Glasgow's Crowne Plaza hotel celebrates 30th anniversary

The Crowne Plaza in Glasgow opened as a hotel thirty years ago this month, and a lot has changed since 1989.

The hotel, on the banks of the Clyde, will be celebrating with an eighties themed party in coming weeks and have invited past managers and employees to enjoy the night.

They’re also asking people for any special memories and pictures they have of stays at the hotel over the last thirty years.

As a special celebration, there’s the chance for one Glasgow punter to set up a brand new business in its foyer for free.

It’s part of a bid to give something back to the community that has supported it throughout the years.

Manager Jason Dombrower, who took over running the hotel ten months ago, said the new business will take pride of place beside the hotel’s reception desk in the former gift shop.

And he’s looking for budding entrepreneurs to come up with an interesting idea for the space measuring 7.25m x 4m in exchange for the chance to make it a reality, rent free for twelve months.

Jason, 48, who is originally from Canada explained: “It’s important to celebrate our 30th birthday and reflect the creative thinking we have at the hotel. Since I came here ten months ago we’ve put an emphasis on service and teamwork to ensure our customer comes first.”

Today is the final day for budding entrepreneurs to submit their business ideas for the space and a Dragons Den style panel will choose the winner next month.

Brief Ideas can be sent to crowneplazaglasgowshop@gmail.com

Thirty years on Clydeside

The Crowne Plaza was initially called the Forum Hotel and work on it began directly across from the Garden Festival site in 1988.

It was known as The Moat House from 1990 up until 2005 and was a groundbreaking building when it first opened.

Designed and finished by Cobban & Lironi in 1989, the tall, staggered blue-glass tower with a large white podium has 17-storeys with 300 bedrooms and provides meeting or banqueting facilities for 1200. It cost £22.5m to build.

The building is notable for having no designated thirteenth floor (superstition suggesting this is unlucky), meaning that despite the top floor being designated “17”, it is really a sixteen-storey building.

In 2010, the hotel installed grass floors in its conference rooms to boost creativity. It was hoped the wacky idea would inspire mental flights of fancy during normally dull conferences. The look and feel of the grass was said to remind guests of their childhood and therefore free them of societal barriers that restrict creativity.

During the 2014 Commonwealth Games the Crowne Plaza became the official media hotel for people like Bradley Wiggins, who had a press conference there. There was a complete security shutdown with metal detectors and security passes issued to all who entered the building. No vehicles were allowed within a 400–yard radius.

The hotel stars in the opening credits of Taggart (from 1989 onwards) as singer Maggie Bell sings the words to No Mean City. The building is featured in the panoramic views at the beginning of each show.

Floyd Mayweather, Tyson Fury, Pele and Ricky Hatton have all had sporting events at the hotel. Indeed, customers kept parking in Floyd Mayweather’s space when he was appearing there in 2016 during his first trip to Scotland and one famous boxer is said to have dried his clothes in the hotel sauna after washing them himself.

In 2012, Scots actress Karen Gillan picked up a Scottish Fashion Award at the hotel.

Avengers star Karen, who was then in Doctor Who, arrived late at the bash after her journey north was thrown into chaos – not by Daleks, but by air traffic controllers at Heathrow Airport.

Sugababe Jade Ewen attended the ceremony hosted by TV presenter Alexa Chung and The Scottish Model of the Year went to Annie Lennox’s daughter, Tali Lennox. Singing at the event was Amy Winehouse’s god-daughter Dionne Bromfield.

The Crowne Plaza has always had strong links to the SECC, or the big red shed as it was known (now the grey SEC Centre), and is even physically connected to it by covered walkway. Many celebrities have used the passageway to escape straight after their gigs.

The hotel’s ballroom was frequently used as the location of the Glasgow auditions of The X-Factor (most notably, 2007 winner Leon Jackson’s initial audition was filmed there) before they moved to Hampden Park in 2008, and then to the neighbouring Armadillo when the show changed to a live audition format.

In 2017, the now famous photograph of Nicola Sturgeon meeting Theresa May for the first time was taken in one of the suites in the hotel. The photo caused controversy as papers commented on the duo’s legs, with a “Legs-It rather than Brexit” headline.

Following their annual panto appearances at the SEC, The Krankies would play host to their showbiz friends by taking over the bar of the hotel to regail then with showbiz stories until the wee small hours. Sydney Devine, Mary Milroy, Johnny Beattie, Peter Morrison and Tony Roper would all be there.

Hugh Jackman held a huge after party at the hotel for seventy cast and crew on the first U.K. stop of his Greatest Showman tour this year. He and his crew sipped Tattinger champagne and asked the private chef to prepare pakoras, burgers and chicken wings for The Greatest After Party.

Gloria Estefan stayed at the hotel and was treated to a foot massage in her suite ahead of her appearance at the SECC in 1996

The Pride O’ The Clyde cruise boat would regularly stop outside the Crowne Plaza in a bid to mirror the famous waterbuses of Amsterdam. The service was launched on the Clyde by then Enterprise Minister Wendy Alexander in July 2001.

The seven-day service carried passengers from a slip at the Broomielaw to the Braehead Shopping Centre. It also took out private parties, often stopping at the mooring pontoon outside the Crowne Plaza.

It took paying customers past the Clyde attractions including the Armadillo, Science Centre and Glasgow Harbour developments for six years.

2,549,233 rooms have been occupied over the past 30 years

8,238,125 sheets and pillow cases were laundered over the past 30 years

3,456,319 bacon rashers were cooked over the past years

3,888,692 eggs either fried, poached or boiled over the last 30 years

The hotel originally opened with two restaurants. There was The Pointhouse, which was more for everyday dining, and then The Mariner which was more sophisticated dining. These have now merged together as dining trends have changed.

Artist John O’Donnell painted the mural in the restaurant which is now covered up. It covered an entire wall of the Point House restaurant (estimated at 60ft long by 20ft high) and depicts scenes from the engineering and nautical history of the Clyde, including the launch of the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth.

It cost in excess of £10,000 but was a focal point for the hotel and its restaurant, and generated substantial publicity in itself.