Dafydd Wyn wins the 2009 John Tripp Award for Spoken Poetry

The 2009 John Tripp Award for Spoken Poetry came to a head on Thursday 19 November as Academi hosted the much anticipated Grand Final in Cardiff. An unprecedented number of supporters, writers, literary enthusiasts and those who were just curious flocked to The Wharf to see who would be named Wales’ best performance poet. Following a dash for extra chairs, stools and with people almost literally hanging from the rafters the scene was finally set, the finalists chosen, the judges poised and the bar, luckily, fully stocked.

MC Ifor Thomas led what proved to be an evening full of diverse and original poetry performances from 16 new and familiar faces to the performance scene. Judging the competition were 2009 Wales Book of the Year winner Deborah Kay Davies, poet and Editor of New Welsh Review, Kathryn Gray, and Wiard Sterk Executive Director of independent public art consultancy Safle.

The competition was intense but only one poet could walk away with the title and the First Prize of £500. It was experience and a traditional approach to performance poetry however which won out in the end as the judges picked Dafydd Wyn from Ammanford as the overall winner. Dafydd Wyn, who performed a series of three heartfelt poems about his nephew, has published two novels including a children’s book The M4 Cats (Lolfa 2008). As well as teaching English in London, Bala and at Ystalyfera he is also a former Mayor of Cwmaman and a former runner-up in the John Tripp Award.

It was the “verbal pyrotechnics” of the Grand Final’s youngest competitor Liam Johnson, though, which landed him both the judges’ Runner-up prize and the coveted Audience Prize voted for on the night by the throng of literary enthusiasts in attendance. 19 year-old Liam, who is currently studying English and Creative Writing at UWIC University, started writing poems and lyrics at fifteen and states the Beat Generation as his most significant influence. After making such an impression in his first performance poetry competition Liam is definitely one to watch for the future.

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Poetry tonight! Grand Final for performance poets

Throughout October Academi has been holding heats across Wales for the 2009 John Tripp (pictured) Award for Spoken Poetry in a bid to find the nation's best performance poet. Over 70 poets have now performed and the judges have chosen the 16 who will battle it out at the Grand Final tonight at The Wharf, Cardiff.

The finalists are, from the Llanhilleth heat, Bernard Pearson, David John Davies, Gemma June Howell and Thaer Al-Shayei; from the Pontardawe heat Dafydd Wynn, Heidi Lorenz, Nicholas Whitehead and Sally Spedding; from the Cardiff heat, Amanda Rackstraw, Clare Syder, Geraint D’Arcy and Nick Fisk and from the Llandudno heat, Anne Forrest, Gareth Glyn Roberts, Rhys Trimble and Liam Johnson.

However, only one can be named Wales’ best performance poet and walk away with the first prize of £500. As well as the judges’ choice of winner, there will also be an award of £100 presented to the runner-up and a further £100 award to the winner of the Audience Prize.

The esteemed judging panel for the Grand Final will include New Welsh Review Editor, Kathryn Gray, 2009 Wales Book of the Year winner Deborah Kay Davies and Wiard Sterk, Executive Director of independent public art consultancy Safle. Poet Ifor Thomas, himself a former winner of the award, will introduce the evening.

The competition is widely renowned throughout Wales and has been exciting audiences and profiling new poets since 1990. Book your tickets now and be one of the first to find out who will come out on top and have your say as to who should be awarded the 2009 Audience Prize.

Tonight, 7.30 pm at The Wharf, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4EU. Tickets cost just £5.00 / £4.00 (concessions for Academi Members and Associates).

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Peter Finch is at it again

Poet, biographer of Cardiff and supremo of our national literary organisation, Academi, the wonderful Peter Finch has turned his eye back to his home town and our capital for Real Cardiff three.

Peter's digging behind the city's facades started in 2002 and you'd need to be as blind as French referee around the front row not to notice Cardiff's changed enourmously in those few short years.

Real Cardiff Three looks at the new shining city with its sci-fi scenery and shopping centres as well as continuing Peter's literary archaeology, seeking out the people that make Cardiff what it is, gazing at the city from its high rises, finding it's nuclear secrets and even taking a day out to Ely Racecourse.

