The Knowhere Guide

Best and Worst in Paisley, Renfrewshire*

Paisley, Renfrewshire Triumphs and Tragedies

Favourite Building

• I like the old Mill Buiding at the end of Seedhill Road,although if they dont start doing something about it soon it's going to go the same way as all the other old buidings in the area ,a heap of rubblewhen the sun is setting behind it and you see all its old towers and spires sillhoutted against the sky ,just for a minute it looks a wee bit like the Blue Mosque ,in Istanbul,also I like the outside of the Paisley Museum,and the Russell Institute ,and the old Fire Station In Gordon Street which has been converted in to youth Centre ,
• The observatory has escaped a mention, so I'll mention it.
• The High Church, now Oakshaw Trinity has the largest unsuspended ceiling in Europe and the spire is also the highest point in the town.
• Russell Institue
• StMirren Park, Love Street, Paisley
• The Town Hall and the Abbey are pretty impressive buildings. As is the Coats Memorial Church. Actually Paisley is pretty well off for some architectural gems - try the old part of town on the hill above the High Street.
• Kennedy's bar, Causewayside Street. The first Scottish pub to be opened all day ( & I was there!)
• Paisley Abbey - one of the oldest buildings in Paisley.
• Coats memorial Church .... victorian baroque but despite that a nice building paisley abbey ... oldest building in the area (12th century)

Demolish It Now Building

• Has to be the Council building.with all the council in it!
• Without a doubt the Piazza A soulless buiding if ever there was one!
• The Piazza. Most towns make great capital of their rivers. This bloody thing sits on top of ours.
• The Piazza at the Cross, horrible thing been revamped so many times, the words horse, dead and flog come to mind.
• Council Buildings
• Without a doubt, the Municipal Buildings and Police Station in Mill Street. A concrete atrocity.
• Central Way car park
• The Piazza shopping mall. This was originally built in the sixties, but ended up totally outmoded. It was upstaged 6 years ago by the new Paisley Centre. The Piazza was updated 4 years later to match, but could not get quality shops to move in....Result - a sad chemists, small crap Safeways and some cheap shoe shops.
• Mill on Lonend- should have been demolished or refurbished years ago.
• Council buildings and police office .... concrete monstrosities of early 70's

The Best Things

• Goood train service out of paisley.
• The M* to Glasgow and beyond, the fact that you can see the hills above Loch Lomond from anywhere above 30ft (and not obscured by some addled architect's deluded vision.
• The road to Glasgow{only kidding}Paisley Arts centre is as I omitted to mention earlier a pretty cool wee place,Generally ,Paisley is striving to pull itself up by its bootstraps ,there are some good things happening here,paisley youth theatre ,is agreat advert for the town ,agreat project.The John Byrne @60 exhibition in Paisley museum is well worth checking out.The sense of humour of so many people ,is another redeeming feature and the local football team St Mirren who live in the shadow of the two super teams up the road,power to the Wee Guys.Isay
• http://www.paisley1.co.uk
• St Mirren Football Club and their wonderful supporters
• St Mirren Football Club. Friendly folk.
• Barshaw Park-especially if you are under 7 or parent of same! Swings climbing frame slides,duck pond,pets corner,toy train and bouncy castles in the summer(all day and in the evening) lots of space to run around (and lose the offspring if necessary!)...brilliant fun!Beware occasional low flying golf balls! friendly locals good train services
• Gleniffer Braes Country Park. Wilderness in your own back door....(well sort of!!)
• The people are friendly, pubs are plentiful and are open to 1am most nights There are some beautiful buildings in Paisley. It is easy to strike up friendships in pubs, clubs, etc. The female talent is impressive (and attainable!)
• One of the best things about Paisley is that it has the largest single based Youth Theatre in the U.K. Under the Umbrella of P.A.C.E. theatre company. The youth theatre incorporates over 1000 members and helps to dispel the bad stories about Paisley. Also P.A.C.E. do a Primary tour taking shows out to school in which the kids participate and learn at the same time.

The Worst Things

• Paisley as a whole sucks. Thats a fact. Try finding a job here and you'll know what I mean. There seems to be two types of people in this town. First theres your neds. Theyre everywhere. And almost as bad are the middle class v neck jumper volvo driving crowd who walk about claiming they live in a wonderful place called rauuuwwwuuuwwwlston(thats snob speak for ralston). Pronounce it right you goddamn toffs. OK so some people are nice. But youll have to go to a stmirren game to find them. (1 exception is the guy who goes to every game and sings down with the third lanark all the time. Please shut the hell up :| ) If you want a decent conversation go and talk to the skateboraders. Theyre nice peeps. Oh dear i have gone off topic.
• mass rat infestation thievery on every street corner kung fu ninja grannies
• PAISLEY
• There's nothing in the place!! It's all in Glasgow.
• The awful smell that lingers over the town allegedly from one of the factories from the last century which still operates.
• There is not a singularly bad thing. Everything is shocking. Send in the Army.
• The people, on a whole, are unfriendly, ill-mannered and easily confused.
• The atroashus speling and gramerr of the loacal kontributorrs!
• Pot holes in the roads, neds who attack you if you look at them, all the murders and drug deaths (there was another today) the coucil when they have punch ups and the police have to be called, unfriendly shop keepers, St Mirrens bad results, and the stupid one way system.
• the taxi rank near the piazza (after the pubs shut), you wait for ages and hear view all manners of verbal abuse and stupid fights, pay almost double you would for a private hire taxi, and risk confrontation from "neds" if you look at them the wrong way, my advice: stay clear and phone a private hire from where you are, or at least, keep yourself to yourself
• smallmindedness of a lot of people here,apathy is also rife ,asis chewing gum but thats not only Paisley!The crippling rates that are forcing the wee guys ,{shopkeepers}out of town,the to let signs everywherein the town ,because people cant afford to continue to rent properties which are grossly overpriced,so as a result the town ends up looking like a ghost town sometimes,the weeneds that feel a need to inflict themseves upon other peoplePhyisically and verbally?
• Crappy roads, obscure signs, nasty drivers. Politicians, especially those who capitalise on Paisley's (largely undeserved) bad reputation. Vandals, especially the ones that muck up places like the Gleniffer Braes.
• All the Old Firm supporters in Paisley (to the uninitiated - Rangers and Celtic g;loryhunter fans)
• Stabbing capital of Europe!!!
• Paisley has developed a rough reputation over recent years, relating to shootings, stabbings and slashings. This resulted from members of rival families trying to outdo each other in the supply and control of drugs in some of the outlying schemes. As can be expected, these incidents were confined to the people actually dabbling in the dealings, but it was blown out of all proportion by the media.
• The state of the roads in some places are horid. Also antics of certain non leading members of the local council.
• No-hope teenagers with nothing better to do than vandalise other peoples property.
• The LIONS and the animals talk back! Message from the Keeper of Natural History at Paisley Museum who looks after the stuffed animal collection. The Lions and Tiger have been standing in the Natural History Gallery for many years and are loved by generations of Paisley Buddies. Why not come along and meet them!

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Last updated: 2007-07-19