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Photo: Derek Rankine from Glasgow, Scotland, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Wonderful stylish off-beat villa, built in 1858 by the influential Alexander 'Greek' Thomson. It was originally the home of a paper magnate, and a copy was built for another tycoon in Adelaide in 1885. Holmwood had several owners then the Sisters of Our Lady of The Missions, who piously obliterated all style and decor beneath the dullest paint they could find. They left in the 1990s and it was acquired by the National Trust for Scotland, who have been restoring it ever since.
Holmwood House is the finest and most elaborate residential villa designed by the Scottish architect Alexander "Greek" Thomson. It is also rare in retaining much of its original interior decor, and being open to the public. A Category A listed building, the villa is located at 61–63 Netherlee Road, Cathcart, in the southern suburbs of Glasgow, and is owned by the National Trust for Scotland.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
The Spiders
Queen's Park play in the Championship, the second tier. Despite an incredible run without a major trophy since 1893, they are still amongst Scotland's most successful clubs with ten Scottish Cups to their name. Historically they played at Hampden Park and owned it, but their limited fortunes and attendance made that a nonsense; only in 2019 did they turn professional. Hampden Park was sold to the Scottish Football Association in 2020 and from 2025-26, Queen's Park will play at The City Stadium (aka Lesser Hampden), a small stadium to the west of Hampden Park. Don't confuse them with Queen's Park Rangers, the team from London's Shepherd's Bush.
Scotland's national stadium has a capacity of 51,866 for football matches and 44,000 for athletics. It hosts other sporting events as well as concerts, and houses the Scottish Football Museum. The Scottish men's and women's soccer teams play their home games here. It may be difficult to get tickets for a men's World Cup or Euros qualifier but any other game should be fine. Stadium tours are available on non-match days. If you get the train, expect to queue for the station post-match due to the outflow of fans. Hampden used to be the home ground of Queen's Park, but they are in the throes of moving next door.
Sir William Burrell (1861-1958) was a shipping magnate who amassed a huge art collection. He gifted it to the city with the condition that it should be displayed in a nearby yet rural setting, and this was difficult to satisfy until Pollok House was acquired in extensive parkland, and the purpose-built gallery was added. It was closed 2014-2022 for refurbishment and even now can only show a fraction of his 9000-strong collection. Other items appear in the various city museums such as Kelvingrove.
Garden surrounding an 18th-century mansion, which in 1976 passed to the National Trust for Scotland. It has a large walled garden and parterre, and a brilliant display of daffodils and bluebells in spring. The mansion is an events venue and you can't tour it.
This school, opened in 1906, was Charles Rennie Mackintosh's last major building. It was a wonderful Art Nouveau design (so naturally it was way over budget) and closed in 1979 when the Gorbals slums were demolished and school enrolment fell. In 1990 it was converted into a museum of school education, with Victorian / Edwardian classrooms, and an exhibition on the work of Mackintosh. It's now again closed for rebuilding, which will partially return it to educational use for early years.