The short version: Saturday 9 May, 10am–5pm, Hampden Park, tickets from £12. If you have ever caught yourself glancing twice at a stranger's wrist, this one is for you.
The Glasgow Watch Show returns to the National Stadium for its second outing on Scottish soil, and on the strength of last year's debut the Watch Collectors' Club have made it bigger: over 40 brands from across Europe, a programme of panels with founders and designers, accessory stands, and a sponsor line-up led by Edinburgh auctioneers Lyon & Turnbull.
You can find Hampden at Letherby Drive, G42 9BA, with parking on site and Mount Florida station a five-minute walk away. Tickets start at £12 via the organiser's website, and the doors are open from 10am until 5pm.
A hometown showcase
There is a real Glasgow flavour to this year's bill. Anordain, the Dennistoun-based atelier whose hand-fired vitreous enamel dials have built them a quietly devoted international following, return as one of two Premium Exhibitors. They are joined by Paulin, the Glasgow design studio whose pared-back, Bauhaus-tinged watches have done as much as anyone to put modern Scottish design on the wrist. Scotland Watch Company, based just outside the city, will also be on hand with a trio of timepieces stitched through with Scottish detailing.
Sharing top billing with Anordain is Bamford London, the customisation house run by George Bamford, who is bringing the new ceramic D-300 Dive Watch up north for the occasion.
What to look out for
For collectors, the draw is the sheer breadth of independent watchmaking under one roof. Christopher Ward, Farer, Baltic, Nodus, Studio Underdog and Horage will all be exhibiting; James Porter and Sons are bringing pieces from Awake, Formex, Nomos and Sinn — names that rarely turn up together in the same room outside London or Geneva.
Aviation specialists Bremont are using the show to give visitors an early look at their forthcoming Altitude range. Swiss dive-watch institution Doxa will be there in full technicolour, German Bauhaus stalwarts Junghans are making the trip, and Mr. Jones Watches are coming with their cheerfully unconventional takes on telling the time. Meistersinger, the single-handed-dial people, will reliably make you reconsider what a watch face needs to do.
There is also a panel area where founders and industry figures will be talking design, manufacturing and the state of the independent scene — handy if you are more interested in the why than the price tag.
For the curious as well as the committed
You do not need to own anything more exotic than a Casio to enjoy a day here. Stallholders at last year's show were notably patient with first-timers, and a £12 ticket is a fair price for an afternoon of looking, asking daft questions, and trying things on. Children get in too, and Hampden's café and concourse make it an easy stop for families combining a visit with a wander round the South Side.
If you fancy turning it into a full day out, Queen's Park is a ten-minute walk away and the Glasgow Blythswood Festival is running across the city centre the same weekend.
In short
The Glasgow Watch Show, Hampden Park, Saturday 9 May 2026, 10am–5pm. Tickets from £12 at thewatchcollectorsclub.com. Bring a loupe, or just bring your curiosity.