To launch Real Cardiff Three Peter's on a mini tour of the town: on November 26 he's in conversation with Jonathan Adams at the Parc Thistle Hotel at 6.30pm. On Wednesday, December 2, he's at the magnificent Wellington Garden's Tea House - a haven of peace and top notch tea mashing just a couple of hundred yards from the Newport Road - at 6pm. On Saturday, December 5, at 2.30pm you'll find him in the Wellfield Bookshop on Wellfield Road, and the following Saturday, December 12, he's in Whitchurch at Siop y Felin for an early start at 11am.

To attend any of these free talks, please email, torikt@seren-books.com and you can check for new events here.

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2009 John Tripp Award for Spoken Poetry: The Grand Final

Throughout October Academi has been holding heats across Wales for the 2009 John Tripp Award for Spoken Poetry in a bid to find the nation's best performance poet. Over 70 poets have now performed and the judges have chosen the sixteen who will battle it out at the Grand Final on Thursday 19 November at The Wharf, Cardiff.

The finalists are, from the Llanhilleth heat, Bernard Pearson, David John Davies, Gemma June Howell and Thaer Al-Shayei; from the Pontardawe heat Dafydd Wynn, Heidi Lorenz, Nicholas Whitehead and Sally Spedding; from the Cardiff heat, Amanda Rackstraw, Clare Syder, Geraint D’Arcy and Nick Fisk and from the Llandudno heat, Anne Forrest, Gareth Glyn Roberts, Rhys Trimble and Liam Johnson.

However, only one can be named Wales’ best performance poet and walk away with the first prize of £500. As well as the judges’ choice of winner, there will also be an award of £100 presented to the Runner-up and a further £100 award to the winner of the Audience Prize.

The esteemed judging panel for the Grand Final will include New Welsh Review Editor, Kathryn Gray, 2009 Wales Book of the Year winner Deborah Kay Davies and Wiard Sterk, Executive Director of independent public art consultancy Safle. Poet Ifor Thomas, himself a former winner of the award, will introduce the evening.

The competition is widely renowned throughout Wales and has been exciting audiences and profiling new poets since 1990. Book your tickets now and be one of the first to find out who will come out on top and have your say as to who should be awarded the 2009 Audience Prize.

The Grand Final will take place on Thursday 19 November, 7.30 pm at The Wharf, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4EU. Tickets cost just £5.00 / £4.00 (concessions for Academi Members and Associates).

For more information and to book tickets to the Grand Final contact Academi:
029 2047 2266 / post@academi.org

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Book Launch - Matthew David Scott's The Ground Remembers

Matthew David Scott has his new book 'The Ground Remembers' published today (16 November) by Parthian. To celebrate this fact, they're having a launch party at Ten Feet Tall, Cardiff.

It won't just be a bloke holding a book on stage although that will happen at some point, possibly twice, there will also be bands and a DJ until 1am. If that's not late enough then downstairs is open until 4am.

Entry will be free and if you smile you'll get a badge. There will be a use for this in the future but that's another story for another event page.

The story so far...
8pm - Doors open
8.30 - 8.45pm - Matthew David Scott (introduction)
8.45 - 9.00pm - Mao Jones (performance poetry)
9.10 - 9.30pm - Jimi Alexander & The Satellites (music)
9.45 - 10.00pm - Rachel Trezise (book reading)
10.00 - 10.15pm - Matthew David Scott (book reading)
10.30 - 11.00pm - Richard James (music)
11.00 - 1.00am - Carl 'Forecast' Rylatt (DJing)

Ten Feet Tall is at 12 Church Street, Cardiff CF10 1BG

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Igniting the Flame - Cultural Olympiad Creative Writing Competition

Are you a young disabled person who has a way with words? Enter one poem or one short story of up to 500 words using "what ignites the flame for you?" as your inspiration. Think about excellence, friendship, respect, determination, inspiration, equality.

- Entries will be accepted from two age groups: 13-16 years old and 17-25 years old. Disability Arts Cymru will work with the winners from each category to develop their writing skills. The winners' work will be included in an anthology in 2012 .

