If all pubs were like UTOPIA, the world would be a better place
What: UTOPIA by Trackie McLeod
Where: Aviva Studios, Home of Factory International
Showing until: Saturday 21 February 2026
Tickets: Tickets for shows are currently sold out, but Trackie’s Happy Hour is free to attend.
Aviva Studios, Home of Factory International says: UTOPIA is an art installation that happens to be a pub - with real pints, music, performances and more.
Playfully exploring nostalgia, class, identity, gentrification and the changing landscapes of Glasgow and Manchester, this installation raises a glass to the places that shaped us.
Created by artist Trackie McLeod with Factory International’s Young Curators, UTOPIA revives the warmth of the working men’s clubs McLeod grew up in in Glasgow - by building a working pub inside Factory International’s Warehouse space.
Harley says:
Entering UTOPIA was like stepping back in time to my childhood. The moment I walked through the entrance, I was transported to the working class pubs my grandad would take me in as a little ‘un. There I was, sitting in the corner with a colouring book, packet of crisps and a bottle of Panda Pop to keep me entertained while he caught up with his mates over a pint of bitter and a cigarette (back before the indoor smoking ban of ‘07, of course).
Minus the Stars In Their Eyes level of smoke wafting about the place, at first glance, the place looked almost identical to what I remember from all those years ago. A wave of nostalgia washed over me.
Delving deeper, I realised not all was as it seemed; darts boards plastered with cut-out heads of Tories, fruit machines that give out chocolate coins, a framed hi-vis vest adorned in the signature Louis Vuitton print, and traditional gold leaf-engraved mirror art reading heartwarming motivational quotes like ‘never in a million queers will there be another you’.
The installation, created by Glaswegian artist Trackie McLeod, as part of Factory International’s Young Curators programme, playfully explores identity, class and gentrification in the setting of a makeshift typical British flat-roof pub.
On opening night (Thursday 19 February), UTOPIA’s function room-esque stage was commandeered by hilariously iconic drag sensation Bailey J Mills, who (alongside her equally fabulous support, Skylar Cister) had the room in hysterics all evening long.
Despite not having drank alcohol in a long time, I left UTOPIA feeling tipsily giddy on endorphins from an evening working class community and top tier entertainment from an outstanding lineup of grassroots artists.
A huge bravo to Trackie, Factory International, and all the artists and performers involved in this one.
If all pubs were like UTOPIA, the world would be a better place.
While tickets for performances are now sold out, audiences can drop by UTOPIA for a free drink during Trackie’s Happy Hour each afternoon, while the artist himself works a shift behind the bar.
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