TIMES PAST Falling in love on the dancefloor at The Plaza
IT was 1962, and the night of the annual Gas Board dance. The Plaza was buzzing with young couples, preparing to take to the dance floor, and some took time out to pose on the famous ballroom’s steps for a photograph.
Walter Smith and his now wife Elizabeth Murdoch paused at the top of the stairs for a snap, before joining their friends, including Elizabeth’s brother George and his wife Jean, for another.
Walter remembers it fondly. “Elizabeth’s dress was designed and made by her mother, Mary, who was not a dressmaker by trade, but she loved knitting and making clothes. She was also a marvellous baker – her chocolate cake was my favourite...”
Walter was prompted to get in touch with Times Past after our recent story about the legendary
Eglinton Toll dance hall, a favourite with punters right up until its closure in the 90s. We uncovered a fascinating tale behind the painting of the giant mural on the exterior wall and many readers got in touch to share their happy memories of the Plaza. “It had a huge dance hall, where you could easily do ‘joined-up’ dancing,” recalls Walter. “And there was a huge fountain in the middle…”
The Plaza opened in 1922, one of several much-loved dance halls in the city and stylewise, it was ahead of its time. It was finally demolished in 2006 and turned into flats, much to the chagrin of a generation of dancers who sashayed their nights away there, living it up and falling in love under the multi-coloured lights…
Did you meet the love of your life at the Plaza? Do you remember dancing there in decades gone by? Get in touch to share your stories and photos.
HERE at the Glasgow Times, we know the tales of ordinary people paint a picture of what life was really like for the men, women and children of the city over the decades.
We want to hear them, for our great new Times Past series, All Our Yesterdays. Each week, we will cover a theme connected to Glasgow’s ‘good old days’ – it could be the parks and gar-dens, transport, dance halls and cinemas, or something completely different.
We’d love to hear your stories and see your old photos – all you have to do is write to Ann Fotheringham, Glasgow Times, Print Centre, 125 Fullarton Drive, Cambuslang G32 8FG or email ann.fotheringham@glasgowtimes.co.uk