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By FruitMonkey (Own work) [ CC BY-SA 3.0 ], via Wikimedia Commons
From the Western Mail Online:
Mysteries of Bridgend's 500-year-old house set to be unlocked by restoration bid
Formerly owned by Walter Coffin who was related by marriage to Dr Richard Price. Richard Price was a Welsh philospher and political activist who supported the American Revolution.
From the Wikipedia: "The support Price gave to the colonies of British North America in the American War of Independence made him famous. In early 1776 he published Observations on the Nature of Civil Liberty, the Principles of Government, and the Justice and Policy of the War with America. Sixty thousand copies of this pamphlet were sold within days; and a cheap edition was issued which sold twice as many copies. It commended Shelburne's proposals for the colonies, and attacked the Declaratory Act. Amongst its critics were Adam Ferguson, William Markham, John Wesley, and Edmund Burke; and Price rapidly became one of the best known men in England. He was presented with the freedom of the city of London, and it is said that his pamphlet had a part in determining the Americans to declare their independence. A second pamphlet on the war with America and the debts of Great Britain, followed in the spring of 1777.".... read more here (Dr Richard Price)
"It is a story of conflict and conciliation, of antagonism and integration, of greed and generosity.”
This is how Cerys Matthews begins her voice over of the first video in The Dragon and the Eagle / Y Ddraig a’r Eryr, an enhanced eBook on Wales and America. Published digitally by Cardiff based Thud Media, the English language version was launched on August 30 at the North American Festival of Wales in Minneapolis by its author/producer Colin Thomas.
The term ‘app’ understates what a breakthrough this is in Welsh publishing. For the first time in Wales, history is being related by means of video, music, interactive maps and text in a single digital product.The project tells the often dramatic story of the way that Welsh emigrants became Welsh Americans and how they maintained their distinctive identity over four hundred years.
It includes some forgotten Welsh American heroes – farmer Cadwalder Morgan who spoke out against slavery, missionary Evan Jones who stuck with the Cherokee Indians during their ‘Vale of Tears’ exile, and miner’s wife Mary Thomas who played a leading role in a bloody strike in Colorado.
But it doesn’t ignore those who tarnished the reputation of Welsh Americans – dentist Hiram W. Evans, who became the leader of the Ku Klux Klan, and Llewellyn Morris Humphreys, aka ‘Murray the Hump’, right hand man of Al Capone.The video sections in the project include some of Humphreys’ home movie footage.
The thirteen video sections come from both American and Welsh film archives, much of the Welsh archive generously contributed by BBC Wales, ITVWales and Sianel Pedwar Cymru. S4C Digital and Welsh Books Council also gave funding support to this bilingual project.
The Dragon and the Eagle is now available for iOS and Android devices:
● GB iTunes App Store link:
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/thedragonandtheeagle/id911462417?mt=8
● US iTunes App Store link:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/thedragonandtheeagle/id911462417?mt=8
The Welsh language version, Y Ddraig a’r Eryr is also available on both iOS and Android:
● GB iTunes (Welsh Language)
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/yddraigareryr/id932895503?mt=8
● US iTunes (Welsh Language)
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/yddraigareryr/id932895503?mt=8
A bilingual trailer/intro is available at www.thudmedia.com/ and clips or sound tracks from other sections can be made available for publicity purposes. Colin Thomas is available for interview, Helen Davies for Welsh language interviews and Ben Cawthorne, its designer, for technical aspects of the project.
Colin Thomas was a BBC staff director until he resigned ove rwhat he saw as censorship of programmes he had directed in Northern Ireland. Since then he has produced C4’s history of Wales The Dragon has Two Tongues , directed dramas and documentaries for ITV, S4C, C4 and the BBC and has written the book Dreaming A City on the embattled city of Donetsk. His awards include a Prix Europa, the Jury Award at the Celtic Media Festival and, on three occasions ,the Best Documentary/DramaDocumentary award from BAFTA Cymru. The Financial Times wrote of C4’s The Divided Kingdom that it “bears the name of Colin Thomas as one of its directors, a guarantee of intelligence and scrupulous integrity.” Bill Jones, the Professor of Modern Welsh History at Cardiff University, describes The Dragon and the Eagle as “a very lively, entertaining and informative work; it tells the story of the Welsh in America in an excitingly new and innovative way.”
