The B-listed Olympia Building began life in 1911 as the ‘Olympia Theatre of Varieties’ and has had an eventful history, being used as a theatre, cinema, bingo club and furniture store before becoming derelict and suffering a serious fire in the early 21st century. It was acquired on behalf of the local community by Clyde Gateway Ltd in 2009 and after extensive redevelopment was reopened in 2012 as part of the regeneration of Bridgeton Cross.

We moved into our new home in August 2015 and visitors will be treated to stunning views across the city from our third floor accommodation.

We were pleased to welcome visitors in and show an exhibition of photographs documenting the building’s varied history and redevelopment, and visitors had the opportunity to learn about who we are and what we do. Fittingly for a former cinema, we also showed a number of films highlighting our work and illustrating life in the city.

Glasgow’s Doors Open Day presents a unique opportunity for the public to see behind the scenes of this extensive refurbishment, and learn about the work that goes on inside this landmark building. 

We had 36 visitors on Saturday, some of whom didn’t know the Olympia at all and some of whom had memories of it in its former lives as a cinema, dancing hall and bingo hall.

We’d love to see pictures taken by our visitors during the tours, so if you came along and are on Twitter you can share them with us using our handle @theGCPH or you can email them to our main email address info@gcph.co.uk