LITERARY PUBS: THE BLACK LION HOTEL, NEW QUAY, CEREDIGION

 New Quay, a charming seaside village on Cardigan Bay, is famous for its dolphins, which can often be seen without even getting in a boat.  Another claim to fame is the fact that the notorious Welsh poet Dylan Thomas and his wife Caitlin spent a short time living there from 1944-1945 in a bungalow called Majoda, and that he based some of the characters in Under Milk Wood on people from New Quay.  While he no doubt visited most if not all the hostelries in the area, the Black Lion Hotel was a favourite of his.  The hotel featured in ‘Quite Early One Morning’, in which it was described as a pink-washed pub “waiting for Saturday night as an over-jolly girl waits for sailors”. 

The incident which led up to Dylan and his wife Caitlin moving out of New Quay started in the Black Lion.  William Killick, the husband of Dylan and Caitlin's neighbour and friend Vera, and a Captain fresh from a mission behind enemy lines in Greece, had a violent encounter with Dylan Thomas in the Black Lion and later attacked Majoda.  Dylan and Caitlin, no doubt unnerved by the incident, moved out of New Quay shortly afterwards.

The Black Lion still operates as a hotel, and serves decent meals to both residents and non-residents.  It is blessed with a large garden with lovely views over the bay.  Inside there is an array of photos and Dylan Thomas memorabilia.  Visitors to New Quay can follow a  Dylan Thomas Trail which includes both the Black Lion and Majoda.  In 2008 a film was released called The Edge of Love about Dylan and Caitlin and the Killicks starring Matthew Rhys, Cillian Murphy, Keira Knightley and Sienna Miller.  Many of the scenes from the film were shot in New Quay.

The Black Lion - geograph.org.uk - 3521553. Photo by Chris Whitehouse, via Wikimedia Commons.

 Map of the area.

A LITTLE PIECE OF NORWAY IN WALES: ROALD DAHL/CARDIFF

 A walk around the shopping and entertainment district of Cardiff Bay offers the chance to take in a variety of architecture, most of it modern, the most striking examples being the Welsh National Assembly building, otherwise known as the Senedd, and the Wales Millennium Centre, a cultural centre staging theatre and other shows.  However, one building in particular which stands out from the rest is a charming little white former Lutheran church, dating from the19th century.  This is the Norwegian Church Arts Centre, housed in a church founded in the 19^th century by the Norwegian Seamen’s Mission at a time when Norwegian merchant ships were bringing timber from Norway for use in the Welsh  mines.  Later, during the Second World War, the church was frequented by Norwegian seafarers who were unable to return to their homeland, which had been occupied.

The Norwegian Church - geograph.org.uk - 984537. Photo by pennie winkler, via Wikimedia Commons.

In the late 19^th century, the Dahl family moved to Llandaff, Cardiff, from Norway when Harald Dahl founded a ship-broking company.  Harald’s son, Roald, went on to become a well-known author, specialising in children’s books.  The family used to worship at the Norwegian Church, which in those days occupied a site in the Docks area of the city.  However, the church fell into disrepair during the 1970s, and Roald set about campaigning for it to be saved.  This would involve dismantling and repairing the church before moving it to its current location.  The project was completed in 1992, but sadly Roald did not live to see his campaign come to fruition, having died several years before.

Nowadays, the church houses a gallery, gift shop and cafe, where visitors can enjoy lovely views over the Bay.  The venue can also be hired for events.  (Please note that at the time of writing this piece the church has been temporarily closed due to coronavirus restrictions.)  Dahl’s memory lives on in the Bay in the form of Roald Dahl Plass (‘plass’ being Norwegian for ‘square’), a centrepiece for events taking place in the Bay, such as the annual Christmas Market.  There is also an annual Roald Dahl Day on 13^th September, Dahl’s birthdate.

Roald Dahl Plass-3. Photo by V4nco, via Wikimedia Commons.

Map of the area.

A TRAGEDY RECREATED FOR THE CROWN: CWMAMAN AS ABERFAN

 

When I began watching series 3 of The Crown on Netflix, it took a while to adjust to Olivia Colman as The Queen, much as I admire her as an actress, mainly because I thought Claire Foy was magnificent as the young Queen.  However, in episode 3, which covered the tragic events in October 1966 when a school in the Welsh mining village of Aberfan was buried in rubble from from a colliery spoil tip, resulting in the deaths of 116 children and 28 adults, she proved her worth as an actress.  It couldn’t have been an easy role to play, with the Queen coming across as aloof and uncaring, then later caving in to pressure to make a personal visit to the scene of the tragedy, and finally shedding a tear while listening to a recording of a hymn which was played at one of the funerals.  I vividly remember that awful event and the horror I felt, as I was a schoolgirl myself at the time, and it was hard to imagine something so terrible happening while attending class.