Colin Thomas
| #fff; line-height: 125px; text-align: center; background: #859fbe;" a="" target="_blank" href="http://www.amazon.com/Shedding-Paper-Skin-Mike-Jenkins/dp/184527508X%3FSubscriptionId%3DAKIAJVIGQN4FG3JO2YYQ%26tag%3Damericymrucom-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D184527508X"> BUY! | ........ | #fff; line-height: 125px; text-align: center; background: #859fbe;"> BARKIN! | .... | #fff; line-height: 125px; text-align: center; background: #859fbe;"> Interview | .... | #fff; line-height: 125px; text-align: center; background: #859fbe;" a="" target="_blank" href="http://www.mikejenkins.net/"> Blog |
"The title poem marks Mike Jenkins transition from the teaching profession to a free-ranging life hereafter"
I n this new collection of his work, there's a wide variety of subject matter and approach. His longer poem, 'Journey of the Taf', traces the river's journey from watershed to sea; a sequence of poems on the Troubles of Northern Ireland takes many viewpoints, including that of a car and a chair! He pays homage to poets, dead and alive and there's verse voicing concern about threats of a seagull (see below) on Cardiff Central station. Through all his work the poet's wit and passion is pervasive."
Mike Jenkins is a retired teacher who lives in Merthyr Tydfil. He conducts creative writing workshops and blogs weekly on www.mikejenkins.net .
BARKIN!, his previous book of poems and stories, written in the Merthyr dialect, was shortlisted for Wales Book of the Year in 2014. He has been the editor of Red Poets for 20 years.
Kairdiff Central Seagull
I've never felt threatened by a seagull before,
but this one's got 'STREET'
written along its beak,
which suddenly looks sharp
as a Stanley knife.
...
I wouldn't be surprised
by its swagger and attitude
if it wasn't into NWA or Tupac.
...
It eyes up my food
as if it already owns it
and I recall those stories of seabirds
snatching pasties or putting eyes out.
...
Those days spent by Aber pier
throwing crusts to balletic birds
seem a century away,
this creature's Kairdiff Central
born and bred, could pick
a packet from the rails
just before the inter-city's in.
...
It struts around me:
I am surrounded by a single bird!
Its pupils are two barrels
aiming straight at my cheese and celery.
...
I gulp the sandwich whole
like a heron with a fish.
Bro seagull saunters off
to mug a kid with a burger.
...
© Mike Jenkins 2015 (reproduced by kind permission of the author)
....and the the many millions of Americans who claim Welsh descent. I refer of course to the following:-
Film inspired by Gareth Thomas relocated to Ireland as the US ‘won’t get Wales’
In my opinion the film will be trash as a consequence. This is a Welsh story which took place in Wales involving Welsh characters. Now of course everyone will be carrying shillaleghs and drinking Guiness and the whole thing will be turned into a pantomime farce. Who knows...perhaps there will be a few leprechauns thrown in as well for good measure? Personally I will be boycotting this travesty and I hope it flops
If you are reading this and you are similarly outraged please go to https://www.facebook.com/AmeriCymru?ref=hl and add your voice to the growing chorus of protest against this decision. The relevant post is pinned to the top of the feed......diolch 
Also please consider emailing Cargo Entertainment ( the production company ) to tell them what you think of them. This is their email address:- info@cargoentertainment.com
If you are on Twitter you can also tweet one of the Producers here @CostiganMichael
RE: 'STOLEN THUNDER'
To whom it may concern
Your claim that American cinema audiences will not 'get Wales' is every bit as absurd as it is insulting. Let's deal with the absurdity first:-
1. The President of the USA recently visited Wales for a NATO summit. He had no trouble finding it. Perhaps he had foreknowledge of its existence or maybe he used a map? Either way I contend that few people in the US, in the post Torchwood era, do not know what Wales is or where it is. Your claim to the contrary is both patronising and grossly insulting to American film audiences.
2. You are currently producing another movie called 'The Price'. I hope you won't object if I quote from the synopsis on this page:- http://www.cargoentertainment.com/the-price/
"Clare and her 5-year-old son Finn are in hiding in rural FRANCE after an ugly custody dispute with his father Liam. She wakes in the middle of the night to find Jonas, one of Liam’s cronies, kidnapping Finn. She tracks Liam down to BERLIN ....."
