Author: Rhys Gregory

BUSINESS is bubbling up nicely for one of the country’s most ethical and inspiring manufacturers. Dr Zigs distributed 10,000 litres of its popular products during the Coronavirus lockdown – that equates to a staggering 10 million giant bubbles. And the sales surge comes as the company, based on the Vaynol Estate near Bangor, approaches its 10th anniversary. Bubbler-in-Chief Paola Dyboski-Bryant has big plans for the future; she wants to create a viable, sustainable organisation with a minimal carbon footprint that reflects her own ethics and activism. A former professional sailor and lighting technician – Paola was the West End’s first…

A new visitor attraction with a living history medieval village, dinosaur park, nature walks and a wedding venue has opened in the Vale of Glamorgan. Fonmon Castle, which dates from Norman times, is a beautiful country home set in 100 acres of grounds in the Vale of Glamorgan, close to Cardiff Airport. It was purchased last year by Nigel Ford, a businessman who has built a successful wholesale seed business, All Things Rural, as well as a popular visitor attraction, All Things Wild, in the Midlands. He has taken what he learnt from these ventures to help recreate Fonmon Castle…

South Wales college, Coleg y Cymoedd has teamed up with the Wales Rugby League to launch a brand-new dual academy aimed at supporting Wales’ future male and female professional rugby players. The ‘Wales Rugby League National Development Academy’ will be the only dual academy in Wales officially accredited by the Rugby Football League. Committed to producing the next generation of male and female rugby league talent, for the first time, the academy at Coleg y Cymoedd will be open to everyone aged 16-19, regardless of gender, and will offer a potential pathway to play in the Super League and international…

A new scheme designed to offer reassurance to newly diagnosed COVID-19 patients in Swansea Bay, via telephone, is being declared a ringing success. The scheme, conducted by Swansea Bay University Health Board’s Infectious Disease Team and Medical Students from Swansea University, aims to offer support to patients as they come to terms with their diagnosis. Since the beginning of the outbreak 1,748 patients in Swansea Bay have been infected and tested positive for COVID-19 at a time of reduced access to health care.  Many have needed to cope with their diagnosis relying on the internet and those around them for…

A man who led police on a death defying chase through the streets of Merthyr Tydfil has been jailed. On 31st March, 2020, Leon Fear ignored a request to stop from a police officer who was carrying out checks on High Street in Dowlais. The 23 year-old from Ferndale sped away but was followed by the officer who got back into his police car to catch up with the black Audi that Fear was driving. Despite the police vehicle displaying blue lights and siren, Fear ignored the officer and continued on his reckless pursuit to get away. He led police…

Following the success of their first Robin Morgan & Friends event last month, Chapter Arts Centre is delighted to announce another virtual comedy gig, The event will take place on Friday 7 August and will feature comedians Jessica Fostekew (Live At The Apollo, QI, The Guilty Feminist), who performed at Chapter last February with her sell-out show ‘Hench’, and Clint Edwards (Never Mind The Buzzcocks, Have I Got News For You, Mock The Week), who in usual times organises the monthly Drones Comedy Club at Chapter. The host for the night will be Robin Morgan (BBC Radio 4, Sky One,…

Denbighshire County Council is continuing to offer free parking at its town centre car parks throughout July. The majority of the Council’s public car parks in the main town centres have remained open during the lockdown period and continue to be free of charge for the remainder of the month. The free parking is to encourage residents and visitors to use the county’s town centres for shopping and for doing business. Councillor Brian Jones, Cabinet Lead Member for Waste, Transport and the Environment, said: “We wish to remind residents that free car parking in our main town car parks will…

A Swansea University project exploring how to use algae to create the next generation of sunscreens has now teamed up with an award-winning skincare firm to help develop the idea. ALG-SUN, led by the Biosciences Department, has been awarded funding from the Algae-UK (Proof of Concept) Scheme to undertake research with both academic and industrial partners. The Swansea team will now be working on the project with the Natural Products Factory which owns award-winning organic and vegan skincare brand Nourish London along with health scientists from Swansea University Medical School and University spin-off company Membranology. Carole Llewellyn, Professor in Applied…

Wales’ Farming Unions – NFU Cymru and the Farmers’ Union of Wales- held a successful joint virtual roundtable meeting with the UK’s High-Level Climate Action Champion, Nigel Topping. In addition to wider discussions around climate change, the roundtable event provided a platform to discuss the “Race to Zero” campaign, an international campaign for a healthy, resilient zero carbon recovery, which was launched on World Environment Day, and will run up to COP26 . NFU Cymru President John Davies said: “As farmers we are very much on the front line of climate change impacts. The continued turbulent weather events we have…

An Ammanford man has been banned from keeping equines for three years and given a suspended jail term, after a horse in his care was left suffering because she was so desperately thin. Nigel Jeremy Nicholas Ward, 62 – of Penygarn Road – pleaded guilty to the Animal Welfare Act offence – and was handed a 28-week custodial sentence, suspended for 18 months, following his treatment of the brown horse. RSPCA inspector Keith Hogben had previously found the equine – named Lily – in a field at the end of Llwyncelyn Road, in the Glanamman area of Ammanford, with her…