IT WAS a sight to see, the old Govanhill Picture House.

Its unusual turrets and distinctive green-blue and white tiles made it one of only a handful of Egyptian-themed cinemas in the UK.

Do you remember watching a movie at the Picture House? Maybe you visited the building in its later life, when it was a community hub in the shape of the local bingo hall?

Perhaps you took part in the May Day celebrations in Govanhill Park? Or do you recall the old shops along Allison Street and Victoria Road?

The Evening Times Thanks for the Memories tour continues to Govanhill this month, as we continue to capture old stories and photographs of the city’s fantastic past.

We’ll be holding a drop-in session at Govanhill Library on Langside Road from 10.30am until 12.30pm on Tuesday, May 29 and we would love to hear your stories and see your photographs of this part of the city.

Bob Marshall, the project co-ordinator behind the Govanhill People’s History Listening Trail, says the area has a fascinating past.

“People have been coming to Govanhill for more than 100 years,” he says. “It is a great place to live.”

The Listening Trail grew out of The Govanhill People’s History Project’s plan to celebrate the area’s rich past, Bob explains, in the midst of much less positive discussion about its modern urban problems.

“Lots of local people got involved – we secured Heritage Lottery Funding to create a website and history booklet, and thought, why not come up with a trail people can do to learn more?” he says.

“We recorded more than 150 hours of interviews with local residents and workers, edited down for the Listening Trail, and the stories – about the old shops, the delis and hardware stores, the cinema, going to the baths – were fantastic.”

With support from the Scottish Oral History Centre, which now holds the recorded interviews in its archive; local artist Lucie Potter, who created the trail; and Rosie Cunningham who created the Listening Trail map and illustrations, the project quickly grew arms and legs.

“It never stopped,” smiles Bob. “As people got involved and told their stories, it prompted more to come on board, and it just kept going.

“There were stories of what it was like to live in a one-bedroomed flat with no bath, and how going to Victoria Road for a stroll round the shops was like a day out for some families.”

He adds: “There was a lot of nostalgia, of course, with many people regretting the way the area has changed. But what struck me was how many people spoke about the changes as a good thing too.

“The liveliness of the area, everything on your doorstep – and lots of people new to the area talked about enjoying the variety.”

The 45-minute Listening Trail (http://govanhillpeopleshistory.com/audio-tour/) begins in Govanhill Library, and winds its way around the local streets, taking in landmarks like Govanhill Baths and Holy Cross Church.

It includes recollections about how the local shops have changed, about school life, children’s games and going to the cinema. It also reveals much about life in the old tenements, going the baths, and first impressions of coming to live in Govanhill.

The Trail is designed to match the stories you hear with what you can see about you as you walk along, and the voiceovers were all done by students of Holyrood Secondary.

Govanhill Library itself has fantastic links with community groups. It is home to six Diversity Windows created to depict people’s own memories of Govanhill from the Dixon Blazes to present day.

It’s the perfect place for our next Thanks for the Memories drop-in event. If you have tales to tell about Govanhill’s past, please come and see us and bring any photographs and memorabilia you’d like to share.

Bob Marshall adds: “Over and over again throughout the project, people would tell us how safe and secure they felt in Govanhill.

“That may sound a little odd, given the often negative coverage the area gets in the press – which was really what started this project in the first place.”

He adds: “People told us they liked Govanhill because of the warmth and friendliness, the great Glasgow welcome. We know this about our city, of course, but it’s nice to actually hear it said alound.

“One woman I spoke to summed it up, when she said that in Govanhill, you learn how to be a Glaswegian, and I think that’s true.”

If you cannot make it along on May 29, email your stories and photographs to ann.fotheringham@heraldandtimes.co.uk