I don't know whether this movie will be produced on location in France and Germany but I note that you have not changed the setting to Dublin in order to avoid confusion. Wales is, if anything, a slightly less exotic venue than either of these two.
3. Assuming for a moment that you were correct and that US movie audiences do not 'get Wales' would this not make the film all the more interesting? What makes you think that people constantly want more of the same?
And so to the insult:-
1. This is a Welsh story which took place in Wales involving real Welsh people. Indeed Gareth Thomas is something of a sporting and cultural icon. Therefore, in my opinion, your use of his life story without reference either to him or Wales is an act of blatant cultural 'appropriation'. Perhaps appropriation is too mild a term?
2. It has been suggested that this film will help members of the gay community by highlighting the pain that they go through when 'coming out'. I sincerely hope it does. But I doubt that is your true goal. If so, It seems o dd that you would choose to dilute the impact of the movie by removing its true protagonist. It is also strange that you would seek to better the lot of one minority by viciously insulting another. The Welsh are a minority in the UK and some would claim that they are an oppressed minority also.
Please be aware that if you deign to respond, I may publicly reproduce all, or parts, of your reply.
Ceri Shaw
COMMENTS FROM THE OLD AMERICYMRU SITE
Hi Christopher
Many thanks for posting and of course you are entirely correct vis a vis the announcement in the Telegraph BUT if you go to this page you will plainly see that 'Irish Thunder' is still listed as a pre-production project:- http://www.cargoentertainment.com/irish-thunder/
SO...yes the Gareth Thomas movie has been cancelled BUT at the moment the massively insulting (imho ) 'replacement' project is still due to go ahead. No one would be happier than me to learn that the whole thing has been shelved BUT there is little indication of that on the Cargo Entertainment website.
What appears to be the case is that the Gareth Thomas biopic has been cancelled and a rather trashy exploitation flic has been substituted for it.
Christopher Benson April 19, 2015 at 2:35am
It tuns out that this is a false alarm. Yes it was a slight against Wales, but it is going no further. There will be no movie (or at least not THAT one). The following extract is from an article that appeared in the Daily Telegraph exactly two months ago on 18 February 2015. It is an interview with Gareth Thomas by Jasper Rees. I draw your attention to the last four words of the first paragraph below:
And yet there is no getting away from his story. The film world is naturally keen to get in on the act, and the first person to pop up was Mickey Rourke who, though 20 years Thomas’s senior, seemed eager to take the lead himself. The project fell through.
“It was like a car crash,” he says. Thomas is keen not to dwell on it, although he’s now working on a new film with another writer.
Jasper Rees, in the Culture Section of the Daily Telegraph, 19 February 2015.
The full Daily Telegraph article is here. My extract quoted above is around the 18th or 19th paragraph. On most browsers you can type Ctrl-F then rourke to find it). So the slight against Wales was small - very small by the usual historical distortions that emanate from Hollywood - just a slight slight against Wales, if you will.
But who is going to tell Fiona Audley of the Irish Post (Twitter @fifiaudley) that her 13 April 2015 is "all for naught"?
The Wikipedia article on Gareth Thomas has been reporting since 21 February 2015 that the Rourke film project was cancelled, and the Daily Telegraph reported it on 19 February.
It is obvious from the February 2015 article that the "coming out" aspect of the Gareth Thomas story was made into a play by the National Theatre Wales called "Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage" (Cymraeg). It was set to open that night for a scheduled 17 day run in Cardiff before Touring Wales and England that will end 121 days later near the end of June after a 32 day run in London.
There are no plans to take the Gareth Thomas play to Southern California - or Ireland for that matter.
Chris Benson.
gaabi April 19, 2015 at 10:26am
Only the Gareth Thomas part of the film is cancelled, Rourke IS still making a film about a gay rugby player but he'll now be a made-up Irish guy instead - THAT is the problem. If you look at the Cargo Entertainment page Ceri cited above, you'll see it, production is supposed to start in February 2016.
Christopher Benson April 20, 2015 at 1:02am
Yes Gaabi and Ceri, I agree that this is an affront to a respectable and respected Welshman, our national sport, and even to honesty. It is yet another example of Hollywood's litany of historical distortions, but most are more prominent than this one will be. The good news is that nobody goes to see movies that Cargo Entertainment are involved in.
As a fellow "Left Coast" resident of the States, I know that this kind of distortion of the facts is unnecessary and the supposed logic behind it does not reflect the average American.