The horrifying scene of the tragedy was actually recreated in Elstree Studios.  However, the focus of the drama was filmed back in Wales, including the use of local people as extras.  The people concerned were offered counselling, as they were still traumatised by the event, and it became apparent that they had never before been offered such help.

The village chosen to play the role of Aberfan was the nearby village of Cwmaman, which is another typical Welsh mining village. The village includes several streets which are among the steepest in the United Kingdom.  However, the village’s main claim to fame is the fact that the Welsh supergroup Stereophonics hail from Cwmaman.  In spite of their fame, the band are not above putting in appearances in unexpected places, and in 2007 they appeared in the local Working Men’s Club, where they first performed.

Map of the area. 

                                

                                  Cwmaman. Photo by Bev, via Wikimedia Commons.                                    

THE SHOW THAT PUT BARRY ON THE MAP: GAVIN AND STACEY

Until the mid-noughties, the Welsh town of Barry, including the resort area of Barry Island, was one of the more obscure coastal towns on the British coast, with a reputation for being a bit down-at-heel, a reputation confirmed by my husband’s accounts of childhood trips to the area.  However, all this has changed since 2007, when the engaging sitcom Gavin and Stacey hit our screens.  Barry has been used as the main backdrop of this story of a long-distance romance between Gavin from Essex (Matthew Horne) and Stacey from South Wales (Joanna Page), drawing in their friends Smithy (James Corden), Nessa (Ruth Jones) and assorted family members.

Barry Island (19246735281). Photo by Jeremy Segrott, via Wikimedia Commons

Undoubtedly the main draw of Barry Island is its golden beaches, fringing the attractively curved Whitmore Bay, and this is where the beach scenes of the series were filmed.  In series 3, Stacey is seen working in a beachside cafe: this is Marco’s Cafe towards the western end of the beach.  A few steps from the cafe is the Island Leisure Amusement Centre, which is Nessa’s place of work.  The beach wall by Boofy’s Fish and Chips Cafe, was used for a classic shot of the four friends together.  

Barry Island promenade (4674). Photo by Nilfanion, via Wikimedia Commons

In one episode, Nessa has a change of career when she tries her hand at being a human statue.  The scene was shot outside Barry’s Library and Town Hall in King’s Square.  Staying in Barry, a couple of local hotels feature in the filming: the Tadcross Hotel at 271 Holton Road is the scene of a christening party and the Colcot Arms in Colcot Road is where Smithy’s quiz night is held.  However, the hotel where Nessa reveals she is pregnant is not in Barry, but is the Glendale Hotel in Penarth, just outside Cardiff.  Penarth is also the location of Gwen’s birthday barn dance, which takes place in All Saints Church Hall, Victoria Road.  

All Saints Church, Penarth geograph.org.uk - 5053179. Photo by Jaggery, via Wikimedia  Commons

As for the houses occupied by the merry band of friends and relatives, several of the characters live in Trinity Street in Barry.  The real-life residents have had to put up with droves of fans turning up, even coach parties in some cases.  Another house in Dinas Powys near Penarth doubles as Gavin’s house in Billericay and has also been a magnet for fans, apparently to the dismay of the owner.  

Map of Barry  

BIRTHPLACE OF AN EARLY TRAVEL WRITER: MANORBIER, PEMBROKESHIRE

The small Pembrokeshire village of Manorbier with its ruined castle was the birthplace of Gerald of Wales, a prolific writer and author of what must have been some of the earliest known travelogues.  Gerald, whose father was the Anglo-Norman knight William of Barri, was born in 1146 in Manorbier Castle.  He travelled extensively in Ireland and Britain and his first book, about his Irish travels, was written during an expedition accompanying Prince John in 1184, but it was a later tour during which he accompanied the Archbishop of Canterbury, Baldwin of Exeter, to gather recruits for the Third Crusade, which gave rise to his best known works, the Itinerarium Cambriae (1191) and Descriptio Cambriae (1194) – he always wrote in Latin. 



