Legendary Glasgow comedy club to begin new era with 'really big names' as The Stand say goodbye to Woodlands

The Stand comedy club will welcome a host of “really big names” as it says goodbye to its Woodlands Road home. Speaking to Glasgow World, the venue teased it’s plans for the current venue’s last days and what people can look forward to as it ventures into a new era in the autumn.

Keir McAllister, marketing manager at The Stand, said: “There will be some kind of blowout at the end, I think the last gig in there is going to be a Red Raw event.

“And we've got a few surprises with regards to that, but for the new venue, we're going to have a mini festival coming off the back of the Fringe.

“So we’re really looking forward to that, we're going to have some really big names, particularly comics who are connected to Glasgow.”

The Stand has operated from a listed building at 333 Woodlands Road in Glasgow’s West End since 2000, however with their lease coming to an end, the decision has been made to move to Websters Theatre on nearby Great Western Road.

Keir acknowledges that it will be an “emotional moment” when the time comes to close the doors at the comedy clubs original venue. For 25 years it has been a place where Glaswegian comedians have cut their teeth - including Frankie Boyle and Kevin Bridges.

Keir McAllister, marketing manager at the Stand, said: “The venue has been where, over a period of time, stand up in Scotland has really grown, and is really growing. There have been so many great acts that have started here, so it's going to be emotional for a lot of comics, but with the optimism of the new venue.

“I hope that outweighs that and everything that is great about the Glasgow, it's the staff, it's the comics that we put on, it's the atmosphere that we try and generate. So we hope to take all of those things into the next venue have the same degree.”

There is optimism according to Keir, with the new venue allowing The Stand to increase its offering and become more accessible. He explained: “We're going to have a permanent pub at the front of it, as well as inside the venue. That allows us to have that separation, and it also allows us disabled access, which is something that we've always been conscious of and, obviously, sadly lacking before, and will also allow us to see everybody.

“Also the capacity has increased substantially as well. So we'll be able to offer some bigger shows with more people in them. It’s quite versatile, and all this allows us to extend that program.

“We're looking to extend the beyond comedians, so it’s not just going to be stand up shows. Want to use it during the day, and we're looking at extending our program into the year.”

New era for The Stand in Glasgow

Over the past 11 years the former Lansdowne Church on Great Western Road - with its familiar slender spire – has been operating as Websters Theatre. The building belongs to a charity, Fact Three, set up by the trustees of Four Acres Charitable Trust to secure its restoration and give it a sustainable future. This followed the example of Cottiers in Hyndland which theTrust had been restoring for many years, and which is well known as a successful arts and wedding venue.

Websters was named after Alf Webster, whose stained glass is recognised as being among the finest in Scotland. Fact Three has been raising funds to restore his two main windows in the building and make them the centrepiece of a major new visitor attraction – a stained glass museum sited on the upper gallery.

The Trust explains: “The gallery will also provide a working area for the specialists involved in the stained glass restoration, providing an opportunity for visitors to the gallery to view them at work. Traditional skills of this kind are a dwindling resource, and part of the funding will be earmarked for training so as to expand the pool of skilled stained glass restorers. It is hoped that work on the gallery will start later this year.

“Since 2013 the ground floor below the gallery has had a largely seasonal use for drama productions, music and comedy shows. Most successful has been a regular pantomime which has run for over 10 years.”

Following the transition to the Stand the pantomime, and a number of other popular productions and performances that have taken place at Websters, will move to Cottiers - with ‘A Cottiers Christmas Carol’ running throughout December.