Stories of Mackintosh at the Willow
Listen now
Description
Earlier this year, Mackintosh at the Willow – a tea room on Glasgow’s Sauchiehall Street that dates back to 1903 – joined the National Trust for Scotland’s portfolio of special places. To better understand the venue and the role it played in Edwardian Glasgow, Jackie sits down for a cup of tea with two expert guests. Celia Sinclair Thornqvist MBE, who purchased, saved and restored Mackintosh at the Willow in 2014, is joined by cultural historian Robyne Calvert to reveal the hidden stories of the last remaining original tea room designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh and his wife Margaret Macdonald. They also detail the life of Glasgow entrepreneur Miss Catherine Cranston, who once ran the tea room. Who would have once frequented the tea room? What makes Mackintosh at the Willow such a shining example of its designers’ talents? And what has it taken to restore the magnificent tea room into the stunning location it is today? For more on Mackintosh at the Willow, visit the website You may also enjoy our previous episode on the life of Margaret Macdonald, available here.
More Episodes
A stitch In time: textile treasures and the women who made them In our final episode of 2024, Jackie Bird heads to Edinburgh to take a look at Stitched: Scotland’s Embroidered Art – a new exhibition that tells the nation’s story through textiles. The result of a two-year research and...
Published 11/22/24
This week, Jackie Bird is in Culloden to join the team of archaeologists hoping to unlock more of the battlefield’s historic secrets. With the National Trust for Scotland’s Head of Archaeology Derek Alexander, Jackie discovers how modern techniques are helping to unearth musket balls, coins and...
Published 11/15/24