To enter please send your poem or short story to:
Ignite the Flame competition
Disability Arts Cymru
Sbectrwm
Fairwater
Cardiff
CF5 3EF
Tel: 02920 551 040
Fax: 02920 551 036

Or email entries to: post@dacymru.com

You can also enter by audio or CD-rom or any other format preferred

Closing date: 29th January 2010

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Duffy's look at the world and his wives

Tomorrow night at the Weston Studio Theatre in the Wales Millennium Centre you can take a fresh female persepctive on the lives of the great men.

A new stage version from poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy's (who's achieved so many firsts in that post it's hard to list them all) acclaimed poems that see history through the eyes of wive's of the mighty men of myth and history.

From Mrs Faust and Frau Freud to Queen Kong and Mrs Midas Marlowe's performance also casts an astute glance over the modern world. Laced with dark humour and acerbic wit, this passionate expose will enthral lovers of Duffy’s poems and newcomers alike.

Linda Marlowe has enjoyed great acclaim for her previous solo work including Berkoff’s Women, which toured internationally and played the West End seasons. In this new show, her virtuoso performance of Duffy’s brilliant and often controversial verse is interspersed with commentary about the poems.

Tickets and full details at WMC.org.uk

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End of an era for the Mobile Library

For several decades, library books were checked out using the manual ticket system. Did you know that until this week that was still the process on Wrexham’s Mobile Library?

However, this service has now been made one of the most modern services in Wales. Satellite technology has been installed on Wrexham Council’s Mobile Library, meaning it can connect to the Internet and to the Council’s computer network enabling people to check all the books on the library catalogue and make reservations for items from other libraries. This end of an era will bring a multitude of instant on-line benefits enabling the library staff to deal with enquiries for information instantaneously.

The Mobile Library provides a service to areas of the County Borough where there is no static library building. It therefore serves rural areas, small villages and outlying urban areas. The mobile library is very heavily-used and is one of the busiest libraries in the County Borough, with over 60,000 books and audio items borrowed each year.

Councillor Bob Dutton, Deputy Leader of Wrexham Council and the Lead Member for Library Services commented:

"This technology will make the mobile library that visits areas of the County Borough one of the most modern in Wales. The mobile library reflects the Council’s wish to ensure that all residents are able to access a comprehensive library service, regardless of where they live. It is also part of the ongoing modernisation of the library service in Wrexham, which has developed an enviable reputation for innovation and improving local community provision. The Authority is committed to providing the best possible services to residents in all parts of the County Borough and the Mobile Satellite service means that residents will also be assisted to understand and use the Internet services provided in the van."

Cllr Barbara Roberts, Local Member for the Ceiriog Valley, where the mobile library makes some of its stops, said:

"The mobile library is used by many of the residents in the Ceiriog Valley and is a lifeline to many of the older residents, as well as being a welcome service for families and young people. The modernisation of this service is great news for the local community, giving them the chance to reserve books in an instant and see what is available at other libraries in Wrexham. It means a far quicker and more complete service for the mobile library users."

The AvL antenna system was provided by SISlink, Europe’s largest mobile satellite service, which has provided satellite connectivity for many other applications in the UK including emergency and health services. The installation was completed by Bailey’s Bodybuilders of Stoke-on-Trent. The antenna is very robust having been used by the US Army in Iraq and also tested in wet hurricane and extreme cold conditions. Connection to the Library Management System and the library catalogue is provided by Axiell through its Galaxy software.

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Giant Knitted Dylan Thomas Poem

To mark their cenenary, the Poetry Society have put together a giant patchwork knitted poem to mark the date, and chosen Dylan Thomas' "In my Craft or Sullen Art".

The poem is the work of more than one thousand knitters and crocheters worldwide. It measures 13m by 9m and will be on display in the Dylan Thomas Centre on Wednesday 11th and Thursday 12th November from 10am to 4pm.

