Time Travel for Beginners: How I Accidentally Went Viral

If you had told me last week that 30,000 of you would be staring at a photo of a pub on Argyle Street, I’d have asked what you were drinking.

But here we are. My recent "Then & Now" post of the Grant Arms exploded in a way I didn't expect. It seems I’m not the only one obsessed with peeling back the layers of Glasgow and beyond, to see what lies beneath.

For those who missed it, here is the shot that started the madness:

The Grant Arms - Then

The Grant Arms, Argyle Street, Glasgow c.1930 (Image courtesy of Past Glasgow Facebook Page)

vs. Now

The Grant Arms, December 2025 (Lomond Photography)

The Ghost Village Beneath Our Feet

The inspiration for this sudden dive into the archives wasn't actually the pub itself—it was a village that doesn't exist anymore.

I’d been reading about Grahamston. If you haven't heard of it, Grahamston isn't a fictional town from a fantasy novel; it was a real, bustling village that stood right where Glasgow Central Station stands today.

Before the Victorians decided they needed a massive train station (and to be fair, it is a very nice station), Grahamston was the heart of the area. It had its own theatre, breweries, and a main drag called Alston Street (The Alston Grill anyone?? Now it all makes sense!!). When the station was built in the 1870s, the village was essentially buried alive.

Legend has it that if you go deep enough into the bowels of Central Station, you can still find the cobbles of Alston Street. That idea—that the past isn't gone, just paved over—got me thinking. The Grant Arms is one of the few survivors from that era, a lonely sentinel from a lost village standing in the shadow of the Heilanman's Umbrella. I had to see if I could match the view.

The "Simple" Art of Re-photography

"How hard can it be?" I thought. "I have the old photo. I have a camera. I just stand where they stood."

BUT, it is not that simple!

I have learned very quickly that Victorian photographers and I have very different approaches to geometry. Here is what I’ve learned about the dark art of the "Then & Now" shot:

1. Zoom with your feet, not your lens.

My first instinct was to stand back and zoom in. Rookie mistake. The lenses used in the 1900s had completely different compression to modern glass. If you want the buildings to line up, you can't just crop; you have to physically move. This usually involves me looking like a confused tourist, shuffling back and forth three inches at a time, muttering to myself while commuters try to avoid hitting me. Big up to the Deliveroo cyclist who waited on me to finish my shot though!

2. The Angle is Everything.

You realize very quickly that the street level has changed, or the pavement has widened, or—most annoyingly—someone has planted a very inconvenient bus stop in the last 100 years. You have to become a forensic investigator, lining up window ledges and chimney stacks to triangulate the exact spot the original photographer stood. The Grant Arms isnt perfect, but its not far off!

3. People look at you funny.

When you are standing still in the middle of a busy Glasgow street, holding a printout of an old photo up to the horizon and squinting, people assume you are either lost or up to no good.

The animated journey through time really brings it to life.

The transition from Then to Now - Proof that while fashions change, the need for a good pint remains constant

Why We Love It

Despite the strange looks and the traffic dodging, there is something magic about it. When the lines finally match up—when the roofline of a modern building snaps perfectly into place with a grainy image from 1920—it’s like a little click of connection.

I find it mildly fascinating that we are just walking through the same scenes as the people before us, just with different clothes and slightly better dentistry!

I’ve been trying this out closer to home in Loch Lomond as well, and the results are just as cool.

Balloch Hotel (House) - Then

Balloch Hotel c.1905 (Image courtesy of Vale of Leven History)

Balloch House - Now

Balloch House, December 2025 (Lomond Photography)

Notice how the trees have disappeared and the building has extended?

From The Balloch Hotel to The Balloch House

I’ve got a few more of these lined up (and a few more archives to dig through). If there’s a specific spot in Glasgow or the Loch you’d love to see the "Then & Now" treatment, let me know in the comments. I’m always looking for a new excuse to stand in the middle of the street looking confused.

Thanks for the 30,000 views, folks. Let’s see where we travel to next.