AS part of a brand new series, the Evening Times will shine the spotlight on some of Glasgow's best-loved areas. First up: the wonders of Dennistoun.

1. It has ties to the Wild West

Sure, the West End of Glasgow has its own cowboy statue in Lobey Dosser on Woodlands Road but Dennistoun has Buffalo Bill.

Colonel William F. Cody aka Buffalo Bill and his Wild West Show rolled into Glasgow in November 1891. The troupe included Annie Oakley – of Annie Get Your Gun fame – and a number of Lakota Sioux Indians.

The show took up residency at the former East End Exhibition Buildings just off Duke Street for three months.

Kicking Bear, a first cousin of the legendary Crazy Horse, became a familiar figure in the streets of the city and he had his photograph taken at a studio on Bellgrove Street.

In a small public garden on Whitehill Street, a statue of Buffalo Bill was erected in 2006.

2. It’s a hothouse for famous bods

Charles Rennie Mackintosh and his nine siblings grew up at Firpark Terrace adjacent to the Necropolis. Lulu lived on Garfield Street after her family moved there from the Gallowgate.

Comedian Ford Kiernan (below right), actress and singer Dorothy Paul, actor Rikki Fulton, entertainer Jimmy Logan and entrepreneur Michelle Mone to name but a few are all sons and daughters of Dennistoun.

Franz Ferdinand’s hugely successful eponymous debut album was written in the former Dennistoun flat of frontman Alex Kapranos.

Former Celtic centre forward and Lisbon Lion, Stevie Chalmers, lived in a room and kitchen in Viewpark Avenue around 1960.

John Higgins aka the “Wizard of Wishaw” and Alan McManus are both reputed to have honed their craft at the Craigpark Masters Snooker Club.

Partick Thistle right winger Johnny Mackenzie aka the “Firhill Flyer” was born in Dennistoun, as was actor Bill Paterson who has starred in Outlander, Traffik and The Crow Road.

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3. The tenements are sublime

Few things say Glasgow living like tenements: the high ceilings, the period features (as Kirstie Allsopp off Location, Location, Location would call them) and the blonde and red sandstone exteriors that glow like the lost city of Petra on a sunny day.

Dennistoun has streets of gorgeous tenements and some charming townhouses too – all with arguably more bang for your buck than in other areas of the city.

4. Whitehill Pool had a cameo in a Peter Mullan film

Tollcross may have had the glory of hosting the Commonwealth Games but Dennistoun’s Whitehill Pool appears in the film On a Clear Day in which Peter Mullan stars as a down-on-his-luck Glaswegian who decides to swim the English Channel.

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5. You stare into Stan’s Cafe at your peril

Stan’s Cafe – which is run by artist Sarah Jane Stanley – is Glasgow’s first “pay what you want” cafe. It works on the principle that “humans are intelligent and fair enough to make a reasonable exchange for services or items”.

Sarah Jane has also compiled a series of hilarious Instagram photographs under the hashtag #PeopleWhoStareIntoStans which does exactly what it says on the tin.

Open Wednesday to Saturday from 10am to 5pm, Stan’s Cafe offers freshly ground coffee, soups, home-baking and ginger beer. There is also cool art to look at.

6. Dennistoun boasts two of the best family-run Italian eateries in the city

The people of Dennistoun are spoiled for choice when it comes to authentic Italian cooking with two family-run restaurants and delicatessens right on their doorstep: Coia’s Cafe and Celino’s. People flock from all over the city to eat here. I know this because I often weep when I can’t get a table.

Coia’s Cafe on Duke Street is great for brunch serving up a fried breakfast of champions as well as excelling on staples such as pasta, pizza and classic Scottish fare including homemade steak pie.

Regulars will know that when you order chips at Coia’s you get the chip shop variety (drool ...). Remember to save room for the homemade ice-cream and delectable sundaes.

Wednesdays are Tapas night at Celino’s on Alexandra Parade where £12.95 buys you a little slice of culinary utopia with the likes of Scottish mussels, seared scallops, calamari, spicy chorizo and butter bean stew and aubergine fritters to choose from.

