Southside Fringe: Arts, comedy and music festival in Glasgow starts this weekend

This year’s Southside Fringe, featuring arts, music, comedy and more, is being held between May 14-22.

From markets to well-being initiatives, window exhibitions to projects commemorating the local communities’ courageous acts of compassion, there are lots of events being held during the festival.

The festival will be kickstarted with special markets. Working in collaboration with Art Space G41, Shawlands Arcade will feature more than 30 makers on May 14 and 15.

Phillies of Shawlands bring you a Record Fair on the 14th, and they’re working with Seamster Vintage on the 15th to bring visitors a Vintage Market.

On the 14th, The Cooperage invite you to their Fringe Fair with kids art classes, live mural painting, stalls and a vegan BBQ.

MyShawlands have a day of Inflatable Family Fun outside Langside Halls on the 14th and if that wasn’t enough, the great team at Park Lane are softly launching their Evening Markets on the 14th & 15th.

The festival will close with a weekend of Makers Fairs in Shawlands Arcade over the weekend of May 21-22.

The Pollokshields Trust and Govanhill Baths Community Trust has organised the Kenmure Street Festival of Resistance, to mark one year since the community stood up to the Home Office. This free event begins on Friday at 5.25pm with a 10 minute silent vigil to remember refugees who have perished due to hostile policies - placards and banners are welcome at the vigil.

The following day, between 12pm-5pm, Kenmure Street will be closed to traffic to celebrate with good food, live music and a chance to dance.

Everything Must Go is back after a very successful trial run in 2021. This window exhibition, curated by artists Georgia Thornton Sparkes and Grace Higgins Brown, intends to create collaborative, temporary art exhibitions and interventions.

There’s plenty for music lovers in this year’s programme, from the hottest Open Mic on the Southside, hosted by Samuel Logan at Armstrong’s Bar on the 18th to a programme of performances at the Ice Box Arts & Music Centre.

The Glad Café weighs in with a heady mix of music over the week-long festival. It will also host the Southside Games Festival on the 18th.

Scaramanga brings its eclectic electronica to the programme on the 20th at McNeill’s Bar, while lovers of classical music can enjoy The Glasgow Barons presenting Ventus Saxophone Quartet, a sizzling, award-winning ensemble from Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, in the Billiard Room of Govan’s iconic Pearce Institute.

Arts Enigma brings its high standard of theatre production to this year’s programme at The Shed with ‘Dancing With The Devil’ which runs from the 13th-15th with matinee and evening shows.

The Wee Retreat CIC is hosting the launch of ‘Glasgow - city of poets’ on the 22nd, introduced by Anne Sikking, poet laureate for Los Angeles literary arts magazine TESS.

The event exists to encourage closet poets through free workshops, and to promote poets and their work. All are welcome, with nibbles and soft drinks and a chance to chat all things poetry! The Wee Retreat is also hosting an informal, free poetry share before the launch that all are welcome to join. You can find out more about and book this free event in the programme.

The event will also be launching the first Southside Wellbeing Festival in partnership with Finn’s Place and The Wee Retreat CIC over the final weekend of the festival.