The Welsh expedition gave Gerald the chance to wax lyrical about his place of birth, in his day known as Maenor Pyrr (“the mansion of Pyrrus”).  He describes the castle as “excellently well defended by turrets and bulwarks”, and as having a fish-pond “as conspicuous for its grand appearance as for the depth of its waters”.  This was complemented by an orchard “inclosed on one part by a vineyard, and on the other by a wood”.  The adjacent valley had “a rivulet of never-failing water”.  The body of water offshore, which today is regarded as the mouth of the Bristol Channel, is referred to by Gerald as the Severn Sea, where the passing ships can be seen to “daringly brave the inconstant waves and raging sea” on their way towards Ireland.  The area in those days benefitted from supplies of corn, sea-fish and imported wines.  Gerald declares his home village “the pleasantest spot in Wales” and begs the reader’s pardon for “having thus extolled his native soil, his genial territory, with a profusion of praise and admiration”.  

Manorbier Castle. Photo by Paul Allison, via Wikimedia Commons

Manorbier is just a few miles around the coast from the popular resort of Tenby, and there is a car park by the side of the stream for visitors arriving by car.  The village is also just off the Pembrokeshire Coast Path for those coming on foot.  The castle and its garden are open to visitors for a fee, and for anyone wanting the full Gerald experience it is possible to stay overnight in self-catering accommodation.  Another prominent building in the village is St James Church, dating from the 12^th century.  There is a sandy beach backed by dunes at the foot of the valley.  

Map of the village.

SUMMER SPECIAL: BEACHES ON THE BIG AND SMALL SCREEN

Summer’s here and it’s time to head for the beach, but in between leaping into the waves and sunning yourself, why not stop to consider all the wonderful film and TV scenes produced over the years featuring the nation’s stunning beaches.  Here is a baker’s dozen of British beaches which have featured on the big and small screen.

Holywell Beach, Cornwall

In the third series of Poldark Geoffrey Charles, stepson of George Warleggan, is seen visiting a beautiful beach and declaring it the best beach in Cornwall.  In another episode the same beach forms the backdrop for the romantic reunion of Geoffrey Charles’ governess Morwenna and Demelza’s brother Drake.  The beach in question is the one at Holywell Bay, easily recognisable from the two pointy islets just offshore known as Gull Rocks.  This is not the first time the beach has been seen on screen: it appears on the big screen in Summer In February, the 2013 film about an Edwardian artists’ colony in Cornwall, in which Gilbert Evans and Alfred Munnings are seen riding together on horseback and discussing the love interest, the fragrant Florence Carter-Wood.  The bay’s name derives from St Cubert’s Holy Well, which is to be found in Holywell Cave, accessible at low tide.  The cave features in one of the above-mentioned Poldark episodes, when Drake leads Geoffrey Charles and Morwenna to it.

On a much grimmer note, in 2002 the beach was transformed into a North Korean battlefield for the opening scenes of the  James Bond film Die Another Day, although apart from a brief glimpse of Gull Rocks you would never recognise it.  The lifeguard hut was turned into a pill box and barbed wire was arranged all over in order to achieve the desired effect.

Dunes at Holywell Bay (6124). Photo by Nilfanion, via Wikimedia Commons

West Bay, Dorset

The distinctive orange-hued cliffs backing the beach at West Bay will be forever remembered by Broadchurch fans as the place where the Latimers’ son Danny was found dead on the beach, a tragic event which formed the central focus of the first series and continued to weave its way through the two subsequent series.  The beach is repeatedly seen thereafter, often with dramatic waves crashing onto the shore.  The rocks forming the cliffs date from the Early Jurassic age and consist of Bridport Sand Formation and Inferior Oolite.  There are also frequent glimpses of the harbour adjacent to the beach in the series.

Brighton, East Sussex

Brighton Beach has featured in many productions over the years.  Among the most memorable scenes is the one in Quadrophenia in which the central character Jimmy is sitting on the shingle after an eventful night out gazing pensively out to sea, accompanied by the strains of  The Who’s ‘Love, Reign O’er Me’.  Then there is the scene from Mona Lisa, in which Bob Hoskins and Cathy Tyson are seen larking about in comedy sunglasses on the Palace Pier.  The beach and seafront also appeared in The Boat That Rocked about a 1960s pirate radio station, and of course both the 1947 and 2010 version of  Brighton Rock, based on the Graham Greene novel of the same name, featured the seafront, in particular the pier.  This is just a small selection of appearances by the film makers’ favourite resort.

