The first full account of the event which changed how Glasgow sees itself and how it is seen by the world
At the Glasgow Garden Festival 4.3 million visitors enjoyed 120 acres of attractions and more than 50 different entertainments on each of 152 days.
Based on years of research and extensive interviews, this book tells the whole story of how that event came about, how it was made, what was there and what became of it.
The 1988 Glasgow Garden Festival will be published summer 2026. You can support the project by pre-ordering your copy below. A print of a detailed sketch map of the Garden Festival is available to order immediately.
The 1988 Glasgow Garden Festival (pre-order)
A 240-page hardback book (size 250 x 240mm), lavishly illustrated in full colour throughout and printed in Glasgow.
- The history of the Glasgow Garden Festival, from its roots in post-war West Germany to the site as it is today
- Hundreds of photographs, diagrams and documents, many previously unpublished
- A comprehensive gazetteer of 230+ Festival features and the stories behind them
- A detailed plan of the entire Festival site, indexed with exhibits
- The words of the people who made the the Festival
- What happened to the exhibits and where some can be seen today
- Topics index and index of people
Delivery is only possible to addresses within the UK. £5.00 postage will be applied. Orders are to be shipped from the 7 July 2026.
Two low-resolution preview sample page spreads are available for download in pdf format here.
From late 2021, Lex Lamb was the leader of After the Garden Festival, a project which (with support from Glasgow City Heritage Trust) coordinated the generation of an unrivalled, digital and largely crowdsourced archive relating to the Glasgow Garden Festival as well as guided walks, talks, the publication of a walking trail, archaeological investigation of the Festival site and the installation of interpretation panels at Festival Park. That experience led him into months of research and interviews with many of the individuals involved with the Garden Festival at all levels, and this forthcoming book is the result.
If you have any enquiries concerning the book or print, please use the email link at the foot of the page.
Available now: ‘Sketch map of the 1988 Glasgow Garden Festival’ print
Glasgow Garden Festival sketch map
This large (100cm w x 50cm h) landscape-format unframed print is now available. It shows every traceable garden, pavilion, artwork or other feature of the Garden Festival, with a full index of titles. Printed on 200gsm matt art paper. Delivery is included in the price and takes approximately five working days. The print can be framed professionally by the purchaser, or a suitable and economical frame – is available can be ordered online from B&Q (and is supplied on their behalf by a Glasgow-based company). The print in the image above has been framed this way.