town hall at the heart of life in the town – and is taking place as part of a wider investment in Paisley’s historic venues by Renfrewshire Council.

No work has taken place on the town hall in recent months due to the coronavirus lockdown – however with restrictions on construction sites being relaxed, workers can now safely go on site in line with national guidance.

The contract for the advance construction works on the town has been awarded to Morrison Construction and is expected to run until December.

The main construction works are expected to start next year, and while the exact impact of lockdown on the original timescale is still unclear, the project is expected to be complete before the end of 2022.

Other planned investments still being delivered in the town centre by the council include the work to transform Paisley Museum into a world-class destination showcasing the area’s unique and globally-significant story and collections, on which construction is due to start in the new year.

And construction work is due to resume soon on the site of the new Learning and Cultural Hub on Paisley High Street, which will be the town’s new home of library services.

Cllr Lisa-Marie Hughes, chair of Renfrewshire Leisure Ltd, which operates the town hall, said: “We are pleased work is able to resume on Paisley Town Hall, which is another positive sign as the area’s economy starts to re-emerge from lockdown.

“Although the council faces a very challenging financial outlook, the town hall, museum and learning and cultural hub projects are all well under way – with years of work having already taken place on each – and we intend to see those projects through.

“In the town hall’s case, the work being planned includes investment in 21^st-century facilities which will help drive new footfall to the area in the years ahead, as well as essential replacement of outdated infrastructure without which the building would not have a long-term future.

“The completed buildings will be crucial to Renfrewshire’s long-term economic prospects – our vision for Paisley town centre remains one in which we promote its unique cultural and heritage offer to bring people here.

“And while coronavirus has disrupted that work we hope our continued investment in the town hall and other venues will help the area’s economic recovery from lockdown and give confidence to our local businesses.”

The investment in the town hall is aimed at bringing new activity and vibrancy to the town while ensuring the building has a long-term future. It is planned to include:

– a complete and essential replacement of the old and outdated electrical and mechanical systems;

– the preservation of the unique architectural features within this A-listed Victorian gem;

– an expanded capacity in the main hall allowing bigger and better events and driving more footfall to the town centre, boosting the local economy;

– unused spaces brought back into use and entirely new rooms and facilities created including a new café-bar with views over the river, increasing the range of events the building can host;

– a much-improved audience experience including improved staging, lighting and seating with better views, and improved access making it easier for everyone to move around the building.

28/07/2020/by Brian McGuire

This weekend marks the digital debut of Paisley’s annual Sma’ Shot Day celebrations as a series of virtual events and workshops will take place to mark this important date in the town’s calendar.

The online event will take place on Saturday 4 July – the time when the weavers and their families would traditionally always take their holidays.

The move to take the event online for 2020 is in response to the current COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure celebrations can still take place in adherence with national guidance.

The traditional Sma’ Shot holiday in Paisley takes its name from a famous dispute between the local shawl weavers and manufacturers in the 19th century. In 1856, following a long dispute, the manufacturers backed down and an agreement was reached to pay for the Sma’ Shot, the invisible stitch which bound the Paisley shawls, with a new table of prices published on 1 July 1856.

This year’s event will not only mark this important date in the town’s history but will also celebrate our fantastic key workers.

The event always offers plenty of opportunities for people to get involved and have fun and this year is no exception.

The day will kick-off in style at 12pm as The Charleston Drummer himself, Tony Lawler, will lead a mass online drum-off where the public are being encouraged to make as much noise as they can and share their celebrations on social media.

Aerial dance theatre company, All or Nothing, will be performing dance and music project – Connecting Threads – inspired by the background and history of Sma’ Shot. Everyone is invited to join in and dance along to the new Sma’ Shot inspired music track by Dave Boyd.

In the run-up to Connecting Threads local groups and individuals have been participating in online classes and creative tasks with the group and have submitted videos that will feature in a short film that can be viewed online on the day.

Local theatre company PACE will be hosting live drama workshop sessions created especially for the day – an interactive storytelling workshop suitable for 3-7 year olds and an activity-based session aimed at children aged 7 and above.

Sma’ Shot Day favourite – The Tea Dance – will also take place this year, albeit it from the comfort of your own home, as Renfrewshire Leisure and Paisley FM bring a special Sma’ Shot Day radio broadcast of this popular event.

For those who want to be fully immersed in the day’s events, local upcycled fashion innovators ReMode have put together some online video tutorials to show how people can get crafty and make their own costumes or window decorations to celebrate the day.

It would not be Sma’ Shot Day without the popular Poetry Slam. This year the spoken-word event will be known as the ‘Dooslan Staying Hame’ where people can enjoy some poetry written during lockdown and performed by some of Renfrewshire’s finest contemporary poets and spoken-word artists.

In addition, Renfrewshire Leisure and The Bungalow are partnering up for the Sma’sh Hits Sma’ Shot Special music event, showcasing a selection of local musicians.

For those looking to start Sma’ Shot weekend off early join CREATE Paisley and host Jordan Stewart for an unplugged Live Open Mic night on Friday 3 July featuring young singer/songwriters from across Renfrewshire.

This will be followed on Saturday 4 July by ‘Paisley in Song’ where people can enjoy five songs from young Renfrewshire songwriters in this exclusive online showcase. The youngsters worked alongside Paisley-songwriter Michael Cassidy to develop a set including two new collaborative songs celebrating our key workers and NHS, and three songs exploring Paisley’s incredible history of song writing and poetic legacy, written in 2019 as part of Renfrewshire Council’s THCARS2 project.

Renfrewshire’s Provost, Lorraine Cameron, said: “Sma’ Shot Day is such a popular date in the town’s calendar and it’s excellent that we can still celebrate it this year through a series of fantastic online events.

“The digital programme is packed full of fun, interactive and creative activities that the whole family can participate in and enjoy – helping to create the amazing sense of community that is always so present at this event.

“I can’t wait to welcome you all to Saturday’s event and I look forward to logging on and enjoying some of the great activities planned.”

For all the information on what’s taking place as part of this year’s digital Sma’ Shot Day and how you can get involved, please visit www.paisley.is/featured_event/sma-shot-day/.

29/06/2020/by Brian McGuire

A Renfrewshire Council spokesperson said: “In line with national guidance from the Scottish Government on the coronavirus, we have taken the decision to cancel all large-scale Renfrewshire Council-run events until the end of June.

“This will include the Paisley Food and Drink Festival which was due to take place on Friday 24 and Saturday 25 April and an agreement with the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association (RSPBA) to cancel the British Pipe Band Championships in Paisley, which was set to take place on Saturday 23 May.

“We will also look to reschedule both Renfrew Gala Day and Barshaw Gala Day for the end of summer.

“We will continue to review our future events, including Sma’ Shot Day on Saturday 4 July, as the situation progresses.

“We would advise everyone to continue to observe the medical advice available at NHS Inform. For further information, please visit www.nhsinform.scot/coronavirus.

“For ongoing updates to our event programme, please visit www.paisley.is.”

16/03/2020/by Brian McGuire

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