20070813 brighton10. Photo by Jean Housen, via Wikimedia Commons.

Camber  Sands, East Sussex

Camber Sands near Rye is a riot of dunes, a rarity in the south-east.  The makers of the Carry On film Follow That Camel evidently thought the beach resembled the Sahara Desert, only without the attendant heat and lack of infrastructure.  The sands were also seen in a beach scene in The Theory of Everything, about the life of Stephen Hawking.  But most of the appearances by the sands have been in war films.  The 1958 version of Dunkirk used the beach as the backdrop for a recreation of Operation Dynamo, and in the 1962 film The Longest Day it was used to depict the Normandy beaches, a role repeated in the more recent film The Monuments Men, starring George Clooney and Matt Damon, about an attempt to save art treasures from the Nazis. 

Holkham Beach, Norfolk

This sweeping mass of sand manages to upstage Gwyneth Paltrow in the final scene in Shakespeare in Love.  The actress is seen striding along the beach, meant to be Shakespeare’s Illyria, in a flowing gown while Joseph Fiennes as Shakespeare sings her praises in a voiceover.  More recently, the beach became “Area X” in a sci-fi film called Annihilation starring Natalie Portman.  Visitors to the beach will no doubt want to look in on the nearby Palladian masterpiece Holkham Hall, which has also been used a fair bit in filming.

Redcar, North Yorkshire

Like Camber Sands, Redcar’s beach has been used to depict the beach at Dunkirk, this time in the film version of Ian McEwan’s novel Atonement, starring Keira Knightley and James McAvoy.  The harrowing wartime scenes filmed at Redcar included local people who were brought in as extras to play the soldiers.  One of the excited inhabitants of the town commented that they wished they could put a price on what the film was worth to the town, quite justifiably, since visitor numbers jumped by some 70% during the filming.

Bamburgh, Northumberland

As well as being a stunning beach, Bamburgh has the added attraction of being overlooked by one of the country’s most impressive castles.  This has inevitably made it irresistible to film makers.  The castle and beach were used for the filming of the 1971 version of Macbeth, directed by Roman Polanski, and during the production of the 2015 version the cast and 200 extras were seen at the castle.  The castle also made an appearance in the 1998 film Elizabeth.  On the small screen, the castle served to depict Belleme Castle in Robin of Sherwood.  Another appearance on the small screen was in an episode of Most Haunted, a ghost hunting series best known for Yvette Fielding screaming her head off  and Derek Acorah speaking in tongues.  The ghosts in the castle reportedly include a stunningly beautiful “pink lady”.

Bamburgh MMB 39 Bamburgh Castle. Photo by mattbuck, via Wikimedia Commons.

St Andrews, Fife

The opening scene of the film Chariots of Fire, which tells the story of two athletes who, after years of training, are accepted to compete in the 1924 Paris Olympics, features a race along a beautiful sandy beach with the athletes dressed in their white period racing gear, their feet splashing in the shallows, with the stirring theme tune by Vangelis ringing out.   Towards the end of the scene the skyline of the university and cathedral city of St Andrews comes into the camera shot, revealing that the scene of the race is the city’s West Sands beach, backed by St Andrews Links, this being “the home of golf”.  The beach where the athletes trained was meant to be at Broadstairs, but the film makers chose St Andrews for the running scenes.

Camusdarach Beach, Arisaig, Highland

In the heartwarming film Local Hero, which tells the story of a rich American oil company’s efforts to buy a small Scottish coastal village for oil prospecting purposes, much of the action takes place on the east coast, in the village of Pennan.  However, one of the most beautiful locations used in the film was actually on the other side of Scotland at Camusdarach Beach, between Morar and Arisaig.  The beach is the setting of the amusing scene in which the local populace gather in the little church overlooking the beach to hold a meeting about the oil company's bid to exploit the area, while the oil men stand on the beach, oblivious to the line of people filing into the church.

Looking North up Camusdarach Beach - geograph.org.uk - 68305. Photo by David Crocker, via Wikimedia Commons.

