O2 Academy

So on a freezing night with hail and snow as well as gale force winds there was no organisation for letting in the queues at bowling for soup gig. The gig had been sold out for some time but there was only one person scanning tickets for the main queue. Then there were the searches again undermanned for a sold out event.
Really not good enough probably going to be ill for next few days despite wrapping up warm because it took over 45 min from doors opening to getting in and it only has a 2500 or so capacity. The hydro fills quicker but then they use more than one door and more than one person. Not impressed and despite the venue having been a personal favourite for many years it will take special bands for me to return

Dangerously overcrowded, dread to think of the outcome if there was a fire or other incident in here. At the beginning of the night the bouncers kept the walkways/stairs clear but half an hour later it was a free for all. As for the drinks, £6.45 for a pint of carlsberg when the tennents factory is a mile away. Wouldn't be so bad if it was drinkable but it was I couldn't even finish my pint.. absolutely disgusting. After visiting local bars and paying less than £4 for a pint of tennents this is a complete rip off. We won't be back. Regarding the concert, the sound quality was terrible, that may be down to the band playing but regardless it was very poor. Toilets are also a disgrace..

I always love this venue for music gigs. It's beautiful inside.
Last night I attended with my mum for Paul Young and Go West gig. My mum has mibility issues so after buying tickets I contacted the venue regarding access. Jordyn answered swiftly and confirmed what we needed to do to avoid my mum having to queue as she can't stand for long.
At venue all staff were so professional and friendly. From the gent managing the queue who walked us to the door and introduced us to the door staff managing the access list. From there on in, every single member of staff ensured my mum got into the venue safely and was comfortable walking to her seat. At half time she preferred to sit at back of venue on her seated walker and again several staff stopped to make sure she was comfortable and even offered alternative seats. We left a little early to avoid the crowds and Robert from door security walked with her down the few stairs and even waited with her outside the door to allow me to collect the car from Bridge street underground and bring it round.
My mum and myself were so impressed with all the staff. They really made what was already a great night all the more enjoyable. I was very impressed by the professionalism and friendliness of all staff!

We traveled for 2 hours each way to attend the London Grammar concert on 6th November. We will not be visiting this venue again, as it was overcrowded, I did not feel that any social distancing was enforced, the mandatory mask-wearing was completely ignored by attendees and staff. No one checked out Covid vaccine status, nor anyone else's that we could see.
As to the actual venue as a place to enjoy a concert, I would say it was a definite No. The acoustics were bad, the support act could not be heard over the din of the crowd, the main act was marginally better, however, the place was so crowded that rather than hear the band, we could hear the other attendees shouted conversations. Also, please someone buy a mop and uses it to clean the floors, it was so sticky when entering I nearly tumbled as my feet stuck to it! I had expected far better, a shame it did not deliver a positive experience. Would not recommend it.

Absolutely awful experience here. Not one to write bad reviews but the venue experience completely ruined the night and concert for us. We literally waited 30 minutes for a drink while the bartender in grey looked at us numerous times and completely ignored us, until we voiced our opinion to be served and at this point has missed two songs.

The venue was jam packed to point of being crushed at times, we tried to stand out the way on the ramp and stairs but got told by staff to move despite other people still being stood there.

Eventually, after speaking to a lovely women who took us upstairs to watch the remainder of the concert the night was made a lot better.

I’ve been to numerous O2 venues across the country and loved it every time. We travelled up to Glasgow for this concert, will definitely not be attending any other events at this venue which is a shame.

First visit to 02 Academy Glasgow. My fantastic Partner and I attended concert that may be the last ever Scottish concert for George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic.

I first attended a p funk concert in 1978 and this marked the 4th show in Glasgow. Speaking about the venue, very interesting setup. When you enter the venue you see a very large bar. On either side of the bar, standing area. Continue towards the stage and there is more viewing area. From either side of the bar area you can see the stage very clearly.

Walk down from this section and a large, area where you can stand. Finally there is a main central section with benches. For the Funkadelic show the area near the stage had the most frenzied fans.

Sound, even with super powerful Funkadelic equipment was really, really good. Lots of fun with attendant security team. Really enjoyed the venue, we even got to charge our electric car, only 10 minutes from the venue.

Without doubt my favourite Glasgow gig venue thus far (I’ve been to a few).

Situated in Glasgow’s Laurieston area, south of the River Clyde, the building was all but a fifteen minute walk from Glasgow Central. Housed in a former cinema, there have been some notable gigs hosted in the past (Deacon Blue having the honour of performing at it’s opening), but for me it was the long awaited opportunity to see Embrace.

The whole night was fantastic. The band were faultless and the crowd were buzzing! I paid for a standing ticket, managing to source a resale ticket on Ticketmaster for a fraction of the original price, and i’m glad I took the chance to be ‘in amongst it’.

The acoustics were faultless, the atmosphere was special and the building was just the best setting to see one of my favourite bands from growing up. The pints, at £6.50, you might say were on the expensive side (certainly cheaper at SWG3), but it did little in ruining a memorable night in the Gorbals!

Hoping to be back in the near future and maybe other gigs won’t quite hit the mark, but I’ll gladly accept that given the adrenaline rush from my first O2 Academy experience!

I was rather apprehensive about attending this venue for the first time after reading all the negative reviews however thankfully my fears were unfounded.

As I didn't want to stand in a queue for ages, we timed it to arrive at the venue just before 7pm when the doors opened. The security staff were very friendly and helpful, keeping us right about which queue to join and the ticket checks and searches were carried out swiftly and efficiently on entering the venue.

We opted to stand by the pillar closest to the stage to the side, for a decent view away from the moshpit, however just before the headliners took to the stage a "giant" stood right in front of me so I decided to move forward a bit. Things settled down after that and we enjoyed the gig without anyone else barging in front of us and generally everyone around us was up for enjoying the gig too, which made a pleasant change.

We don't drink alcohol at gigs but got tap water with ice from the bar free of charge to cool down, and the security staff were handing water out to anyone who needed it during the gig.

We were stood in front of the speaker so it was loud however we wear earplugs which deaden the sound a bit, and we were able to hear the music clearly.

All in all a good gig experience and we would have no hesitation in returning to this venue.

Way over-capacity. Dangerously so. Seems to be Academy policy to just keep selling tickets no matter how full the venue is. It's only a matter of time before people are seriously hurt or killed. serious fire hazard and evacuation hazard. If any serious incident occured people would be trampled. No room to move even a few inches. People packed-in like cattle. It's a ticking time-bonb. Venue should be looked into by authorities.

Best staff ever! I would like to thank you all for your assistance and care at Louis Tomlinson concert last week. Before the concert i got in touch to ask about where would be best to stand as my 14 year old daughter has epilipsy and we wanted to be near exit incase needed. Jordyn got in touch with us and was just amazing at helping us get prepared. On arrival everyhing was very well planned out and upon entry the security guys were fab, all smiles and so helpful. We got shown around the venue by a member of security who pointed out all the exits etc. Nothing was too much trouble for anyone, thank you all.