Residents living in the city center are a bit freaked out about the possibility of an Orange Order parade happening on the same day as a football title party. They think it could be a recipe for disaster, or at least a big mess.
Thousands of folks are gearing up to join the Orange Order parade to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day on Saturday, May 17. Coincidentally, that’s the same day that loads of Celtic fans are expected to descend on the Glasgow Cross area to celebrate their team’s Scottish Premiership victory.
The Merchant City and Trongate Community Council (MCTCC) are not too thrilled about this clash of events. They reckon it’s a bad idea to have both happening on the same day because it could make an already sticky situation even stickier.
A spokesperson for the council said, “Having the Orange Order parade on the same day as the anticipated Celtic celebrations might just make a bad situation even worse.”
The folks living and working around Glasgow Cross are already on edge about the potential chaos following the Celtic-St Mirren match. The police are probably going to have their hands full dealing with that, so adding another event into the mix doesn’t seem like the best plan.
According to reports, around 2500 people are set to take part in the VE Day parade, with even more expected to tag along. VE Day is usually celebrated on May 8, but events in Glasgow are scheduled for the weekend of May 10/11. The Orange Order parade is set to take place a week later.
The parade route will see lodge members and Orange bands starting at Wishart Street near Glasgow Cathedral. From there, they’ll make their way down various streets before ending in Lorne Street.
On the same day, Celtic fans are likely to gather for an unofficial title party in Trongate following their match against St Mirren. The two events are not expected to overlap, with the parade happening in the morning and the football celebrations in the afternoon.
Last year, around 25,000 supporters brought Merchant City to a standstill, causing quite a ruckus. The local community councils have been vocal about their concerns, urging everyone to behave and not repeat the anti-social behavior seen in previous years.
The MCTCC spokesperson added, “The idea of having thousands of Celtic and Orange Lodge supporters in the city on the same day is not exactly ideal. We’re calling on the City Council and the County Grand Lodge to work together and find a different date for the parade.”
Glasgow City Council has mentioned that discussions will continue leading up to May 17, with plans being reviewed if necessary. They emphasized the need for credible evidence to justify any intervention, usually based on intelligence from the police about potential disorder or threats to public safety.
At a meeting in Hampden Park, various stakeholders gathered to discuss ways to avoid disruptions like those seen in previous years. While agreements were made to encourage fans to behave, no concrete plans were put forward for this year’s expected gatherings.
The County Grand Orange Lodge of Glasgow has not yet provided any comments on the matter. So, we’ll just have to wait and see how this all plays out on the big day.