Blackpool, Lancashire

Blackpool has made repeated appearances in the long-running soap opera Coronation Street.  From the early days in 1961, when Ena, Minnie and Martha took a trip up the Blackpool Tower, to 1985 when Bet Lynch declared that "Everybody's letting their hair down. You can cut smell of shrimps and best bitter with a knife."  Fast forward to 1989 when one of Coronation Street's worst villains, Alan Bradley, met his end at the hands of a Blackpool tram while stalking Rita Fairclough, who had moved to the town to escape from him.  Then there was the recent heart-rending scene involving Roy and Hayley Cropper who went to Blackpool to try to blot out Hayley's terminal cancer.  On the big screen, the resort is the focal point of the British comedy film Bhaji On The Beach about a group of women from the Indian subcontinent enjoying a day trip to see the famous Blackpool Illuminations. 

Freshwater West, Pembrokeshire

The year 2009 was a big one for filming on the spectacular beach at Freshwater West.  In May of that year the beach was taken over by the Harry Potter team, when filming took place for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  The most striking prop was Dobby's Shell Cottage, which is seen in the film with the dunes as a backdrop.  Then, the following month the production crew of Ridley Scott's Robin Hood arrived and put on a dazzling display for any casual onlookers as they filmed the scene depicting a battle against French invaders with Robin Hood (Russell Crowe) leading his men into the fray.  The scene was so massive that it involved 800 actors and 130 horses as well as dozens of the boats that were built for the filming.   

Freshwater West - geograph.org.uk - 239022. Photo by Jeremy Owen, via Wikimedia Commons.

Southerndown, Vale of Glamorgan

Many Doctor Who fans will have been touched by the relationship between the David Tennant version of the Doctor and his sidekick Rose Tyler (Billie Piper).  So the tearjerking scene in which the Doctor is about to declare his feelings for Rose when he suddenly dematerialises must have had them reaching for the tissues.  The scene of all this heartache was the beach at Southerndown in South Wales, meant to be Bad Wolf Bay in Norway in the series.  The production team evidently thought highly of the beach in question as a filming location: it was used in several other episodes including Journey's End, which saw Rose being joined by her successor Donna (Catherine Tate). 

Portstewart Strand, County Londonderry

One of the most magnificent beaches in Northern Ireland, and just one of a host of scenic coastal locations seen in Game of Thrones, which has just begun its seventh series, Portstewart Strand was where Jaime Lannister and Bronn were seen duelling with the Dornish guards in series 5.  The filming took place in August 2014, which was unfortunate, this being one of Northern Ireland’s most popular summer holiday spots, because the beach was completely closed for the filming.  The locals didn’t mind, though, considering the closure a small price to pay for the exposure given to Portstewart by its role in Game of Thrones.

A westerly view along The Strand, Portstewart - geograph.org.uk - 1312074. Photo by Des Colhoun, via Wikimedia Commons.

TUDORMANIA ON THE TELLY: WOLF HALL

The television adaptation of Wolf Hall, based on Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall and its sequel Bring Up The Bodies and starring Damien Lewis as Henry VIII and Claire Foy as Anne Boleyn, very nearly didn't get made in England.  The makers of the programme, which covers the Anne Boleyn phase of Henry's love life and the pivotal role of Thomas Cromwell (Mark Rylance) as Henry's fixer, originally wanted to film in Belgium where there were tax breaks available, but they changed their minds, deciding that Belgium somehow just didn't look right.  Britain's tourism officials must have been very glad of this change of heart, because the sumptuous historic houses and gardens used in the series, many of them owned by the National Trust, provide the best possible showcase for the country's history and heritage.  The locations are spread across a range of counties, mainly in Southern England.

First off Somerset, where the crew made use of Barrington Court (National Trust), a 16th century Tudor manor house near Ilminster.  The house was restored in the 1920s and was used for evacuees during World War II.  There are no collections or furniture in the interior, so it is up to the visitor to visualise how the rooms would have looked during Tudor times.  The gardens were designed by Gertrude Jekyll.  For Wolf Hall the house portrayed York Place, the home of Cardinal Wolsey (Jonathan Pryce), with scenes set in the inner and outer privy chambers, while the gardens doubled as Windsor Great Park.  On to Montacute House (National Trust) near Yeovil, an Elizabethan mansion completed in 1601 and built from local 'ham' stone.  A highlight is the Long Gallery (171 feet long) with over 60 Tudor and Elizabethan portraits.  The house was given a majestic air by the architects courtesy of the towering windows.  In Wolf Hall Montacute was used for Greenwich Palace, with the Long Gallery stripped bare for the filming.  The surrounding parkland was used for the jousting scenes.  Further west, near Wellington, is the 14th century Cothay Manor, which was used in the series as the home of Thomas More.

Barringtoncourt. Photo by Andrew Longton, via Wikimedia Commons.

