The SEC Centre (originally known as the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre until 2017) is
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
's largest
exhibition centre
A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...
, located in
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, Scotland. It is one of the three main venues within the Scottish Event Campus.
Since the opening of the original buildings in 1985, the complex has undergone two major expansions; the first being the
SEC Armadillo
The SEC Armadillo (originally known as the Clyde Auditorium) is an auditorium located near the River Clyde, in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of three venues on the Scottish Event Campus, which includes the SEC Centre and the OVO Hydro. in 1997, and then the
OVO Hydro
The OVO Hydro is a multi-purpose indoor arena located within the Scottish Event Campus in Glasgow, Scotland, and is the largest entertainment venue in Scotland.
The arena was initially named The Hydro after its main sponsor Scottish Hydro El ...
in 2013. The venue's holding company SEC Limited, is 91% owned by
Glasgow City Council and 9% owned by private investors. It is probably best known for hosting concerts, particularly in Hall 4 and Hall 3.
Development history
The
Scottish Development Agency
Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including:
*Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland
*Scottish English
*Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
first supported the construction of an
exhibition centre
A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...
in Glasgow in 1979. A site at the former Queen's Dock on the north bank of the Clyde at
Finnieston
Finnieston is an area of Glasgow, Scotland, situated on the north bank of the River Clyde roughly between the city's West End and the city centre.
Finnieston is home to the SECC and SSE Hydro, where many musical concerts, sporting events a ...
, which had closed to navigation in 1969, was selected.
Land reclamation
Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamati ...
works started in 1982 using rubble from the demolished
St Enoch railway station
St Enoch station was a mainline railway station in the city of Glasgow, Scotland between 1876 and 1966. The hotel was the first building in Glasgow to be fitted out with electric lighting. The station was demolished in 1977.
History
Locate ...
. The construction of the SEC Centre buildings began on the site in 1983.
Main Building
The Main Building was completed and opened in 1985, with a concert by the
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) ( gd, Orcastra Nàiseanta Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a British orchestra, based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the O ...
in Hall 1. It later held the Grand International Show in Hall 4 as part of the 1988
Glasgow Garden Festival
The Glasgow Garden Festival was the third of the five national garden festivals, and the only one to take place in Scotland.
It was held in Glasgow between 26 April and 26 September 1988. It was the first event of its type to be held in the cit ...
. In 1990, the SEC Centre was one of the hubs of Glasgow's year as
European City of Culture.
Upon its opening, the Centre quickly gained its nickname from the local press and thus to general usage, "The Big Red Shed", owing to its outward appearance, which resembled a giant red painted warehouse. The nickname became redundant after the Main Building was expanded and painted grey in 1997.
The SEC Centre occupies 64 acres (260,000 m
2) of land – most of which is surface car parking space – and hosts numerous music concerts, exhibitions and professional conferences. The SEC Centre also has its own railway station,
Exhibition Centre
A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...
, on the
Argyle Line
The Argyle Line is a suburban railway located in West Central Scotland. The line serves the commercial and shopping districts of Glasgow's central area, and connects towns from West Dunbartonshire to South Lanarkshire. Named for Glasgow's Argyl ...
of Glasgow's suburban railway network. The 16 storey
Forum Hotel (now part of the
Crowne Plaza
Crowne Plaza is a British multinational chain of full service, upscale hotels headquartered in the United Kingdom. It caters to business travelers and the meetings and conventions market. It forms part of the InterContinental Hotels Group family ...
chain) was opened on the site in 1989.
In September 1996, a new exhibition hall, Hall 3, was opened.
SEC Armadillo
In September 1995, construction began on a new building – the
Clyde Auditorium
The SEC Armadillo (originally known as the Clyde Auditorium) is an auditorium located near the River Clyde, in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of three venues on the Scottish Event Campus, which includes the SEC Centre and the OVO Hydro. – to become part of the SECC complex. Designed by award-winning architect
Sir Norman Foster
''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...
and often called "the
armadillo
Armadillos (meaning "little armored ones" in Spanish) are New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata. The Chlamyphoridae and Dasypodidae are the only surviving families in the order, which is part of the superorder Xenarthra, along wi ...
" by Glaswegians, this new 3,000 capacity building was completed in August 1997.
Queens Dock 2 expansion
In April 2004, the owners SEC Ltd again commissioned
Foster and Partners
Foster + Partners is a British architectural, engineering, and integrated design practice founded in 1967 as Foster Associates by Norman Foster. It is the largest architectural firm in the UK with over 1,500 employees in 13 studios worldwide.
...
to design a £562 million regeneration of the Queen's Dock area, under the name QD2 – so called as this is the second regeneration of the former Queen's Dock area since the centre's inception. This project incorporated
OVO Hydro
The OVO Hydro is a multi-purpose indoor arena located within the Scottish Event Campus in Glasgow, Scotland, and is the largest entertainment venue in Scotland.
The arena was initially named The Hydro after its main sponsor Scottish Hydro El ...
, a 12,500 seat, £50 million concert arena for the SECC, which opened as "SSE Hydro" in September 2013.
Shows and events
The venue hosted the
Eurovision Dance Contest 2008
The Eurovision Dance Contest 2008 was the second and final edition of the Eurovision Dance Contest and was held in Glasgow, Scotland, hosted by the BBC on 6 September. The presenters were, as in the previous edition, Graham Norton and Claudia W ...
. The SECC hosted the
Girls' Day Out Show
The Girls' Day Out Show is an event primarily for women who enjoy fashion, lifestyle and beauty. It is a similar concept to The Clothes Show Live. It was founded in 2009 and has been a growing convention every year, attracting over 16,000 visitor ...
in 2009, 2010 and 2012. It staged The Scottish Golf Show in 2009 and 2010. The venue annually stages the popular
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
Good Food Show. On 15 November 2015, it played host to
's biggest show of the year, ''Fear & Loathing VIII''.
The SEC Centre hosted the
). In June 2012, Irish pop band
were honoured with four specially commissioned bar stools (to be a permanent fixture at the venue) to mark 49 performances at the SEC Centre where they entertained over 380,000 fans over the years, selling more tickets than any other act.
. Originally scheduled to be held in 2020, the conference was postponed due to the
. Due to the same pandemic, the SEC Centre was turned into a COVID-19 critical care hospital under the name NHS Louisa Jordan, and run by
. Initially (as of April 8, 2020), it had capacity for 300 beds, with an expansion to over 1,000 if needed.
The venue was never used for COVID-19 critical care and was instead used for medical appointments, blood donations, staff training and COVID-19 vaccinations.