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Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, known for its striking red sandstone architecture, is home to a vast collection of artefacts ranging from a life-sized elephant positioned beneath a hanging Spitfire to Salvador Dali’s renowned painting, *Christ of St John of the Cross*. Over its 125-year history, the museum has welcomed millions of visitors, each with their own personal connections to the space. One such visitor is the celebrated comedian Sir Billy Connolly, who has recently lent his voice to a new audio guide for the museum.
Glasgow Life, the organisation managing the city’s museums, has a long-standing relationship with Connolly, dating back over ten years to his first art exhibition at the People’s Palace. When the opportunity arose to create a personal audio tour of Kelvingrove, Connolly was the natural choice. Jane Rowlands, head of Glasgow Museums and Collections at Glasgow Life, explained the concept: “We wanted to create something which would make the listener feel like they were talking to Billy.” To assist in curating the guide, updated images and video footage of the galleries were sent to Connolly, who then selected twelve objects to feature.
Among the highlighted pieces is Fulton’s Grand Orrery, an intricate mechanical model of the solar system, which predates the museum itself. Connolly expressed his affection for it, saying, “It was on the first floor, a mechanical map which you could wind up. It explained the solar system to children in a way which I have never seen. I got the chance to wind it up once. That’s what happens when you’re rich and famous.” Rowlands remarked that the guide was less about providing dry facts and more about sharing Connolly’s personal reflections, noting, “We were looking to hear his memories and it comes across with such personality and he speaks about the place with such fondness that you can’t help but be engaged by it.”
Connolly’s connection with Kelvingrove began in childhood, visiting with his family and creating cherished memories, including sliding around the tiled floors with his sister Flo, clad only in socks. He recalled the atmosphere warmly: “As a wee boy, you knew it was classy. The guys who looked after the place were kind and nice. They would explain stuff to you, usually to get you to stop running about. It had life in it. It wasn’t like a museum, and I thought ‘I belong here’.” Looking ahead, Rowlands expressed hope that the audio guide project might expand to include more objects from the museum’s collection, adding, “People have said I’ve always wanted to walk with Billy around Kelvingrove and now I can.
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
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