Heading northeast to Wiltshire we come to Great Chalfield Manor (National Trust) near Melksham.  This moated 15th century manor was built by Thomas Tropenell, who graced it with oriel windows and carvings of griffons and monkeys on the roof tops.  The property is surrounded by charming gardens.  For Wolf Hall the house served as Austin Friars, the London home of Thomas Cromwell.  For anyone wanting to relive the Wolf Hall experience there is bed and breakfast accommodation available at the property.  Also in Wiltshire is Lacock Abbey (National Trust), a former nunnery turned country house with various architectural styles.  As well as Lacock Abbey itself, visitors can stroll around the adjacent Lacock Village, with quaint streets, shops, cafes and pubs.  The pioneering photographer William Henry Fox Talbot once lived here, and there is a museum devoted to him.  In the series, Lacock Abbey was used to depict Wolf Hall itself, with outdoor scenes shot in the surrounding woodland.  Wolf Hall fans may have experienced a feeling of deja vu at the sight of this property, as it has been used for filming before, most notably in the Harry Potter films and the Cranford TV series.

Lacock Abbey cloister. Photo by John Chapman, via Wikimedia Commons.

To the north of Wiltshire is Gloucestershire with its county town of Gloucester, where the cathedral, built between 1089 and 1499, was used as the Court of Henry VIII.  During the filming the locals were treated to the sight of members of the cast in full Tudor regalia queuing up at a fish and chip van.  To the south west, near the mouth of the River Severn, is the small town of Berkeley and its castle, which has been the home of the Berkeley family for 850 years, making it the oldest building in the country still inhabited by the family who built it.  The castle, whose origins date back to the 11th century, is built from a warm-hued pink stone, with battlements towering 60 feet above the Great Lawn.  It was one of the so-called 'March Castles' built to keep out the Welsh.  The makers of the series made use of the Bailey Gates and Inner Bailey, The Great Hall, kitchens, buttery and The Long Drawing Room.  Further north in the county in the depths of the Cotswolds is Stanway House, a Jacobean manor house known for its single-jet fountain, the highest gravity fountain in the world.  As it happens Thomas Cromwell had close links to this part of the country, and witnessed the destruction of the nearby Hailes Abbey.

Berkeley Castle - geograph.org.uk - 1440400. Photo by Philip Halling, via Wikimedia Commons.

Zooming across to the south-east corner of the country, there are two locations in Kent which featured in the series.  Penshurst Place is a 14th century hunting lodge near Tonbridge which once belonged to Henry VIII.  It was where Henry courted Anne Boleyn, so that the scenes shot in The Long Gallery were filmed in the very place that the action between the two lovers took place 500 years ago.  Candles were used for the filming, adding an extra air of authenticity, although some viewers complained about the darkness of the scenes on the telly.  Other parts of the property used for filming include the Queen Elizabeth Room, Baron's Hall, The Tapestry Room, The Solar and The Crypt, with scenes depicting York Place and Whitehall.  Two other historical films were made here: The Other Boleyn Girl and Anne of the Thousand Days.  Down on the coast, Dover Castle (English Heritage) with its 83-foot Great Tower played the Tower of London - not for the first time, as it has been used in a number of other productions for the same purpose. The grisly execution scene at the end of the series was shot here.  The castle occupies the site of an Iron Age hillfort which was used by William the Conqueror for the construction of an earthwork and timber-stockaded castle.  The stone castle was begun in the 1180s by Henry II.

These are the main locations used in the series, but there are a number of others: Bristol and Winchester Cathedrals, Broughton Castle and Chastleton House (National Trust) in Oxfordshire, the Tithe Barn (English Heritage) in Bradford on Avon, Raglan Castle (Cadw) in Monmouthshire and the beguiling fairytale Castell Coch (Cadw) to the north of Cardiff in Wales.

THE GAFF ON THE TAF: DYLAN THOMAS AND HIS LAUGHARNE HIDEAWAY

I first visited the estuary town of Laugharne - pronounced Larne - a few years ago on the way home from a weekend in Tenby with my husband.  I must confess I had never heard of it before, but the landlady of our bed and breakfast recommended it, so we decided to look in on it.  After wandering around the town we decided to go for a walk along the path by the west bank of the estuary of the River Taf, on which the town is situated, and after a short distance we came across a sweet little building, barely more than a hut.  Peering through the window, it became apparent that what we were looking at was the 'Writing Shed' used by Dylan Thomas during his time living in Laugharne.  Thomas and his family spent the last four years of his tragically short life living in the Boat House on the shore of the estuary, and the shed was perched just above it.  It was a lovely Sunday morning when we visited, and as we gazed out at the stunning views of the estuary and of the majestic Gower Peninsula away in the distance, it was easy to imagine what a source of inspiration this spot must have been for the most famous Welsh poet.