The poem will then go on tour, before returning to Swansea to become a permanent part of the Dylan Thomas Centre's collection. To see images of the poem, visit the Poetry Society's website: http://poetrysociety.org.uk/content/knit/ or contact nicholasmcdonald@swansea.gov.uk

For more information on Dylan Thomas in Swansea please contact Jo Furber, Dylan Thomas Project officer (01792 463980) http://www.dylanthomas.com

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It's murder for writers in the Valleys

If you want to know how to create a killer, write a medieval mystery or slip crime between two covers, then don’t miss Criminal Intent, a Crime Writing Conference for the Valleys taking place this Saturday in Abergavenny.

Academi is celebrating Wales’s crime authors writing in the genres of Crime Fiction and True Crime, including sessions on research and story plotting, work with prisoners, fact into fiction plus is crime the new western?

The conference will be held at the St Mary’s Priory, Abergavenny from 10am to 4pm.

Sir Trefor Morris, former HM Chief Inspector for England and Wales, will introduce an exciting day including workshops, discussion panels and presentations from a wealth of talented authors, scriptwriters and creative artists including Katherine John, Bernard Knight, John Williams, Caspar Walsh, Glen Peters, Simon Hall, Graham Hartill, Simon Lewis, Anita Flowers, Lindsay Ashford and Phil Forder.

The Conference will be an event packed with passion and pace and aims to attract and celebrate the creative writing talents of people of all ages and abilities. It will be an ideal event to showcase a particular genre of literature which is gaining in popularity and will help to promote its enjoyment and relevance today.

Day Tickets are now available at the following prices:
£10 for the day including buffet (to be booked in advance)
£5 for the day event with no lunch and for tickets purchased on the day

For more information and to book your place contact Academi on: 029 2047 2266 or email mailto: post@academi.org

Alternatively you can download the full brochure from the Academi website: www.academi.org


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Poets Latest Collection The Shadow House Published

University of Wales Lampeter poet and librarian, Kathy Miles, is launching her latest volume of poetry on Friday 13 November 2009. Published by Cinnamon Press, The Shadow House is a collection of poems that are, according to author Gillian Clarke “rich and imaginative… layered with myth, history and personal experience”.

Kathy, who graduated in English from Lampeter in 1975, is a keen poet and short-story writer when not working in the University library. She has previously published two books, The Rocking-Stone (Poetry Wales) and The Third Day: Landscape and the Word (Gomer), and her work frequently appears in magazines and anthologies. She has twice won the One Voice Monologue Competition, and in 2008 won both the Leaf Books poetry competition and the Ilkely Literature Festival Poetry Competition. She has just been made a full member of the Welsh Academi.

Kathy is also a keen advocate of writing workshops and is a founding member of the Lampeter Writers’ Group which meets regularly on the university campus during term time. The Writers Group is open to all, and attracts both students from the University and people from the local area, some of whom come from as far afield as Brecon, Carmarthen and Pembrokeshire. Writers are encouraged to share their works, and also to publish their work in literary magazines and journals. Ex-members of the Lampeter Writers' Group include Hilary Llewellyn Williams and other writers who now make a full-time living from their writing.

Many participants of the Lampeter Writers’ Group are students of Lampeter’s courses in creative writing. The Department of English & Creative Writing at Lampeter offers foundation level, undergraduate and postgraduate courses in creative writing and English literature and encourages students to share and test their ideas through such writing circles as well as in classroom settings.

Kathy added “Writing groups like these play an important part in the life of the local community. We have both Welsh and English members of the group, and since joining Lampeter Writers’ Group, many have had work accepted in reputable literary publications, or have been placed in national competitions. The encouragement of the group has been vital to me in my own writing, and has helped many others to develop an individual style in their work.”

read more... “Poets Latest Collection The Shadow House Published”

Don't miss your chance to meet Ruth Jones

Library Services across Wales are reminding customers to get their entries in for the Welsh libraries arts competition before 1st December 2009.

As Ruth Jones said at the national launch of the competition. In the words of Madonna go for it and Express Yourself!

We are now half way through the competition, and entries are flooding in to libraries and the web site www.library.wales.org/artscomp/ but there's still time to take part.

The closing date is 1st December 2009, so don't miss your chance of winning up to £500 and meeting TV celebrity Ruth Jones' the Welsh libraries champion.