This Hollywood aversion to the truth is so pervasive that I would almost feel insulted if the Welsh were not their occasional target like everyone else.
Now I find THIS insulting to the Welsh (at the 1:00 minute mark). It aired on HBO in North America on Sunday July 20, 2014.
As I posted to an American forum at the time:
The Welshman insulted at the 1:00 minute mark is twenty year old Rhys Jones from Pontypridd, Wales. He has cerebral palsy and he can run faster than you.
gaabi April 22, 2015 at 11:23pm
Good for you, Christopher!
And this especially made me happy: "...nobody goes to see movies that Cargo Entertainment are involved in." Yes, I recall their many nominations and box office boffo... wait, no..
The Chicago Tafia Welsh Society April 19, 2015 at 12:13am
It's a rather pathetic reason and one that doesn't make sense on any level. Trying to contact the producers and actors in the film, it's still in preproduction so there is a chance changes could be made.
Ceri Shaw April 19, 2015 at 10:23am
Gwych....will be doing likewise
Ceri Shaw April 18, 2015 at 11:20am
Looking forward to Mickey's next film 'Owain Seamus Glyndwr - The Great Irish Freedom Fighter'
Ceri Shaw April 17, 2015 at 6:25pm
I just read that the movie will be called 'Irish Thunder' ??????? Words fail me!
gaabi April 22, 2015 at 11:24pm
Poster coming soon....
Don't forget St Dwynwen's Day - The Welsh Valentine's Day. Send your card now!!!!!
We include a few sample images below. Browse the full selection here:- St Dwynwen's Day Ecards on The AmeriCymru Bookstore
New Welsh Writing Awards 2016: University of South Wales Prize for Travel Writing opens for entries
By AmeriCymru, 2016-01-23
Press Release
Tuesday 19 January 2016
New Welsh Writing Awards 2016: University of South Wales Prize for Travel Writing opens for entries.
www.newwelshwritingawards.com
The New Welsh Writing Awards 2016: University of South Wales Prize for Travel Writing has opened for entries on 19 January 2016 and closes at midnight on Sunday 3 April 2016. The Prize is run in association with the University of South Wales and CADCentre and celebrates the best short form travel writing (5,000-30,000 words) from emerging and established writers based in the UK and Ireland plus those who have been educated in Wales. The judges are New Welsh Review editor Gwen Davies and award winning travel writer Rory MacLean, author of ten books including best sellers Stalin's Nose , Under the Dragon and Berlin: Imagine a City .
First prize is £1,000 cash, e-publication by New Welsh Review on their New Welsh Rarebyte imprint in 2016, a positive critique by leading literary agent Cathryn Summerhayes at WME, as well as lunch with her in London. Second prize is a weeklong residential course in 2016 of the winner’s choice at Tŷ Newydd Writing Centre in Gwynedd, north Wales. Third prize is a weekend stay at Gladstone’s Library in Flintshire, north Wales. All three winners will also receive a one-year subscription to the magazine. In addition New Welsh Review will consider the highly commended and shortlisted nominees for publication in a forthcoming edition of its creative magazine New Welsh Reader with an associated standard fee.
The longlist will be announced on 20 April 2016, with the shortlist announced at an event at Hay Festival on 1 June 2016 and the winner at a ceremony at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff on 7 July 2016. Full details, including terms and conditions, can be found online at www.newwelshwritingawards.com .
The New Welsh Writing Awards 2015: WWF Cymru Prize for Writing on Nature and the Environment was won by Eluned Gramich for Woman Who Brings the Rain: A memoir of Hokkaido, Japan (published 15 October 2015, £2.99 Kindle ebook). Eluned said about her win: “This Prize has given me the confidence to treat my writing seriously. I’m now writing a novel again, and this time I am determined not to give up.”
Gwen Davies , editor of New Welsh Review says: “Since economy and precision is what journals champion, it's right that these awards celebrate the shorter publishing formats that our digital age has made possible. When fellow judge, prize winning travel author Rory MacLean and myself make our adjudication next summer, I'm sure we will unveil a host of talent to add to the stable of writers on travel that have already found a home in the pages of the magazine. I hope that Rory's ambition, invention and stunning prose style will inspire newcomers to the genre and veteran travel hands alike.”