The Boathouse

The first poem written by Dylan Thomas in his Writing Shed was 'Over St John's Hill', which describes the view - "Crystal harbour vale//Where the sea cobbles sail", "wharves of water where the walls dance and the white cranes stilt" - and the wildlife - "the hawk on fire hangs still" and "the elegiac fisherbird stabs and paddles".  Other works borne from Thomas' time in the shed include 'Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night' about his dying father and 'Poem on his Birthday'.  The characters in 'Under Milkwood' are believed to have been inspired by the people of Laugharne, although the location is thought to be based on New Quay in Cardigan Bay.  

The Taf Estuary

For visitors who want to follow a 'Dylan trail' there are a number of sites around Laugharne with connections to the poet.  Brown's Hotel was where he would retreat to after a bout of poetry-writing in order to indulge his other great passion in life: drinking.  The sign outside the hotel shows an image of the poet.  There are two former homes which were occupied by the poet and his family before they settled in the Boat House: Eros, a fisherman's cottage on Gosport Street and Sea View behind the castle.  The castle, dating from Norman times and now a ruin, was a favourite haunt of Thomas when seeking peace and solitude.  The hillside cemetery of St Martin's Church harbours the graves of both Dylan and his beloved wife Caitlin.  Nature lovers will find plenty of birdlife down at the estuary, with egrets, lapwings, herons, oystercatchers, seals and even the occasional otter making an appearance.

Browns Hotel. Photo by Tony in Devon, via Wikimedia Commons

The Boat House is open to visitors from May to October, and offers memorabilia devoted to Thomas as well as a tea room and art gallery.

This year marks the centenary of the birth of Dylan Thomas, who was born on 27 October 1914.  For the centenary a pop-up replica of the Writing Shed will be touring throughout Wales.

Map of the area.

MEDIEVAL MAYHEM AT FRESHWATER WEST: ROBIN HOOD

On a fine June day in 2009 the peace and tranquillity of an idyllic beach in south-west Wales was shattered by the sound of charging, whinnying horses, the clashing of swords and yells and shouts from a fleet of longboats out at sea.  The cause of this spectacle, which must have provided a frisson of excitement for both visitors and locals who were allowed to watch from a distance, was the filming of a scene from Ridley Scott's 2010 version of the story of hero of English folklore Robin Hood, starring Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett.  The scene depicts a battle against French invaders with Robin leading his men into the fray and slaughtering his arch enemy, Sir Godfrey (Mark Strong), who has pledged his allegiance to the French side.  Considering the scene formed only a small part of the film as a whole, there were a staggering number of people and animals involved in making it: 800 actors and 130 horses, not to mention the dozens of boats and the helicopters flying overhead for the shots from the air.  There were also ambulances on hand in the quite likely event that someone might get hurt.  This was the second time that year that Freshwater West had caught the attention of Hollywood: the previous month the beach was used as the backdrop for Dobby's Shell Cottage in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  

Freshwater West - geograph.org.uk - 239022.  Photo by Jeremy Owen, via Wikimedia Commons.

The beach at Freshwater West is just one of many in Pembrokeshire, a county in south-west Wales which has more than its fair share of stunning beaches and coastal scenery.  It feels miles from anywhere, although the town of Pembroke is only about five miles to the east.  Walkers can reach the beach via the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, which passes through here.  The mile-long beach is a diverting mix of sand dunes and rock pools, making it a fun place for families, although swimming is unsuitable for all but the most experienced swimmers and in particular surfers, who flock here to brave the strong waves.  The beach is the venue for regular surfing tournaments, attracting contestants from all over the world.  Further round the coast is the National Trust run area known as Stackpole, with yet more lovely beaches, clifftop walks and a delightful complex of small lakes known as Bosherston Lakes, created 200 years ago for the now demolished mansion of Stackpole Court.  There are walkways around the lakes leading from the car park down to the beach, and the whole area is a haven for birds, dragonflies and even otters.

Bosherston Lakes

Map of the area. 

Tourist information about Pembrokeshire.