Welsh libraries are encouraging everyone to show off their creative skills - the theme is libraries - but can be interpreted in any way you like, whether it is creative writing, dancing, drama, music, animation, painting, photography, drawing or sculpture - the choice is yours!

Ruth Jones added: "Libraries are really inspiring places in themselves and this competition is really exciting as you can just let your imagination run free! You could write a romantic story, sculpt a library cake or even choreograph 'the dance of the librarians'. If you're looking for ideas and inspiration then the best place to start is your local library. Go and see for yourself how much they have changed, I'm sure you will be pleasantly surprised."

The competition is open to everyone - simply choose the category that suits you - primary schools, secondary schools, individuals, voluntary or community organisations, and students in further or higher education. You don't even need to be a member of a library to enter. You can even enter more than one piece of work in different categories if you wish.

As well as having the chance to win prizes from £50-£500; the finalists will be invited to an awards event on 25th February at the Senedd in Cardiff where they will get the chance to meet actress and writer Ruth Jones and have their work displayed nationally.

For your chance to win up to £500 and meet Ruth Jones call into your local library, click on www.library.wales.org/artscomp/ and get your hands on the entry pack which will give you full details of how to enter.

The closing date for all entries is 1st December 2009.

read more... “Don't miss your chance to meet Ruth Jones”

Aberystwyth Arts Centre presents Writers in Residence project, 'Travelling Light'

Emerging playwrights are gearing up to present their new short plays as part of Aberystwyth Arts Centre's 'Travelling Light II' project.

For the past 9 months a selected group of new writers have been meeting at Aberystwyth Arts Centre as part of a Writers in Residence Project. Working under the guidance of playwright and Creative Wales Award winner, Kaite O'Reilly (pictured), they have developed a series of short plays.

The plays will be presented as rehearsed readings with a cast of professional performers directed by Gilly Adams. Two plays will be shown on each night. A post show discussion about the plays and the process will take place on both evenings.

MONDAY 16th November:
Use By Christina Katic
Four women in a caravan climbing the walls. Literally. They've met for a wedding - or is it a funeral...? How will they find out which...?

Feathering the Dark by Chris Kinsey
Gerda survived the War, but in a night of terror and revelation, she must now survive the present.

THURSDAY 19th November:
The Wild, Wild Girls of Musical Terrace by Liz Jones
Two estranged sisters meet on a bench where their childhood home once stood. As they recall the night which drove them apart, two different versions unfold...But which one is true? A dark, tragicomic tale of abandonment, betrayal, and irrepressible
hope.

Happy Birthday Ruth by Lisa Parry
Ruth is Ian's wife, David's grandmother and Mary's long-term secret lover. For years she has juggled all three roles, keeping her own life in a delicate equilibrium. But her deceit has consequences, not just for herself.

Tickets for this performance are £5 (£3) one night / £8 (£5) for two and can be booked by contacting the Arts Centre ticket office on 01970 62 32 32 or online at www.aber.ac.uk/artscentre

Travelling Light II will run at Aberystwyth Arts Centre on Monday 16th and Thursday 19th November at 7.45pm. Aberystwyth Arts Centre is supported by Arts Council of Wales.

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Hei Hogia! Reading a million words together in Wales

From Monday, 9 November to Friday, 13 November the talented performers, Cath Aran, Dyfrig Evans and Darren Stokes will be touring Gwynedd’s secondary schools as part of the 2009 Hei Hogia! show.

The show which has secured funding from the Basic Skills Agency to stage this year’s event named Hei Hogia! - Reading a million words together in Wales aims to encourage young people to grab a book and to read it.

The actors will perform extracts from three Welsh novels and three English novles during a 40 minute show for Year 8 Students.

The actors will also be visiting two Gwynedd Youth Clubs on Monday, 9 November they will be at Blaenau Ffestiniog and Llwyngwril Youth Club on Friday, 13 November.