Co-judge Rory MacLean says “Only by experiencing the world from another person's point of view can we begin to understand that person or society. Borders are bridged most powerfully by individuals, through characters and stories, by evoking empathy. Hence the enduring importance of travel and travel writing, and of this competition that goes to the very heart of the matter.”
Dr Nic Dunlop , Head of English at the University of South Wales, said: "We are delighted to be working with New Welsh Review to find the best writing talent in Wales and beyond. This Prize has already discovered Eluned Gramich’s beautifully crafted essay writing and we are very much looking forward to revealing more talented writers of the future."
Ali Anwar , Managing Director of CADCentre UK, added: "The CADCentre is delighted to support the New Welsh Writing Awards for a second time, celebrating the work of writers from Wales and those who are educated here nurtures and raises the profile of our writing talent. Building links between the business and the arts communities should be a creative experience and a source of inspiration for both, especially in a country which has a deep and innate respect for culture."
The New Welsh Writing Awards 2016: University of South Wales Prize for Travel Writing is sponsored by the University of South Wales and CADCentre UK. New Welsh Review has also partnered with WME , Gladstone’s Library and T ŷ Newydd Writing Centre for this project. New Welsh Review Ltd is supported through core funding by the Welsh Books Council and hosted by Aberystwyth University Department of English and Creative Writing.
Datganiad i’r Wasg
Mawrth 19 Ionawr 2016
Gwobrau New Welsh Writing 2016: Gwobr Prifysgol De Cymru ar gyfer Ysgrifennu Taith ar agor i ymgeiswyr
Ar 19 Ionawr 2016 agorodd Gwobr Prifysgol De Cymru ar gyfer Ysgrifennu Taith: Gwobrau New Welsh Writing 2016 i ymgeiswyr a bydd yn cau am hanner nos ar 3 Ebrill 2016. Caiff y Wobr ei rhedeg mewn cydweithrediad â Phrifysgol De Cymru a CADCentre ac mae’n dathlu’r ysgrifennu taith byr gorau (5,000-30,000 o eiriau) gan lenorion newydd a phrofiadol yn y DU ac Iwerddon ynghyd â’r rheini sydd wedi’u haddysgu yng Nghymru. Y Beirniaid yw Golygydd New Welsh Review Gwen Davies a’r llenor taith arobryn Rory MacLean, awdur deg o lyfrau gan gynnwys y cyfrolau poblogaidd Stalin's Nose , Under the Dragon a Berlin: Imagine a City .
Y wobr gyntaf yw £1,000, e-gyhoeddi gan New Welsh Review ar eu gwasgnod New Welsh Rarebyte yn 2016, beirniadaeth gadarnhaol gan yr asiant llenyddol blaenllaw Cathryn Summerhayes yn WME, yn ogystal â chinio gyda hi yn Llundain. Yr ail wobr yw dewis o gwrs preswyl wythnos o hyd yn 2016 yng Nghanolfan Ysgrifennu Tŷ Newydd yng Ngwynedd. Y drydedd wobr yw arhosiad dros benwythnos yn Llyfrgell Gladstone yn Sir y Fflint. Bydd y tri enillydd hefyd yn derbyn tanysgrifiad o flwyddyn i’r cylchgrawn. Yn ogystal, bydd New Welsh Review yn ystyried cyhoeddi gwaith yr enwebeion a gymeradwyir yn uchel a’r rhai ar y rhestr fer mewn rhifyn o’r cylchgrawn creadigol New Welsh Reader yngyhyd â ffi safonol gysylltiedig.
Cyhoeddir y rhestr hir ar 20 Ebrill 2016, gyda’r rhestr fer yn cael ei chyhoeddi mewn digwyddiad yng Ngŵyl y Gelli ar 1 Mehefin 2016, a’r enillydd mewn seremoni yng Ngholeg Brenhinol Cerdd a Drama Cymru ar 7 Gorffennaf 2016. Ceir manylion llawn, gan gynnwys y telerau ac amodau, ar-lein: www.newwelshwritingawards.com http://www.newwelshwritingawards.com .
Enillwyd Gwobr WWF Cymru ar gyfer Ysgrifennu am Natur a’r Amgylchedd: Gwobrau New Welsh Writing 2015 gan Eluned Gramich am Woman Who Brings the Rain: A memoir of Hokkaido, Japan (cyhoeddwyd 15 Hydref 2015, £2.99 elyfr Kindle). Wrth son am ei champ dywedodd Eluned: “Mae’r Wobr hon wedi rhoi’r hyder i fi drin fy ysgrifennu o ddifrif. Rwyf i nawr yn ysgrifennu nofel eto, a’r tro hwn rwy’n benderfynol o beidio â rhoi’r gorau iddi.”
