Author: Rhys Gregory

The music from the acclaimed historical TV drama Wolf Hall will be performed in a special concert at a top festival in North Wales. It was composed for the BBC’s adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s novel by Debbie Wiseman OBE, one of the world’s most renowned composers, whose work will be showcased at the North Wales International Music Festival on Thursday, September 18. Her other television credits include Father Brown and Tom’s Midnight Garden and films such as Wilde, the biographical film about Oscar Wilde, which starred Stephen Fry. Debbie has also composed music for several Royal occasions and her piece…

With the launch of a new report which suggests that ‘innovation deserts’ and ‘self-limiting mindsets’ are leading to Wales’s position at the bottom in an index of economic competitiveness, businesses in north Wales are proving that entrepreneurial mindsets, profit balanced with purpose, community networks, and ambition are certainly not lacking here in north Wales. Glyn Wylfa is a thriving hub and café based in a renovated former council office building in Chirk. The dilapidated buildings were taken over as a community hub and renovated in 2013. A team of seventeen, many of them young people from the Chirk area who…

Rhian Wilkinson’s Cymru will face Australia for the first time in October, in what will be their first fixture following this summer’s UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 finals. The match will take place on Saturday 25 October at the Cardiff City Stadium, with a 2pm kick off time. The Matilda’s are ranked 15th in the world and feature several big names including Sam Kerr and Caitlin Foord who play in the WSL in England. This will be Cymru’s first match since this summer’s EURO finals, which was the side’s first ever appearance in a major tournament. Wilkinson hopes the Red Wall…

Over 100 different beers from independent breweries across Wales will feature in the first-ever ‘Indie Beer Cymru’ festival, which takes place in Haverfordwest next month. The Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) and its Welsh associates are behind the new  festival, which will celebrate the very best of independent Welsh brewing on Friday 19th and Saturday 20th September in HAVERHUB, Haverfordwest’s Community Hub. Following on from the success of the hugely popular Indie Beer Scotland event in Glasgow, Indie Beer Cymru is set to become a flagship event for the Welsh beer scene. It will bring together a diverse mix of traditional…

Specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co, has been instructed to sell the historic Goat Hotel and pub in Welshpool, Powys. The Goat Hotel is a boutique family-run pub and hotel with a 25-seat restaurant and six letting bedrooms. The 17th century inn is located on the high street in Llanfair Caereinion, amidst a scenic backdrop of rolling hills and just a short distance to the River Banwy. For almost 300 years, The Goat Hotel has provided traditional Welsh hospitality on the routes between Shrewsbury and Aberystwyth for travellers. Beyond the restaurant, there is a casual drinks/dining area and a…

The Welsh Language Commissioner has announced that Cancer Research Wales will be its chosen charity for the year ahead. The work of the Welsh cancer research charity has contributed to major improvements in cancer services for people living with the disease across Wales. The announcement will be made today (Friday 8 August) at 12pm at the Wrecsam National Eisteddfod on the Welsh Language Commissioner’s stand. For many years, the Commissioner has chosen a charity to support annually following an internal vote between staff. The aim is that working with Cancer Research Wales will be an opportunity to raise awareness of…

A series of weird and wacky August events gets underway on Saturday in the small Mid Wales town of Llanwrtyd Wells which has developed an international reputation for unusual challenges. Everything from a Cider Cycle and MTB chariot race to a BOGATHLON – a wet sprint style triathlon – and the famous World Bogsnorkelling Championships will be on offer in the Powys town, not to mention the BOGFEST live music. Everything form a Cider Cycle and MTB chariot racing to a triathlon in a bog and the famous World Bogsnorkelling Championships will be on offer in the Powys town, not…

Globetrotting Welsh chef Jamie Tully has put down his roots in the Mid Wales Victoria spa town of Llandrindod Wells where he has launched a new American-style dining experience. Tully has swapped cooking for the rich and famous on superyachts to launch Tully’s Sports Diner at the Hampton Hotel and has been rewarded with a very busy restaurant and takeaway trade. Open from Wednesday to Sunday, the restaurant serves a range of burgers, ‘big dogs’, chicken wings, quesadillas, Cubanos, meatballs, garlic chicken skewers, sticky lamb ribs, nachos and skirt steak, together with a range of sides and desserts. “The food…

Two drug dealers who held a Cardiff teenager captive in a London flat and forced him to package-up crack cocaine and heroin have both been jailed. The boy was found when Metropolitan Police officers turned up at the address looking for somebody wanted for an unrelated matter. Abdullahi Dable, 26, and Malik Touray, 20, appeared at Cardiff Crown Court on Monday when they were jailed for a total of eight years. The victim in the case, who was 16 at the time, had been reported missing by his family on February 13 – four days before he was found. He…

Officers investigating the disappearance of 22-year-old Gwenno Ephraim continue to appeal for information to identify an individual who may hold information vital to their enquiries. Gwenno was last seen on the night of Monday, 28 July in the upper Bangor area. She is known to have walked in the direction of Menai Bridge. CCTV footage reviewed by investigators appears to show her walking alone between 10:20pm and 11:10pm. It is understood Gwenno had reached the Menai Suspension Bridge shortly before 11.10pm. A female pedestrian pictured below was captured crossing on the opposite side of the bridge at that time. Police…