If you would like to see Hei Hogia! please contact: Gwen Lasarus, Gwynedd Literature Promoter, Academi / Gwynedd Council, Caernarfon Library, Allt Pafiliwn, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL55 1AS call 01286 679465, or e-mail: gwenlasarus@gwynedd.gov.uk

Gwynedd Literature Promotion is an Academi project.

read more... “Hei Hogia! Reading a million words together in Wales”

Prizes for poetry in Flintshire

Selected poems from Flintshire Library and Information Service’s Poetry Power competition will tour the county’s libraries over the coming months, starting at Mold Library and Museum.

The prize giving ceremony for this year’s poetry writing competition took place at Mold Library and Museum on Thursday, 29 October. From over 140 entries twenty English and five Welsh poems had been selected. The poems were chosen by poets Joy Winkler and Eirug Salisbury, who also gave readings of their own work.

The shortlisted and winning poets read their work and were presented with certificates, with
the top six poems earning their authors a cash prize.

Councillor Nigel Steele-Mortimer, Flintshire County Council Executive Member for Education and Youth presented the prizes.

The winners were:

English:

1st The Scattering Helen Hill
2nd Llangollen to Carrog Dee Rivaz
3rd John Barlycorn Stuart Taylor

Cymraeg:

1af Gofal Eluned Edwards
2il Eryri Nia Môn
3ydd Tapestri Cymreig Jane Jones Owen

read more... “Prizes for poetry in Flintshire”

One million words in Welsh for Gwynedd schools

From Monday, 9 November to Friday, 13 November talented performers, Cath Aran, Dyfrig Evans and Darren Stokes will be touring Gwynedd’s secondary schools as part of the 2009 Hei Hogia! show.

The show which has secured funding from the Basic Skills Agency to stage this year’s event named Hei Hogia! - Reading a million words together in Wales aims to encourage young people to grab a book and to read it.

The actors will perform extracts from three Welsh novels and three English novels during a 40 minute show for Year 8 Students.

The actors will also be visiting two Gwynedd Youth Clubs on Monday, 9 November they will be at Blaenau Ffestiniog and Llwyngwril Youth Club on Friday, 13 November.

If you would like to see Hei Hogia! please contact: Gwen Lasarus, Gwynedd Literature Promoter, Academi / Gwynedd Council, Caernarfon Library, Allt Pafiliwn, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL55 1AS call 01286 679465, or e-mail: gwenlasarus@gwynedd.gov.uk

Gwynedd Literature Promotion is an Academi project supported by Gwynedd Gwynedd.

read more... “One million words in Welsh for Gwynedd schools”

My Welsh Icons: Susie Wild, author.

One of Parthian Book’s Bright Young Things, Susie Wild's debut collection of short stories The Art of Contraception will be out in 2010.

She has two MAs because she is greedy – one in Journalism from Goldsmith’s College (2001) and another in Creative Writing from Swansea University (2008). Her stories have featured on Welsh literature site The Raconteur (www.theraconteur.co.uk) and in the inaugural Parthian anthology of new writers Under 30, Nu: fiction & stuff (www.nuwriting.co.uk).

The former editor of Swansea’s art magazine Platform (2004 – 2008), Susie has written about music, literature, youth issues and the arts for all manner of publications in Wales (Planet, New Welsh Review, BBC Wales, Red Handed, The Raconteur, Buzz, The Western Mail, The Evening Post, The Big Issue, etc.) and beyond (Mslexia, Clash Magazine, The Guardian, TheSite.org, Artrocker, etc.). She performs her poetry and fiction all over the place, is a regular at spoken word night The Crunch in Swansea and has appeared at Hay Festival, The Big Read (Newport), and Swn Festival.
Keep up-to-date with her news and events here: www.myspace.com/soozerama.

My Welsh Place:

Like so much of the planet, there is still so much I have left to discover, but I’d have to go for Dylan Thomas’ playground – Laugharne. Specifically Laugharne during the Laugharne Weekend. A boozy literary festival overflowing with friends, writers and musicians and a scheduling that involves pint breaks. A poet’s heaven. Patti Smith has played there, as has The Kinks’ Ray Davies and a host of new Welsh talent brought together by Richard James (ex- Gorky's). I also have soft spots for the new Swansea Central Library (complete with sea views), Elysium Artspace in Swansea, Hay-on-Wye, The Vulcan pub in Cardiff, The Chattery Restaurant in Swansea, and various Cardiff watering holes (Milgi, Chapter, Clwb) and Gower paddling spots. I’m quite excited about the opening of the Cardiff Arts Institute too, so I’m sure I’ll be hanging out there a fair bit.