7. It also does rocking burgers

The towering burgers at Dennistoun Bar-B-Que on Duke Street are akin to works of art. The seasoned fries are a must. The pit beef brisket is the bomb. Let us say for the record that this place is king at slaying hangovers. Get in early before the famed ribs sell out.

8. To be honest, there is cuisine to suit pretty much every palate

Dennistoun is home to Tapa Bakehouse (it should be illegal to eat any soup without bread from here); The Duchess of Duke Street (great for relaxed drinks and pub food); Tibo (friendly atmosphere, home cooking and a great specials board); Redmond’s (the steamed buns are like heavenly floating clouds filled with oven fried chicken, pork belly, king prawns or Portobello mushrooms); Nakodar (sampling the haggis pakora is a must).

9. Vintage Saturdays

The Corner Shop on Duke Street only opens on a Saturday but it is well waiting all week for with heaps of decently priced vintage, retro and pre-loved high street clothes, shoes and accessories.

There is also a raft of charity shops – Mary’s Meals, Shelter, Salvation Army, Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice, Barnardos – with items prime for upcycling while helping out a good cause.

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10. Everyone knows Connie ...

11. Duke Street is the second longest street in Britain

Pipped by only King Street in Aberdeen which is 0.2 miles longer. Darn.

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12. Glasgow Necropolis is an oasis of calm

A Victorian cemetery to the east of Glasgow Cathedral, more than 50,000 people have been buried here. The Glasgow Necropolis covers a sprawling 37-acre area laid out as an informal park with stunning views to the south of the city.

There are tombs, sculptures, marble busts and Art Nouveau portrait panels. Some of the monuments have been designed by leading Glaswegian architects including Alexander “Greek” Thomson, John Bryce, David Hamilton and Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

On his 1994 World Tour of Scotland, comedian Billy Connolly said: "Glasgow's a bit like Nashville, Tennessee: it doesn't care much for the living, but it really looks after the dead."

13. The skyline is changing

Work is underway to demolish Scotland's tallest residential high-rise flats which sit to the south of Dennistoun. Whitevale and Bluevale – dubbed the “Gallowgate Twins” – are being brought down floor-by-floor.

The 31-storey blocks each stood around 279 feet (85m) high. Work began earlier this year and only a few storeys of Bluevale now remain with Whitevale to follow suit by 2016.

The towers were the tallest public housing project in Britain when they were built in 1969. They were eclipsed in the early 1970s by London’s 42-storey Barbican Estate.

14. There are buildings like this

15. Annfield Place is a gem

Cherry blossom in spring, twinkling lights in the festive season. The trees at Annfield Place always look good.

16. You can play a round of golf

There is a nine-hole golf course at Alexandra Park. Part of Glasgow Sport’s facilities, it is a hilly parkland course with some excellent par threes. 

Alexandra Park is also home to a duck pond, children’s play area and the 40-foot cast-iron Saracen Fountain. The highest point of the park gives views north to Ben Lomond and south to the Tinto Hills.

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17. The street art at Wellpark Brewery is awesome

I defy anyone not to raise a smile at the brilliant graffiti-style art on the walls outside the Tennent’s Caledonian Wellpark Brewery.

Home to more than 450 years of brewing tradition and award-winning beers, there is also the option to go on behind-the-scenes tour and tasting session.

18. There’s a micro-brewery

Next door to Tennent’s is Drygate, a micro-brewery serving a hearty selection of craft beers and ales, quirky rums and gins.

It is also home to the Brewhouse Bar and Kitchen, a beerhall and one of the best beer gardens in Glasgow.

Drygate hosts Gilded Balloon comedy on Friday nights and an urban market on the first and third Sunday of every month.

19. The locals are cultured

20. There are world class sport facilities right on your doorstep

Six-time Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy may hail from the Scottish capital but Glaswegians have claimed him as their own by naming a velodrome after him. Take that Edinburgh. 

Less than a mile down the hill from Dennistoun is the Emirates Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome which hosts world class athletics and cycling events.

The Davis Cup tennis semi-final between Great Britain and Australia will be held here from September 18-20.

There is also a famous football ground that belongs to Celtic FC.

21. The east end patter is also world class

The humour is a different tempo. Fast-paced, dry and understated wit? Get it here.

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22. We throw shoes over telephone wires

Just because.