Author: Rhys Gregory

Most of us have woken up with a sore neck more than once in our lives and have just thought we’d slept funny and never considered that the pillow could actually be the reason why. A good night’s sleep has mostly been attributed to the right mattress, the quality and quantity of light in the room, and some peace and quiet. Hardly has the type of pillow one is using been a big issue yet, according to clinical evidence, two-thirds of middle-aged persons suffer from neck pain caused by the pillow they sleep on. As you sleep, the position of…

The Welsh Grand National is the largest race held in Wales and is popular with UK and Irish horse racing fans.  The popular race is run at the Chepstow Racecourse. The Welsh Grand National is now traditionally held one day after Boxing Day, December 27th. Wales’ most famous race has a long and storied history. The race was first run at Ely Racecourse in Cardiff. After World War II, it was moved to Caerleon before moving to Chepstow in 1949 after the closure of the Caerleon course. The Welsh Grand National is one of the most competitive betting heats of…

A new poll commissioned by ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) suggests the Covid-19 pandemic has proved to be a time of career contemplation and change for young people. There are around six million 16 – 24 year olds in the UK, and ACCA polled over 1,000 to better understand their views about jobs. While before the pandemic 21% wanted to pursue a professional career like accountancy, that figure has now increased to 30%. Being on furlough has offered a lot of people already in work the chance to reassess and aim to take new qualifications to target a…

Two Gwynedd schools have had success in the final round of a national competition held by the Books Council of Wales. The task this year was for year 3 and 4 pupils to discuss a book of their choice from the reading list and present a performance to attract others to read the book. The judges this year were the presenter, Mari Lovegreen and Llinos Penfold. Following the keen competition, they both decided that the group from Ysgol Felinheli deserved the top spot with Ysgol y Gelli a strong second. Huge congratulations to both schools. Ysgol y Gelli also came…

The global Covid-19 pandemic has forced the cancellation of a prestigious four-day culinary event that was set to attract the world’s best chefs to compete in Wales in October. With pandemic restrictions continuing to impact countries around the world, the Culinary Association of Wales (CAW) had no other choice than to call off the Worldchefs Global Chefs Challenge, scheduled for the Celtic Manor Resort, Newport from October 23-26. This major Worldchefs event comprises three competitions and chefs were set to fly in from countries worldwide. However, due to pandemic travel and quarantine rules in their own countries, many finalists and…

A Mid Wales steam locomotive begins its centenary year celebrations by returning to its original railway on August 28 to head a passenger train from Corris station for the first time since 1930. Marking another landmark in the revival of Corris Railway, steam locomotive number 4, ‘Edward Thomas’, will set off from the station at 11am followed by further trips at 1pm and 3pm. Tickets must be pre-booked. By 1921, the railway’s original trio of steam locomotives had been working for four decades in the Dulas Valley, north of Machynlleth and were becoming time expired. To deal with the problem,…

A fireman, a retired couple and a mum-of-three were among eight neighbours in St Brides Major to net a £30,000 cash prize each, all thanks to their postcode. The neighbours’ windfall came after their postcode of CF32 0SW, in St Brides Major near Bridgend,was announced as a winner with People’s Postcode Lottery on Saturday 7th August. Andy Shaw (45), a local fireman, was one of the lucky winners and found out much he had won during a video call with lottery ambassador Danyl Johnson. On seeing a prize cheque for £30,000, Andy said: “Oh wow, that’s amazing! Andy is hoping…

Half way through the school summer holidays, the Snowdonia National Park Authority and its partners’ efforts to encourage and facilitate a sustainable visit to the area continues. Since the end of the first Covid-19 lockdown, Snowdonia has seen unprecedented numbers of visitors to the National Park. While foreign travel rules and restrictions remain in force for some popular summer destinations, the Park Authority expects to see a continuation of the current trend to holiday at home in the National Parks. In anticipation of another busy visitor season, the Park Authority and its partners spent the winter working in collaboration on…

To celebrate the launch his new book Weatherman Walking – The Welsh Coast Derek Brockway will be joining the Ramblers on one of his walks from Merthyr Mawr to Southerndown in the Vale of Glamorgan on Saturday the 14 August. The walk is one of 15 walks featured in his latest publication from Y Lolfa and takes in the stunning scenery of the Wales Coast Path in the Vale of Glamorgan. Starting from the car park in Merthyr Mawr, Derek Brockway will be joining the Vale Ramblers group for a 5-mile linear walk. Derek Brockway said: “I couldn’t think of…

Poundland is coming back to Oxford Street in Swansea and while it can’t offer shoppers a Mound like its namesake in London, it can guarantee mountains of savings. London’s Marble Arch Mound, at the end of Oxford Street, the capital’s new £2 million attraction, has come under a barrage of ridicule from disgruntled visitors. Next month [September 2021] sees the opening of Poundland at 18, Oxford Street, Swansea, and it won’t need a big pile of mud to attract customers. A spokesperson for Poundland said: “If there was a man-made hill in front of it, we’d rename it Moundland, but…