Exclusive Photos – Plus Matt Corr on the Main Stand Façade at Celtic Park

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The Celtic Star

·11 September 2023

Exclusive Photos – Plus Matt Corr on the Main Stand Façade at Celtic Park

Earlier today we started a new exclusive series on The Celtic Star publishing a huge collection of photographs belonging to former Celtic Director Tom Grant that have never been publicly available before. The photos cover different aspects of the old Celtic Park and also Barrowfield and there are numerous photos of Celtic players in the 1970s and 1980s which we’ll share in due course.

We have around 800 photographs from Tom Grant’s collection. They were mostly prints, some of the player shots were slides and The Celtic Star organised for these all to be digitalised so that we can share them on the site.

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Tom Grant sitting to the left of Fergus McCann at Celtic Park

The first article in the series has been hugely popular today and you can catch up below before moving onto Matt Corr’s piece on Main Stand Façade at Celtic Park…

READ THIS…Exclusive Photos – The Main Stand Façade at Celtic Park

More Exclusive Photos of the redevelopment of the front of the main stand at Celtic Park begin on the next page…

Matt Corr on the Main Stand Façade at Celtic Park and more exclusive photographs of the redevelopment during the centenary season…

For many first-time visitors to Celtic Park, their first view of the stadium will be as they head up The Celtic Way from London Road. The footprint of the stadium itself has undergone a massive transformation in recent years, not least in the creation of The Celtic Way itself, the scene of so many supporter celebrations in recent years as the team returns home from the latest triumph as the world-record-breaking eight Trebles have been secured.

The main stand itself is the oldest surviving part of the second Celtic Park, having opened its doors to paying customers in the summer of 1929, replacing the old Grant Stand which had been constructed on that side of the stadium back in 1899, seven years after the stadium itself had been built.

The distinctive red brick and glass façade of the main stand had been added in our centenary year of 1988, allowing the club to incorporate new hospitality venues on the premises, thus providing a much-needed source of revenue.

On the ground floor, a new reception area provided a focal point for visitors, with access for players and officials to the arena itself, offices for management and administrative staff on one side and the boardroom/trophy room on the other, the latter a key part of our stadium tours. The Mackintosh-style window which had been located above the previous front door for many decades before the centenary is now displayed within the foyer, providing a lovely juxtaposition of our history.

On the first floor, the main area facing London Road is occupied by the Walfrid Restaurant, a nod to our Founding Father whose statue greets the supporters immediately in front of the entrance. And on the second floor, the Jock Stein Lounge is the matchday base for another group of corporate supporters, before they take their seat in the main stand.

The Jock Stein Lounge is a place close to my heart, as taken there by my son as a wee treat a few years ago, we were lucky enough to meet the one and only Bertie Auld for a brief chat and a photo. It was also the home of the Stadium Tours at weekends until late last year, when our team moved into the smart new Sports Bar at the south-west corner of Celtic Park.