Glasgow memories: Joy and drama in snowy scenes across the city

Our city is one of the favourites to get snowfall on Christmas Day with bookmakers slashing the odds to 3-1.

Our archives have captured fantastic festive scenes over the decades – like this joyous picture of children sledging in Queen’s Park in 1952, and the romantic image of Royal Exchange Square in the snow in 1940.

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There has been drama too – on December 11, 1958, the Evening Times reported a near-disaster concerning 42 women bound for the Alhambra panto in Glasgow, who ended up spending 11 hours stuck on a bus in a blizzard.

“Forty-two Fairlie women endured an 11-hour ordeal last night on a snow-bound bus on the bleak, blizzard-swept moors between Kilbirnie and Largs,” screamed our story.

It did concede later on that technically, they did not spend the whole 11 hours on the bus, as they did make it off for a ‘short time’ to enjoy tea and food provided by a shepherd’s wife on a nearby farm.

But it was high drama right enough, as a fleet of private cars full of angry husbands flocked to the scene.

“We were told snow ploughs were out and that everything was being done to get the women to safety,” one irate man told our reporter.

“But we were first to arrive on the scene. It’s just not good enough.”

Eventually, everyone made it home safely and driver Tom Paterson was hailed a hero for keeping everyone warm and comfortable….

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Get in touch to share your memories of snowy times past in the city.