Dywed Gwen Davies , golygydd New Welsh Review: “Cynildeb a chywirdeb yw’r hyn sy’n bwysig i newyddiadurwyr, ac felly mae’n iawn fod y gwobrau hyn yn dathlu’r fformatau cyhoeddi byrrach sydd bellach yn bosibl yn ein hoes ddigidol. Pan fydd fy nghyd-feirniad, yr awdur taith arobryn Rory MacLean a fi’n beirniadu’r haf nesaf, rwy’n siŵr y byddwn yn darganfod cyfoeth o dalent i ychwanegu at y stabl o lenorion taith sydd eisoes wedi canfod cartref yn nhudalennau’r cylchgrawn. Gobeithio y bydd uchelgais, dyfeisgarwch a rhyddiaith ysblennydd Rory’n ysbrydoli newydd-ddyfodiaid i’r genre a theithwyr profiadol fel ei gilydd.”
Yn ôl y cyd-feirniad Rory MacLean “Dim ond drwy brofi’r byd o safbwynt rhywun arall y gallwn ni ddechrau deall y person hwnnw neu’r gymdeithas honno. Caiff ffiniau eu pontio’n fwyaf pwerus gan unigolion, drwy gymeriadau a straeon, drwy ennyn empathi. Dyma’r rheswm am bwysigrwydd parhaus teithio ac ysgrifennu taith, a’r gystadleuaeth hon sy’n mynd i graidd y pwnc.”
Dywedodd Dr Nic Dunlop , Pennaeth Saesneg ym Mhrifysgol De Cymru : "Rydym ni wrth ein bod i fod yn gweithio gyda New Welsh Review i ddod o hyd i’r doniau ysgrifennu gorau yng Nghymru a thu hwnt. Mae’r Wobr hon eisoes wedi darganfod ysgrifau cain Eluned Gramich ac rydym ni’n edrych ymlaen yn fawr at ddatgelu rhagor o lenorion talentog y dyfodol.”
Ychwanegodd Ali Anwar , Rheolwr Gyfarwyddwr CADCentre UK: "Mae CADCentre yn falch iawn i gefnogi Gwobrau New Welsh Writing am yr ail dro, mae dathlu gwaith llenorion o Gymru a’r rhai sydd wedi’u haddysgu yma yn meithrin ac yn codi proffil ein doniau llenyddol. Dylai creu cysylltiadau rhwng y gymuned busnes a’r gymuned celfyddydau fod yn brofiad creadigol ac yn ysbrydoliaeth i’r ddwy gymuned, yn enwedig mewn gwlad sydd â pharch dwys a chynhenid at ddiwylliant.”
Noddir Gwobr Prifysgol De Cymru ar gyfer Ysgrifennu Taith: Gwobrau New Welsh Writing 2016 gan Brifysgol De Cymru a CADCentre UK. Mae New Welsh Review wedi creu partneriaeth gyda WME , Llyfrgell Gladstone a Chanolfan Ysgrifennu T ŷ Newydd ar gyfer y prosiect hwn. Cefnogir New Welsh Review Ltd drwy gyllid craidd Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru a’i gynnal yn Adran Saesneg ac Ysgrifennu Creadigol Prifysgol Aberystwyth.
AmeriCymru: Hi Paul and many thanks for agreeing to this interview. How would you describe your blog 'Hiraeth'? How often can we expect new posts?
Paul: Hiraeth is a collection of articles about Welsh history and politics. To be honest, the politics tend to be rather left-wing, but that reflects Wales’s proud history of socialism marked by events such as the Merthyr and Newport Risings and the proud history of the Labour movement and its connection with Wales. I am aiming for a weekly post but I may not succeed! There will also be a number of pages about the area in which I live and I am currently writing pages on the castles of North Wales, walks on Snowdon and the Llanberis area and on the narrow gauge railways of North Wales.
