The Glasgow International Comedy Festival has been back in Britannia Panopticon with the first full programme of events since 2019 and we are pleased to say that with social distancing no longer necessary we are back to being able to accommodate 100 people for all of our shows. Drag-Opticon is back, along with our monthly Comedy Club. Laurel and Hardy films return with the Sons of the Desert on the 5th April and on Thursday May 4th (May the 4th be with you) we will have our annual screening of the classic silent sci-fi, Metropolis, complete with live band and foley artists providing the sound effects. We are also pleased to announce our new monthly market Second-hand Rose’s Second-hand, Vintage and Handmade Sale, which is the third Saturday of every month from noon – 5pm. The Panopticon Team are also planning sing-along movies, family events and much more, so keep an eye on our What’s On page and social media for updates and if there is anything you would like to see us do, please drop us a line to [email protected].



Dragged Tae the Steamie goes on Tour

After last year’s sell out success of Dragged tae the Steamie, the steamie crew will be dragging themselves across Scotland on tour. Dragged Tae The Steamie is the official authorised Drag adaptation of The Steamie written by Tony Roper with Songs by Dave Anderson and with the characters portrayed by actors in drag. Sadly, Lucky Jim, who played Dolly in 2022, is unable to join the tour, but we are delighted to announce that Darren Brownlie who is known for, The James Gang, Dregs, Meet the Magoons, Being Victor and of course, River City, will be taking on the role. If you would like to be a sponsor or buy advertising space in the Dragged Tae the Steamie tour programme, please get in touch by emailing [email protected]

The songs in this touring production will be pre-recorded by Lisa Le Grove and Margaret Woods with Dorothy Paul.



Merchandise

We have some fantastic new merchandise now available in the Music Hall. Designed and made by Debbie McCall, they are a wonderful addition to our merchandise stall and a great way to support the ongoing work of the Friends of Britannia Panopticon Music Hall. The tee shirts will soon be available in various sizes and the tote bags are fantastic quality. If you wish to purchase online, please pop an email to [email protected]

At last, it seems that life is returning to normal, and it’s a good thing too as in February I celebrated 25 years since I started campaigning, fundraising and awareness raising for our beloved little music hall. It is no secret that it was love at first sight when I first managed to sneak a peek above a false ceiling (now long gone) to gaze into the balcony which was completely intact, though covered with pigeon poo. Since then, a lot has changed, the false ceiling is gone, the roof was repaired, the façade and west elevation restored, and the stage brought back into working condition. I felt that we were just starting to get somewhere, when suddenly Covid-19 happened, and we had to close the old music hall again. We have been closed for so long, I was worried we wouldn’t be able to afford to open again, and I can’t say that we are out of the woods yet. Visitor numbers are still low and attendance to our shows is not yet what it was pre-pandemic, so if you do have a pound to spare, please donate it to our Go-Fund-Me campaign.

But I am so pleased to announce that we are back open for shows and as a visitor attraction. It seems such a long time since we were able to open for our full program and we are excited to see our audiences slowly coming back in. We have just finished the Glasgow International Comedy Festival which included the return of Silent films with resident live band, Gladstone’s Bag, lead by our very own Chairman of the board, Lawrence Dunn. It was a glorious sunny day and many of our supporters left the sunshine to join us for Buster Keaton’s incredible classic “The General”. Lawrence and Gladstone’s Bag will return on May 4th with Fritz Lang’s immortal science fiction classic “Metropolis”. May the 4th be with you!

Laurel and Hardy fans returned last night for the first screening in two and a half years of Laurel and Hardy films. Laughter rang through the music hall as fans from four Tents* of the Sons of the Desert joined us and there were a few new faces in the audience too! And a member of the James Finlayson society. If you missed it, don’t worry, the “Sons” will be back in June with another hilarious collection of films from the two and only, Laurel and Hardy.
*The Sons of the Desert are the official Laurel and Hardy fan club, and each club is called a Tent.