ARCADES PROJECT

One of the speakers at the formal opening of Stirling Arcade in 1882 claimed “Friends who had been in Paris and London…said there was not an arcade in Paris of the magnificence of roof and general beauty of the Stirling Arcade.” The roof and fittings of the shop fronts have had a few facelifts in the last 140 years, but it has retained its basic structure, with a dog-leg course running down from King Street, passed a theatre in the central area, to the exit heading down towards Stirling Station.

The arcade in 2023 is quieter than Stirling’s other shopping streets, one tenant lamenting that it is largely used now just as a shortcut. It is topped and tailed by attractive shops, however: a high-end lingerie shop at the King Street end, and a splendid whisky shop at the bottom end, owned actually by the people who now run the whole arcade itself.

There’s a wine bar, a café, lots of hair and beauty salons, kitchen stores, a comic shop, even a legal advice centre, making for quite varied usage of the shops in the arcade today. But, sadly, half the units are free, and at the time of our visit in early 2023 the old Alhambra Theatre, which apparently still has some original features, was under repairs (we will hopefully update this entry when it re-opens), though the arcade’s own website (see link below) suggests there are exciting plans to revive this theatre space, which was a popular venue for music hall singer Harry Lauder.

My favourite shops today

The Whisky Shop has a window to drool over, and the comics shop has a great selection of printed magazines, with an owner who can tell a tale or two about the arcade. I’m just waiting for the work on the theatre to progress because I have a feeling that will end up being my favourite part of Stirling Arcade.

My pick of the arcade’s past

The King Street entrance was once through an existing gunsmith’s. And among the early arcade tenants was a Peter Inglis, “Bird & Mammalia Stuffer, Cutler, Gun Agent, and Fishing Tackle Maker.” The People’s Hat Shop, and the New Produce Hall, selling exotic foodstuffs like French Coffee and Danish Butter, also came in early, along with Sinclair Brothers’ Teas.

There was controversy in 1888, when a concert of The Messiah had to be cancelled after protests from local church leaders at ‘entertainment’ being put on on the Sabbath. Somebody did point out, however, that one of those church protesters had supported an event held for a group of Swiss singers on a Sunday some months previously…So there was probably more to this story than mere religious fervour…

An unusual near miss occurred in the arcade in 1937, when a mother wheeling her baby in a pram through the arcade suddenly spotted smoke coming from the blanket covering her baby. A cigarette end was later discovered, and it was assumed that somebody had thrown it carelessly out of an upstairs office window in the arcade. No harm was done, thankfully.

This arcade in films or books

This is another arcade where I have no reference to movies being filmed or books set in or around the arcade. If anybody has any to add here, do get in touch.

What’s your favourite shop in the arcade today?

What memories do you have of visits in years gone by?

Have you got any good stories to add on the past of this arcade?

Have you seen Stirling Arcade in any films or books?

Is there a website for this arcade?

Yes, Stirling Arcade has its own website, which you can view by clicking the link. Hopefully this will be updating us soon on progress with work on the old theatre inside the arcade…