Author: Alice Gregory

Barry Island is once again abuzz with excitement as Gŵyl Fach y Fro, the beloved Welsh arts and culture festival, prepares to make its triumphant return on Saturday 18 May 2024. This vibrant event, organized by Menter Iaith Bro Morgannwg, promises a day filled with music, creativity, and community spirit—all in the beautiful Welsh language. What to Expect: Live Performances: From a stage for primary schools including choirs to renowned bands like Fleur De Lys, Lowri Evans, Sage Todz & Parisa Fouladi, Wigwam and Gwcci. Also a fantastic new stage showcasing folk artists such as Bethan Nia, Brigyn and Lo-Fi Jones, everyone gets…

A large collection of UK commemorative gold coins, most of which were in mint condition and cased, sold for more than £19,000 at a leading Shropshire fine art auction house Wednesday 20th March. The collection was consigned by the owner, who lives on the Mid Wales coast, to Halls Fine Art’s successful books, coins and stamps auction in Shrewsbury. Derek Ainsworth, Halls Fine Art’s coins specialist, said the coins, many of which were contained in capsules, were originally collected by the owner’s late father. They ranged from £5 and £2 denominations to sovereigns and half sovereigns. Top price for a…

Eggs-tra Special Activities This Easter at Royal Mint! The Royal Mint Experience, located in Llantrisant, South Wales is set to host a series of eggs-tra special activities throughout the Easter holidays, from 22ndMarch – 8th April.  Dinosaur Brick Building with Bricks McGee – Monday 25th March / Tuesday 26th March. Dinosaur Shows and Meet and Greets with Dinomania – Thursday 4th April / Friday 5th April. Visitors will also be able to strike their own Stegosaurus 50-pence coin. A drone show like no other at Cardiff Sophia Gardens Evolution, an epic drone light show which promises to take audiences on…

The chief executive of Qualifications Wales will set out the need for partners across Wales to work together to strengthen the qualifications system and protect the value of qualifications for learners. Philip Blaker will make the call when he delivers a keynote speech at the National Training Federation for Wales (NTFW) conference at the International Convention Centre Wales in Newport on Friday. Mr Blaker’s presentation will focus on three key issues: how the qualifications system is responding to emerging needs whilst maintaining relevance for today; current work being undertaken by Qualifications Wales to develop and review qualifications and a future…

Rare bees in the roof of a National Trust Cymru house in Wales are being temporarily re-homed while the building gets a new roof. Beekeepers successfully moved five swarms of 50,000 Welsh black honeybees to nearby hives. 4000 Welsh slates from Penrhyn Quarry will be used for the first major re-roofing project in 200 years. The survival of the building is due to the restoration work by three sisters, Eileen, Lorna and Honora Keating in the 1930s. Sisters stipulated that the bees must always be protected after gifting it to the National Trust. For the first time in 200 years…

Andy O’Brien from Talgarth has dedicated 2024 to fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support by taking on extreme challenges, including climbing Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn in the same week. The alpine climbs are scheduled for summer 2024. Mont Blanc on the French / Italian border is the highest mountain in Europe at 4,805.59 m  / 15,766 ft.  The Matterhorn, which straddles the border between Italy and Switzerland summit is 4,478 metres (14,692 ft) above sea level. Poor weather conditions have prevented Andy from scaling Mont Blanc twice in the past, but he is determined that this will be third time…

Newport Live, in collaboration with Lliswerry Primary School and the Football Association of Wales (FAW), celebrated the success of the second Primary Schools Girls Football League Festival held on February 28, 2024, at the Geraint Thomas Velodrome. The event witnessed an impressive turnout with 19 schools participating and an astounding 220 girls in Year 5 and 6 participating in a day packed with football games. The festival was graced by special guests including Maise Miller and Cori Williams from Cardiff City Ladies, along with Neville Southall, former Welsh international goalkeeper. Karl Reed, Head of Community Sport & Wellbeing at Newport…

A Welsh woman who climbed Wales’s 100 highest peaks after her breast cancer diagnosis has published a book about her adventures to raise money for the research and support charity, Breast Cancer Now. Avid walker Sheila Owen, 70, from Holyhead, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018 following a routine mammogram. After her treatment finished, Sheila rebuilt her fitness through walks in the local area with her husband, John. “Walking was an integral part of my recovery from breast cancer,” says Sheila. “I’ve always exercised, but finishing my treatment just before the lockdown meant I was quite limited. I couldn’t…

Learners from Coleg Gwent delivered an impressive performance at this year’s Skills Competition Wales final (14 March 2024) — walking away with a total of 18 medals, including seven gold awards. Hosted at the International Conference Centre in Newport, the annual event, which is funded by Welsh Government, aims to raise the profile of skills in Wales and offers students, trainees, and apprentices the chance to take part in competitions across a wide range of sectors. This year’s competition boasted record numbers of interest and registrations with over 1,100 participants taking part across 64 competitions. Coleg Gwent was one of…

Welsh whisky, beer and cheese could soon be on the menu in Switzerland thanks to a North Wales seaside resort twinning with a world famous skiing village. New trade links are being established after Llandudno and Champéry, part of the giant Porte du Soleil skiing area, celebrated their new partnership at a special ceremony at the Swiss Embassy in London as part of Wales in London Week. The town between the Great Orme and Little Orme headlands and the winter sports village 3,000 feet up in the Alps have been linked since 2022, thanks in part to the Welsh seaside…