I am passionate about Wales and when I moved to Snowdonia early in 2007, I felt I had come home for the first time. Although I had lived in various places in England all my life, my mother’s side of the family were all from either in the Welsh valleys or the Llŷn peninsula and I loved my childhood visits to Wales. Moving here, I understood the meaning of hiraeth for the first time. As I say on my blog, it’s “the longing for, and bond with Wales; its timeless past, its language, its call to the spirit and its deep connection with the land: the rocks, the earth, the lakes, the rivers, the mountains, the valleys, the trees, the cliffs and the waves.” I’m sure that many Americymru members will identify with that.
AmeriCymru: I know you have covered this in a recent post but where do you stand on the 'St David's Day' agreement?
Paul: Like many Welsh people, I am angry and disappointed about the proposals of the St David’s Day agreement. Fundamentally, Westminster and Whitehall are firmly England-centric and do not understand that Wales (and of course Scotland and Northern Ireland) have distinct cultures and identities. No value is placed by the politicians and mandarins on that heritage and culture and they totally under-estimate how important they are to people of Wales. I look with envy at your federal system in the United States will which I would like to be the blueprint for the United Kingdom. Unlike the Scots people, Welsh people are generally happy to be in the Union but we would like to have day-to-day control of our own affairs.
AmeriCymru: You have covered many topics on your blog in the past. One such is the 'Cwm y Glo' explosion of 1869. What can you tell our readers about this incident?
Paul: I won’t reprise the content of the Cwm y Glo explosion as readers can click on the link and read about the biggest man-made explosion in Europe up to that point. It’s a good example of an incident in Welsh history that I believe needs to be remembered. I often write on the anniversary of an event taking place, sometimes the anniversary of the birth or death of somebody significant in Welsh history. Look for articles coming shortly on the greatest Prime Minister that Wales never had (NOT Neil Kinnock!) and on the contribution made by the South Wales miners to the Spanish Civil War.
AmeriCymru: In your post 'Why I Am a Welshman' you state that "Being Welsh isn’t a simple matter of your parents’ nationality." Care to expand on this theme a little?
Paul: As part of my Welsh history degree studies we looked at things that made Welsh people Welsh. I was very surprised to find that many of the iconic symbols were relatively recent (the daffodil as a symbol introduced by David Lloyd George in 1911 and the Welsh flag recognised only in 1959, for example) and although, like every other Welsh inhabitant, I am 100% Welsh for 80 minutes during each Six Nations game, rugby is far less part of Welsh culture than people would think.
No, I’m Welsh because I’m Welsh. Hiraeth called me to Wales in 2007 and despite living a life time in England, I knew I had come home. From my many happy holidays as a child spent in South Wales and later when I became the Wales liaison manager for the British Tourist Authority when I really got to know North Wales well and knew I would live here one day. As I said in the original post, “It’s all summed up in a line from our National Anthem (also found on the edge of Welsh £1 coins) - Pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad - True am I to my country. Dwi'n Gymro balch.”
AmeriCymru: You were active with the Occupy movement in Cardiff. Care to tell us a little about your experiences? Would you describe yourself as a left wing nationalist?
Paul: I really smiled at that question. I was delighted to go down to Cardiff and march with the “99%” who were making a stand against greedy capitalism and standing for social justice. I am a proud socialist, so left-wing certainly. However, I’m not a nationalist. As I said earlier whilst I believe passionately in Wales and Welsh identity, I am very happy also to be part of the United Kingdom. In many ways I really like Plaid Cymru as it is the most left-wing of all the political parties serving Wales. The problem is latent racism that I have detected in meeting with Plaid members who are often very anti-English and disparaging of non-Welsh speakers. I am a Welsh learner and can converse in Welsh as long as it doesn’t get too difficult but I’m not accepted in those circles because I’m not first language Welsh.
AmeriCymru: Any final message for the members and readers of AmeriCymru?
Paul: Those of you with Welsh roots, take every opportunity to sell our wonderful country as a place to visit. Tell them about the bara brith, the Welsh cakes, the lamb, the black beef. Tell them about the mountains, the legends, the language, the music and most of all, the hiraeth.
RHYS BOWEN ON AMAZON Rhys Bowen is the award winning writer of the Constable Evans mysteries set in the Snowdonia Mountains of Wales. Apart from the Constable Evans series, Rhys has written many other novels and children's books, including many best-selling titles. She has also written some historical sagas and TV tie-ins. She currently resides in California and spends her winters in Arizona. Her latest titles include Dreamwalker (The Red Dragon Academy Book 1) and The Edge of Dreams (available from bookstores and online from March 3rd). AmeriCymru spoke to her about her work and future plans.
