Author: Rhys Gregory

The golden moment has arrived where the National Fish and Chip Awards serves up the announcement of the UK’s Top 40 entries for the Fish and Chip Takeaway of the Year category. This year’s nomination process saw fish and chip businesses from across the UK entering the awards, with the sole aim of scooping the coveted crown to be named Britain’s best. The judging panel – made up of the industry’s ‘a-fish-onados’ – put hopeful entrants through an extensive judging process, testing them against industry best practice on environmental issues, product knowledge and their responsibilities as an employer, and more.…

A mum from Port Talbot has been given the all-clear from cancer after becoming the first person in Wales to be prescribed a new wonder drug. The drug, dostarlimab, targets a specific variant of colorectal cancer. While it is still being clinically trialled, it is already showing remarkable results – avoiding the need for surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Carrie Downey was diagnosed a year ago and given dostarlimab infusions for six months. Tests have shown there is no longer any evidence of the disease. Meanwhile, Janet Baker, a Pembrokeshire grandmother who was the third in Wales to receive the drug,…

Welsh food and drink companies are set to make a flavoursome impression at Anuga 2023, the world’s leading trade fair for food and drink, as they showcase their products to buyers and look to secure new export deals. Anuga 2023, which takes places from 7-11 October 2023 in Cologne, Germany, is set to host more than 7,400 exhibitors from more than 100 countries, making it the ideal platform for Welsh companies to expand their global reach and introduce the world to the exceptional quality of food and drink that Wales has to offer. Supported by the Welsh Government, the participating…

The headline NatWest Wales Business Activity Index – a seasonally adjusted index that measures the month-on-month change in the combined output of the region’s manufacturing and service sectors – registered 48.4 in September, down from 50.5 in August, to signal a renewed and marginal decline in business activity at Welsh firms. The pace of contraction was the fastest since June, but broadly in line with the average seen across the UK as a whole. Anecdotal evidence suggested that lower output was due to weak client demand and a faster reduction in new orders. Private sector firms in Wales registered a…

Corey Fenton who was caught with drugs, £1k cash and a machete has been jailed. The 21-year-old was arrested by plain-clothed officers in Heol Trelai, Ely, Cardiff, on the evening of Wednesday, September 13.Officers from the Organised Crime Team observed Fenton take part in several exchanges while riding an e-bike around the area. He was detained and found to have numerous wraps of crack cocaine and heroin, a knife and more than £1,000 cash. Fenton, from Caerau, was arrested and during interview answered ‘no comment’ to all questions. But he pleaded guilty at his first court appearance and on Friday,…

The redevelopment of Porthcawl’s much-loved theatre, the Grand Pavilion is moving a step closer, with residents invited to have a final say on the proposed plans before they are submitted to the local authority for formal planning. Bridgend County Borough Council and its partners at Awen Cultural Trust were awarded £18m Levelling Up Funding from the UK Government, following a successful application by the council working in close partnership with Awen Cultural Trust. The redevelopment of the Grand Pavilion represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to safeguard this iconic building for many years to come and ensure it retains its position as…

A new mural inspired by Cardiff’s musical heritage and designed by Unify Creative, the artists behind the ‘Butetown Mona Lisa,’ has appeared in a Cardiff city centre underpass that runs beneath Boulevard de Nantes, connecting Kingsway with the Civic Centre. A second mural by Wall-Op Murals, inspired by the city’s history and the works of William Burges at Cardiff Castle, has been installed in the former Glamorganshire Canal Tunnel that runs underneath Kingsway. The murals have been commissioned by Cardiff Community Safety Partnership, made up of Cardiff Council, South Wales Police, the Police and Crime Commissioner and other key statutory…

Santa will return to Swansea this year for his traditional parade that heralds the start of the festive season. The FREE city centre procession, organised by Swansea Council, will take place on Sunday 19 November – five weeks before the big day itself. The parade will set off from Victoria Road at around 5pm before making its way through the city centre to The Kingsway. Santa will be performing the city centre Christmas lights switch-on; one from Castle Square and another from outside the Dragon Hotel on the Kingsway. Council cabinet member Robert Francis-Davies said: “Christmas is one of the most important…

Neath Port Talbot Council Leader, Cllr Steve Hunt, expressed his views at the authority’s monthly meeting on October 4th, 2023, on the UK Government’s deal with Tata Steel UK to decarbonise its Port Talbot plant and the Welsh Government’s controversial 20 mph speed limit. On the Tata Steel deal, he said: “On 15th September, Tata and the UK Government jointly announced proposed investment in the company’s plant at Port Talbot. “The proposal would see half a billion pounds invested by the UK Government with Tata providing a further £750m. The investment would fund the replacement of the existing blast furnaces…

Neath Port Talbot Council has announced it is in detailed discussions with major home, garden and leisure retailer The Range about taking over the lease of the vacant former Neath town centre Wilko store. Last month it was announced Wilko stores would disappear from UK high streets after a rescue deal for the chain fell through. The Range is a successful, multi-channel retailer selling products in the home, garden, DIY and leisure categories, with more than 210 stores in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The Leader of Neath Port Talbot Council, Cllr Steve Hunt, has welcomed the news. Speaking on Friday, October…