Stars celebrate rebirth and revival of Barrowland Ballroom 40 years on

It is the iconic venue that was brought back from the dead when it was used for a 1980s music video – and is now one of the most precious jewels in the crown of Scottish culture.

Glasgow's iconic Barrowland Ballroom has been staging concerts regularly since reopening in 1983. Picture: Gaelle Beri

Now a host of Scotland's biggest music stars are to pay homage to the Barrowland Ballroom for a new documentary. Barrowland Roar has been made ahead of the 40th anniversary of Simple Minds' "Waterfront" video, which led to the ballroom’s dramatic rebirth after being shunned by Glaswegians then closed down.

Simple Minds, Mogwai, Franz Ferdinand, Gun, Del Amitri, The Fratellis, Amy Macdonald, Eddi Reader and Travis pay tribute to the Barras. David Bowie, U2, Oasis, Runrig, The Smiths, Biffy Clyro, The Pogues, Big Country, The Cure and The Clash are among the acts to have taken to the stage in the Gallowgate venue.

Barrowland Roar, which will be shown on BBC Alba on New Year’s Day, sees Lewis-based musician Iain “Spanish” Mackay venture behind the scenes to hear recollections of playing the Barras.

Eddi Reader is among the singers to pay tribute to the Barrowland Ballroom in the new BBC Alba documentary. Picture: Jamie Simpson

The origins of the venue can be traced back to 1934 when a ballroom was created on the site by Margaret McIver, who founded the Barrowland market with her husband James, for their stallholders to socialise in.

Regular Music chief executive Mark Mackie said: “She was a formidable woman and must have been in the 1920s to be running such a big concern.

“She had a Christmas party for her staff every year. She treated her stall-holders like family. But none of the other halls would take them for their annual Christmas party. There were complaints about their rowdy behaviour.

“Margaret McIvor, who was punk before punk, stuck her finger up at the city fathers and built her own dance hall for her staff to have their social events and parties in.”

Iain 'Spanish' MacKay is the presenter of the new BBC Alba documentary Barrowland Roar.

The original two-storey dance floor was destroyed by a devastating blaze in 1958, but was rebuilt by the McIver family two years later. However, by the end of the 1960s the venue’s reputation had declined after being linked to the three Bible John murders.

The ballroom’s revival was sparked when promoters Regular Music suggested it could be used for a video for Simple Minds’ song Waterfront in 1983, which paved the way for the band to stage several Christmas gigs.

Simple Minds frontman Jim Kerr says: “We were looking to do a video in Glasgow, because the song is really about the rejuvenation of Glasgow, and we wanted a live-ish video. By that time, as much as we wanted to show off our music, we also wanted to show off the audience that was coming to see Simple Minds. They themselves were a spectacle the way they joined in.

"The credit [for using Barrowland] must go to the promoters Pete Irvine and Barry Wright who came to us. They were from Edinburgh and I don’t think they quite knew how ominous Barrowland had become to people like us who had grown up not hearing about the glory days, but the horror stories, the violence and the gang fights. They thought there was a chance it could open back up again.

Simple Minds singer Jim Kerr with Iain 'Spanish' MacKay, presenter of the new BBC Alba documentary Barrowland Roar.

"We turned up on the day with the intention of using playback and miming the song. But seeing the audience we thought we’d have to give them a few songs. The place was heaving. Someone must have let the back doors open.”

General manager Tom Joyes recalls how the fans of Gaelic rockers Runrig had sparked health and safety concerns about the venue’s famous wooden dance floor.

He says: “I remember standing in the cloakroom when we had 1,900 people bouncing on the floor, looking up and seeing these concrete bisons moving about four inches at a time. We brought in these consultants who said “it’s like a piece of elastic, you can keep going, but at some time it is just going to give’.

“Runrig are to blame for this, but we decided then to bring in 18 pillars to strengthen the whole floor.”

Mogwai guitarist Stuart Braithwaite with Iain 'Spanish' MacKay, presenter of the new BBC Alba documentary Barrowland Roar.

Mogwai guitarist Stuart Braithwaite says: “When we started Mogwai, we always took it quite seriously and wanted to play here, but I don’t think we ever imagined headlining.

When we did, it was so much bigger than anywhere we’d ever played before and we had our doubts, but the room ended up pretty full and it was an amazing night. It was a dream come true.”

Recalling her first appearance with Fairground Attraction, Eddi Reader says: “After our set, everybody just roared. It went on for ages and ages. I actually got frightened by it, but it was the audience just going nuts. They loved it.”

Recalling his first appearance with The Smiths, Johnny Marr says: “I remember the heat – it was mad hot – and the insane volume. That was before we’d even played a note. It was a bit overwhelming.”

Franz Ferdinand singer Alex Kapranos said: “The neon sign outside is completely iconic, everybody knows it. We even nabbed it for a while. We made a backdrop along the design because we wanted to take a bit of Glasgow with us around the world.”

Macdonald, who wrote the song Barrowland Ballroom for debut album This is the Life, said: "I’ve spent a lot of time performing all over Europe. There are a lot of fans of mine who have thought ‘I’m going to Barrowland’. When people come ,they can feel how magic it is.

Iain 'Spanish' MacKay is presenting the new BBC Alba documentary Barrowland Roar, which is being shown on New Year's Day.

"The dressing room is like a rite of passage. If they ever spruced it up I’d be devastated.”

Jon Fratelli, frontman with The Fratellis, says: “I think it’s the only place I really get nervous of playing. We really have played it a lot now. It was where we aspired to play. There really aren't many of these places left. Can you imagine if this place was sold for development? I can guarantee you there would be a ring of people around the entire building."