THE sun rises over the upper reaches of the River Clyde in Glasgow a potent symbol of a new dawn for the Gorbals.

Our stunning picture, taken yesterday morning, shows the morning sun over the illuminated tidal weir with the chimney of the Adelphi distillery in the background.

The stretch of river is beyond the shipyards, docks and quays, and flows through two of the city's most diverse and colourful communities.

On the north bank is Glasgow Green - the city's most precious area of green space. It houses splendid monuments and buildings, including the People's Palace and the stunning architecture of the former Templeton carpet factory.

Directly across the river is the Gorbals once best known for violence, deprivation, squalor, poverty and some calamitous housing experiments.

The pace of change may be less dramatic than the iconic developments further downriver but the effects of the multi-billion pound regeneration efforts can still be felt.

And as developers cast their eyes eastwards, the changes so far are only the tip of the iceberg.

For James Mutter, who has lived in the Gorbals all his life, the transformation in the area has been nothing short of remarkable.

For 23 years he has been the local councillor and will retire at the May elections, content that he has done his bit to improve things.

"People would look at the Gorbals and think No Mean City' it's certainly not that now," he said.

"When it came to regeneration we were ahead of the game. We started in 1984 and the first thing we did was demolish some of the housing mistakes of the 1960s and 70s.

"It's a different place now. No-one would have thought then there would be houses selling for £200,000 to £250,000 in the Gorbals.

"Some people will say it has put the price of housing out of reach of local people but we have a good mix and I think it has brought the area up."

Many of the new houses in Gorbals, Laurieston, Hutchesontown and nearby Oatlands will face the river and a £2.2million riverside walkway - the Clyde Promenade - is planned.

"It will be a terrific walk. This is a lovely part of the Clyde, we have an absolutely beautiful view looking across the river," said Mr Mutter.

Glasgow Green was granted to the people of Glasgow in 1450 by King James ll and the people guard it jealously.

Over the years it has been used for grazing cattle, as a place of relaxation, the site of the city's first "steamie", an area for radical protest - it has seen at least one public hanging - and the site of the first Rangers match.

The magnificent Templeton carpet factory was built in 1889 by architect William Leiper and styled on the lines of the Doge's Palace in Venice.

The People's Palace was opened by the Earl of Rosebery in 1898 as a cultural centre for the people of the East End.

The Green is seeing changes as developers seek to build on the success of the Merchant City and make communities such as Dennistoun and Calton more desirable and up-market.

Flats have been built on to what was once an extension of the Templeton factory.

Architect Peter Richardson, of ZM Architecture, said: "The flats next to the Doge's Palace are all occupied now and it's likely the main building will remain commercial.

"There's a mix of people working inside it now, including an NHS Trust organisation, a brewery and an art studio it has a whole new lease of life.

"The whole area is the same. Eight years ago developers would not have gone past the High Street, it was seen as too dodgy and not in the city centre.

"If you walk through Glasgow Green now, past the fountains, it is all landscaped and there are people there all the year round.

"We see activity in the streets and it's a much safer place to be."

Connecting the two areas is the ornate St Andrew's suspension bridge, built in 1855 as a replacement for a workers' ferry.

On the river there is a plan to replace the two old rowing stations - one of which is A-listed - with a state-of-the-art boathouse on the north bank.

Regeneration may be less dramatic on this stretch of river but there's a lot more to come. River comes alive again

For the past three summers the Glasgow River Festival has seen the Clyde buzz with activity for a weekend to celebrate its maritime heritage.

The centrepiece of the festival has been the tall ship Glenlee, built in 1896 at Port Glasgow and until recently berthed near the SECC.

In 2005 the river was dredged to allow the liner Shieldhall to visit the festival - and it is hoped more equally spectacular vessels will make appearances in the future.

There are boat trips, dinghy sailing and power boating on the river and the emphasis is on education covering the Clyde's shipping heritage.

Last year more than 75,000 attended the festival, held at the start of the Glasgow Fair holiday.