My Welsh sound:

There are so many good musicians coming out of Wales I refuse to pick just one. I have reason – I am the news editor for Kruger Magazine (www.krugerlabs.com), which began in Cardiff six years ago but is now national and ace, obviously and I also write about music for a host of people including Clash Magazine, Buzz and Artrocker. Festivals like Huw Stephens’ Swn in Cardiff always remind me how much homegrown talent there is here. Not just the bigger names like the fantastic Super Furry Animals, Richard James and Euros Childs, but also the energy of Los Campesinos!, Victorian English Gentlemen Club, Right Hand Left Hand and Race Horses. Cate Le Bon is amazing, as is Y Pencadlys. I was blown away by Threatmantics’ new line up, Barefoot Dance of the Sea (Beth and Bec for The Hot Puppies) and the country stylings of Sweet Baboo are so adorable, I could squeeze him. I am desperate to see Islet play live (super group with former members of the excellent Attack+Defend). Back in Swansea No Thee No Ess, The Death of Chapman Baxter and Dufraine are all top dollar.


My Welsh taste:

It’s Brains you want. And Welsh Rarebit. I like old men’s pubs and real ale. Perhaps I’m old before my time, or maybe just bitter. I tend to do a lot of my writing in pubs like The Brunswick and The Queens in Swansea . I like a proper local and a pint of real ale; not flat lager, youth club bright lighting and TV screens. I also write, eat and watch American bands play The Chattery when I’m flush enough. I love their noisy industrial coffee machine rescued from a bomb shelter... and all the hot American boys in bands.


My Wales is...

Home.


When I'm away from Wales, I miss...

I’m a good cook, friends visit and places stay alive in your imagination, but the thing I always miss is the accent. I loves it. I can’t be away from the sea for too long either, but any coastline will fix that longing, no matter how ugly

read more... “My Welsh Icons: Susie Wild, author.”

Poetry and money, it'll never catch on

Poets are poor - they live in garrets or poorly-heated bedsits in the worst parts of town. They cry in their empty rooms at night while they drink themselves to sleep with the cheapest of Hungarian reds. Rich poets - a rare and dangerous species - generally die during trans-continental swimming expeditions, fired by their own hubris and the most expensive of Hungarian reds.

This is what history teaches us. And yet Academi - the academy of Welsh literature - is ploughing ahead with their offer of a £5,000 prize for the winning poet in the Cardiff International Poetry Competition.

While we at Welsh Icons decry and deplore this doomed conjunction of the greatest of the literary arts and cold hard cash, we feel it's our duty to tell you about it.

Entry forms are scattered around the libraries and bookshops of Wales, and, as ever, full details are available at Academi's website - another wasted endeavour; poets can't afford computers and shy away from the web, preferring instead to scrawl their depraved musings in school exercise books or meet in small, unloved groups in the back rooms of dingy pubs who hope against hope that the cachet they win by hosting these meetings will make up for the dismal bar takings.

Proceed at your own peril and don't come crying to us when the Cardiff Bay lock gates are choked with bodies.

Pictured: Academi president Peter Finch - a poet, he should know better.

read more... “Poetry and money, it'll never catch on”

MY WELSH ICONS: Rhys Thomas, writer

Welsh author Rhys Thomas is currently on the promotional treadmill with The Suicide Club, his debut novel published by Transworld.

The Suicide Club tells the story - through the slightly warped eyes of Richard Harper - of a group of intelligent teenagers who enter into a suicide pact.

The book was written well before the Bridgend tragedies.

His second novel is already set for a 2010 release and explore what would happen if a biblical event of Old Testament proportions happened today.

WI: What is your favorite place in Wales?