Rhys: Thanks for inviting me, Ceri. Dreamwalker is a middle grade children's fantasy novel, set at Red Dragon Academy, a strange boarding school in Wales. The children who have been sent there seem to have strange powers and one hallway leads to another world. If you liked Harry Potter you'll enjoy this. Not the same but the same sort of feel. And plenty of Welsh mythology tied in.
AmeriCymru: When can we expect a sequel?
Rhys: As you know I usually write adult mystery novels. This was my first venture writing with my daughter Clare. We were sitting together lamenting no more Harry Potter when I said "You know. I have an idea..." and we talked it through. Now she is bugging me to get that first sequel written. I have a really full writing background but I'm going to try to make time to plot out a second book next month.
AmeriCymru: Can you tell us a little about your Welsh background? What effect did your many childhood visits to North Wales have on your writing?
Rhys: My grandfather is Welsh. My passionate Welsh aunt Gwladys used to take me to Wales every summer where I stayed with Welsh speaking great aunts. We were near Snowdonia and my aunt was a passionate hiker so I've done every trail up Snowdon. From a small child I have always felt the draw of that majestic scenery--towering mountains, streams rushing down them, the bleeting of sheep. That was why I started the Constable Evans series because I wanted to share that experience with those who didn't know about Wales.
AmeriCymru: What initially attracted you to mystery writing?
Rhys: I've always been a mystery reader. I love the puzzle, the suspense. I had been writing in other genres (YA TV etc and suddenly felt I wanted to write what I enjoyed reading. I wanted to write mysteries with a strong sense of place. And of course the place that came to mind was Wales.
Rhys: As I just said I knew I wanted to write mysteries with a strong sense of place. It was when I was telling a friend about my childhood experiences in Wales that she said "Did you ever put this in a book?" and I thought Aha! So then Constable Evans walked in, almost fully formed and said "Hello, here I am." The funny thing was it was as if I knew him from day one. I didn't have to make anything up.
I've really loved doing those books and would like to write another one, but alas the publisher started taking some of the books out of print. It made no sense to me to go on writing if a new reader couldn't find the whole series (Luckily they are now all on Kindle etc). But I have promised readers that I will write an Evan e-story from time to time so that we can see how he is doing. I'm curious to know, aren't you?
Rhys: Of course the awards are amazing and rather humbling. But I think my proudest achievement is my number of fans to whom my books mean something. I've had letters saying "your book got me through time at the homeless shelter, or through chemo, or through the loss of a dear one." Those really mean something.
AmeriCymru: Care to tell us a little about your 2014 novel City of Darkness and Light and the Molly Murphy series of which it is the latest instalment?
Rhys: The Molly Murphy novels are set in early 1900s New York. This book starts with a devastating event when Molly's house is blown up and she is sent for safety to her good friends in France. She arrives to find no trace of them. Alone with a baby in a strange city she has to find out what happened to her friends and how their disappearance is linked to the murder of a well-known Impressionist painter. It was fun to write as I adore Impressionist art!
By the way, the next Molly book is due out on March 3, called The Edge of Dreams .
AmeriCymru: From Her Royal Spyness ( 2007 ) to Queen of Hearts ( 2014 ) your Lady Georgiana ( aka Georgie ) series has proved immensely popular. Care to introduce the character for our readers? Are there any further titles in the pipeline?
Rhys: Lady Georgie is 35th in line to the throne in the 1930s. Although she has royal connections her branch of the family is destitute and she is trying to make her own way in the world at a difficult time. The Molly books are suspenseful and serious. The Royal Spyness are pure fun. I poke fun at the British class system, at my clumsy heroine, her awful maid. Think Bertie Wooster meets Bridget Jones with the occasional body!
And yes, there are more titles ahead. The next one is called Malice at the Palace and is about the (real) wedding of the Duke of Kent to Princess Marina... so tied in to some real history and set at Kensington Palace.
AmeriCymru: What's next for Rhys Bowen?
Rhys: More Molly and Lady Georgie books, the next Red Dragon Academy and hopefully enough time in between to travel, enjoy the best fish and chips in Wales in Usk and Cornish pasties in Falmouth!
AmeriCymru: Any final message for the members and readers of AmeriCymru?
Rhys: Cymru am byth!
