Clyde Auditorium

Clyde Auditorium
The Armadillo
Address Finnieston Street
Glasgow
G3 8YW
Scotland
Owner SEC Ltd.
Capacity 3,000
Construction
Built 1995-97
Opened 7 September 1997
Construction cost £30 million
Website
Venue Info

The Clyde Auditorium, familiarly known as "The Armadillo", is a concert venue in Glasgow, Scotland. The building sits on the site of the now infilled Queen's Dock on the River Clyde, adjacent to the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre.

History

The Clyde Auditorium viewed from across the Clyde.
The facade of the Clyde Auditorium.

Plans for a new building to increase the capacity of the SECC complex were initiated in 1995. Designed by award-winning architects Foster and Partners, the 1,100 seat venue was completed in 1997, by which time it had earned its affectionate nickname due to the similarity of its shape to that of the animal of the same name. Many comparisons have been made with the Sydney Opera House, although this was not the architects' inspiration for the design, which was in fact an interlocking series of ship's hulls, in reference to the Clyde's shipbuilding heritage.

The building has quickly become one of the most recognisable on Clydeside and one of the iconic images of modern Glasgow. Its success has led to the construction of a third venue on the complex, the Scottish Hydro Arena.

It is connected by passageways to the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre, and the Crowne Plaza hotel for easy access and exit for high-profile performers.

The building held the Scottish auditions of Britain's Got Talent series 2 - 4 and the auditions for series 1 - 4 of The X Factor. It is the place where Susan Boyle was discovered.

Ian Reilly, the site's engineer, named the Auditorium the Armadillo during the construction phase.

The building served as the venue for the weightlifting competitions of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, held in Glasgow.

See also

References

    External links

    Coordinates: 55°51′34″N 4°17′17″W / 55.859496°N 4.287962°W