RT: That's a toughie. There are so many amazing places. I did a geography degree and for my dissertation I studied some lumps of mud right next to a tarn called Llyn y Fan Fach. That's a great place. It's so quiet there that you get a sense of eerie stillness that I sometimes found to be a little disconcerting. If you go there you'll understand what I mean. There area is covered in peat and people have been known to disappear right into the land, never to be seen again, just sucked into Wales. I love that fact. There's a small plane buried there somewhere as well. The tarn itself is where the story of the lady of the lake - not the King Arthur one - came from and it's also said to be near an entrance to the underworld. So I'd say the big lumps of mud next to Llyn y Fan Fach is my favourite place. For the record, the lumps are really called pronival ramparts. A close second is Talygarn Lake.

WI: Favorite Welsh band or musician?

RT: Manics. I went to the same uni as Nicky and Richie and also think that their new stuff is amazing. Autumn Song has a riff beaten only by Sweet Child O Mine! I do love the other bands though: Catatonia, SFA, Sterophonics' first album, Euros, John Cale, etc, etc. I've never seen the Manics live for some reason. My brother says they're the best live band ever because they just play amazing song after amazing song.

WI: Favorite Welsh food or drink?

RT: Welsh cakes

WI: What does Wales mean to you?

RT: I really love Wales, its landscape and its history, though I'm not as fiercely nationalistic as some to be honest - I don't, for example, want others teams to beat England - apart from in rugby obviously. My love of Wales is just a quiet internal thing I think. Wales is truly a beautiful place. The valleys, long ago, were covered in British woodland and would have been one of the most spectacular places in the whole world. So I guess the answer to the question is beauty. I know that's a bit trite, but I really do love the landscapes here, even the desolate ones. There's something old and savage about it all and the fact that they're not instantly spectacular endears them to me even more.

But just Wales as a whole is great to me; the industrial history, socialism/community and everything it bred. All that stuff is still bubbling away underneath. Although lots of people would disagree, I think there's a deep vein of fairness and compassion in us Welshies, even if it's sometimes hidden. My friends sometimes make fun of my not leaving Wales for London or somewhere but I don't really get that. I'd leave for work, but nothing else. I don't feel an urgent sense to get away. As a writer, where I live doesn't affect my work in a technical sense. I think it's just a connection that you either have to Wales or you don't; difficult to understand unless you feel it. Wales is so great, especially Cardiff at the moment. You really get a sense of something special going on here.

WI: What do you most miss about Wales when you are away?

RT: The idea of it.

read more... “MY WELSH ICONS: Rhys Thomas, writer”

Half term in Newport

There’s no excuse for boredom this October Half Term, with city-wide activities catering to all ages and tastes.

Heading to your local leisure centre can open up a world of fun, including the brand new Extreme Fun – a daredevil mix of skateboarding and climbing, perfect for those who want to try something different.

Also new to sport and leisure is The Zone, which categorises three different options; active, coaching and aquatic, to help you choose the activity that is right for you.

As well as new activities, your local leisure centre will be running all of the traditional favourites, including Swim Schools, activities for toddlers, football camp, archery and startrack athletics and a 25% discount will be given to customers who book and pay for some activities in advance.

Children under the age of 17 can take advantage of the dedicated Free Swim sessions taking place at scheduled times every weekday over the holidays. Simply sign up for your Free Swim card at your nearest leisure centre.

If you’d rather relax with a good book than work up a sweat the Big Read takes place on the 28 October at The Riverfront Theatre between 9.30-4.30pm.

Throughout the day there will be plenty of book-filled fun for both adults and children, including a range of talks from authors Niall Griffiths, Trevor Fishlock, Bernard Knight, Peter Finch, Dai Smith and local up-and-coming talent Mathew Scott. Hands-on workshops will include Creative Writing, Arts and Crafts, Storytelling and Poetry.

Playschemes will also be taking place across the city for children wishing to take part in arts and crafts, den building, face-painting, sports, dressing up and making new friends.

For more information on any of these activities and for a list of the full timetable please call Newport City Council Contact Centre on 01633 656 757 or visit www.newport.gov.uk

read more... “Half term in Newport”