Author: Rhys Gregory

Following two years of extensive conservation and refurbishment, Caerphilly Castle – the biggest castle in Wales – is reopening to visitors this weekend, bringing back to life the Great Hall, inner castle ward and unveiling state-of-the-art digital exhibits. Tracing its beginnings back to 1268, Caerphilly Castle was a fortress for the Marcher Lord Gilbert de Clare who built the formidable castle to protect himself from the rise of the Prince of Wales, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. The iconic Great Hall, built in the 13th century, is just one of many historic buildings within the castle which has benefited from painstaking investigation…

Vernon Everitt has been announced as Transport for Wales’ new Chair. Vernon Everitt is currently Transport Commissioner and Chair of Transport for Greater Manchester and is also an existing Non-Executive Director on the Transport for Wales board. He will take up his post later this month. He brings to the role a wealth of experience having previously worked as a Senior Executive at Transport for London where he was responsible for improving customer service and driving up journeys and revenue on the public transport network. More recently he was involved in work to franchise the bus network in Manchester. Mr…

Swansea Grand announces that Welsh leading lady Celyn Cartwright will join the previously announced Panto legends Joe Pasquale and Kev Johns for a magical carpet ride into pantoland in this year’s family adventure Aladdin from 06 December 2025 to 04 January 2026 Playing the role of Spirit of the Ring, Celyn who hails from North Wales, is an accomplished musical theatre performer. She was the first-ever recipient of the prestigious Catherine Zeta Jones scholarship at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Her recent credits include leading lady in the UK tour of Come What May and principal vocalist…

Oral health is about much more than just a bright smile and fresh breath. It plays a vital role in your overall health and well-being. From heart disease to diabetes, there’s increasing evidence that poor oral hygiene can significantly affect your general health. Understanding this connection is essential to maintaining a healthy lifestyle and preventing long-term issues. How Oral Health Affects the Body The mouth is a gateway to the rest of the body. It harbours bacteria, both good and bad. While most bacteria are harmless, poor oral hygiene can allow harmful bacteria to grow out of control. These bacteria…

William Creighton scorched to victory on the Nicky Grist Stages (Saturday 12 July), when he won the event for the first time in his Castrol MEM Rally Team Toyota GR Yaris Rally2. Builth Wells Mayor Cllr. Mark Hammond flagged the cars away from the start of the Quinton Motor Club organised event from outside Strand Hall, as 142 crews headed out for the morning loop of four stages in Monument, Route 60, Halfway and Bowlsey (Crychan). Co-driven by Liam Regan, number one seed Creighton had the benefit of a dust-free road – offset by the challenge of trying to find…

Young performers have been showing how important Llangollen Eisteddfod is to them as they shone in its competitions this week. At last year’s festival well-known local actor and singer Shea Ferron was the winner of the Voice of Musical Theatre competition. And now it appears he and his girlfriend Hannah Williams have made a bit of Eisteddfod history after she took the same coveted title earlier this week. A delighted Shea took to social media to say: “So b***** proud of Hannah! She absolutely smashed it out the water today. Just a few weeks ago she told me that she…

One of Wales’ most fearless adventurers and celebrated broadcasters, Lowri Morgan, will host this year’s Powys Business Awards ceremony. With more than 20 years’ broadcasting experience and a reputation for courage, warmth and authenticity, Lowri will bring an exciting energy to this year’s awards ceremony at The Hafren, Newtown on Friday, October 17. Organised by Mid Wales Manufacturing Group (MWMG), the annual awards celebrate business innovation, resilience, excellence and talent across Powys. Best known for her extraordinary endurance adventures and compelling documentaries for S4C, BBC, ITV and international broadcasters, Lowri has pushed herself to the limits in some of the…

The Princess Royal will be visiting this year’s Royal Welsh Show at Llanelwedd on the first day, Monday, July 21. It will be her seventh visit to the four-day show, having first attended in 1981. Her most recent visit was in 2022 and her return reflects her ongoing support for agriculture and rural life. The Princess Royal will tour showground after attending the annual meeting of The Royal Agricultural Society of the Commonwealth, of which she is president. The meeting is being held at the show. “We are absolutely thrilled that The Princess Royal will be joining us at this…

Legendary songwriter and musician Bob Dylan returns to the UK in 2025 for a string of dates, including three unmissable shows at Swansea Building Society Arena this November. The acclaimed Rough and Rowdy Ways tour is just the latest chapter in an unparalleled career, which will see Dylan taking to the stage in Swansea on Sunday 9th, Monday 10th and Tuesday 11th November. The release of new music in 2020 suprised and delighted fans, with the album Rough and Rowdy Waysdominating end-of-year lists and marking another milestone in the career of one of the great artists of modern times. These…

Cadw, the Welsh Government’s historic environment service, has partnered with Evolt Charging to introduce fast and reliable electric vehicle (EV) charging at nine heritage sites across Wales that are now live and ready for public use. The project, funded by Transport for Wales (TfW), has been delivered as part of TfW’s Sustainable Development Plan to deliver a greener transport network across the country and address gaps in Wales’ EV infrastructure. A series of 22kW public charge points, supplied by Evolt Charging, have been installed across an initial nine Cadw sites – Castell Coch, Castell Rhuddlan, Denbigh Castle, Harlech Castle, Kidwelly Castle,…