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Forth and Clyde - Big Man Event - Burning Big Man Attracts Thousands Of Spectators

The Big Man event, held on Saturday 4 October was hailed as a huge success. The new event at Maryhill locks, designed to celebrate Maryhill, its Canal and its People attracted over 2,500 visitors.

The special  'Big Man' event hopes to encourage public support for artist Andy Scott’s latest engineering design of a giant steel sculpture, known as the ‘Maryhill BigMan’, which will act as a footbridge at Stockingfield Junction.

Visitors enjoyed performances from Tam White and his Shoestring Band, The Gutty Slippers, Punjabi No 1 and X-Factor finalist Nikitta as well as a selection of water and land based activities on the Forth & Clyde Canal while finding out about the local area’s history and plans for its future.

The day ended in spectacular fashion with the ‘burning’ of a 9ft two dimensional structure of the of a Big Man, produced by Scottish artist Ewan Hunter in collaboration with Scott Associates.

Richard Millar from British Waterways Scotland commented: “We are delighted by the turn out on Saturday and glad that the local community showed their support and what it represents by enjoying the performances and activities that were on offer. The ‘Big Man’ will add a new dimension to the Forth & Clyde and this event marks a very exciting step towards regenerating this part of the canal. This is a true example of British Waterways Scotland’s commitment to making the canals a focal part of the community and an asset to be enjoyed by all.”

Bringing the 'Big Man' event to life was a partnership between The Waterways Trust Scotland, Glasgow Canal Regeneration Partnership (British Waterways Scotland, Glasgow City Council, ISIS), Cube Housing, Glasgow Housing Association, Queen’s Cross Housing Association, Sustrans Scotland and Maryhill Housing Association. It was supported by Diageo.