An Interview With Mr. Roscoe Howells

Interview by: Alan Evans Roscoe Howells was born in Saundersfoot in 1919. His mother died when he was three weeks old. His father remarried and he was brought up during the depression. He witnessed the harshness of the depression with Bonville’s Court colliery closing down leaving families in utter poverty. Roscoe’s work has its roots in the community and countryside around Saundersfoot, Tenby and Amroth. Roscoe was a former pupil of Christ College Brecon as well as vice-president and former chairman of the Pembrokeshire Historical Society, of which he was a founder member. He was also a founder member and chairman of the old Pembrokeshire Records Society. His many books include Woodreef – From Amroth to Utah – Pembrokeshire’s Islands – Old Saundersfoot: From Monkstone To Marros – Crickdam – and Roseanna. Roscoe also wrote numerous articles on farming and agriculture in Wales. Roscoe was outwardly emotional when relating some of his many stories. One could feel his passion for writing, the people and countryside of West Wales. At 90 years of age Roscoe has an exceptional memory. The interview was conducted at Roscoe’s home in Amroth. I am grateful to Roscoe and his wife Margaret for their hospitality and time. I began by asking Roscoe what it was like growing up as a chid in Saundersfoot Roscoe: The colliery at Boneville’s Court was still open and I was there at the time of the 1926 strike. My mother died when I was three weeks old. My father married again and my stepmother was wonderful to me. I grew up referring to her as my mother. My real mother’s sister was a right bitch and she made my stepmother’s life hell. We lived at The Bethanny Manse, which had a garden that went down to a field where the regency hall is now. It was known as Vickermans field. I remember the pit ponies coming up and grazing there when the miners were on strike. It was a difficult time. My father was a builder and I remember men coming to the back door and asking if they could have a weeks work so that they could get a stamp to go on the dole. Grown men, coming round crying and genuinely so, genuine workmen, not like today’s parasites. The great excitement for me was that Bonneville’s court was still working. I used to spend most of my time down at the harbour with the boatmen. The coal boats would come in to get coal from the colliery. The merchant seamen used to come in and get to know people in the village. We used to be down there when the boats went out waving them off. There were two or three pilots there and there was tremendous contention between them to get the job piloting the boats in from Monkston. These boats would come in and drop anchor off Monkston. These pilots would be racing out to be the first out to get the boat. My father used to tell the story. His father could see the boats coming in and he would run down to Saundersfoot and tell one of his mates. Eventually the pilots got wise than Granfer Ben was doing this. My grandfather had an arrangement with a local pilot and he would run down. The local boys would see him and set off but there was nothing there. When there was a boat my grandfather would run down ‘quatting’ as we say in Pembrokeshire beneath the wall so no one would see him. If you could meet anybody today in Saundersfoot who was born in the village, without exception their parents would have come from the surrounding villages. This is the significance of the subtitle of my book, Old Saundersfoot from Monkston to Marros. My father was born at Wiseman’s bridge. He went to Saundersfoot to look for work. My mother was a nursemaid and had gone there from Crosseli. My stepmother had gone there from Kilgetty. Saundersfoot had a very good football team. We had a lot of visitors. People started coming in, boarding and lodging. Alan: What are the main changes you have seen? Roscoe: People coming in from the outside. The second homes and holiday homes. They come in and take over and in ten minutes they know it all. They tell you what’s wrong with you. Alan: Is it fair to say that you love the area? Roscoe: Yes, I love the area. You can read every word I’ve ever written about it. It is home, there is no place like home. I love the sea, I love the countryside it’s been my life. I know a so many of the people. I know some of the better ones and I’ve met some of the awful ones. Alan: You were chairman of a number of organizations including the Pembrokeshire records society. How important is it to record and preserve local history, especially that of the ordinary working man? Roscoe: It is very important to preserve the history of the working man. It is tragic that so much has been lost. I have been guilty of it myself, shredding papers. Then I ask ‘what did I do with that’? Alan: You told me when we first met that there is no such thing as fiction. Are you suggesting that all literature has at its source real life experiences. Roscoe: There is no such thing as fiction. Everything comes from something either your own or other peoples experiences. I could always write in school I remember when I was in the infant’s class at Saundersfoot council school. Mrs. Morris was the teacher. She always said to us, ‘You have the sentence in your head before you start it. Get the sentence right and then you wont have to cross out’. Kenneth Griffith the actor was a friend of mine. When I wrote the manuscript for my first book I saw him in Tenby and showed him the book. He read it and said that it must be published. I sent the book to Tony Whitton then I went up to London to meet him. He said it was a lovely book but it was a shame that it wasn’t set in Cornwall or Lancashire. He couldn’t believe that a place like this existed. I had to have Tony Whitton down for a weekend for him to see something of the area. I took him all around the place and he couldn’t believe it. He went back and the book was published. I could write a wonderful book about literary agents and London publishers. He took the book on and managed to persuade his people to publish it. When it was due to be published I told Ian McClarren, now Lord McClarren head of Tesco about it. His grandmother was born at Herons Mill as was my stepmother’s mother. Ian and I were quite close and when Ian married he called his first house Heron’s Mill. Ian was so pleased about the book that he told me to tell Hutchinson’s that Tesco would go 50/50 on a big launching party. The man at Hutchinson’s asked, ‘What are we selling, margarine’? Ian was so cross so Tesco launched the book at the Stradey Park Hotel. The book Herons Mill sold out in three weeks. Publishers in America took it on and Hutchinson’s did not republish. Alexander Cordell (1914-1997) gave me some wonderful advice. He told me that no one person writes a book and that no novel left his house until it had been proofread. I used to read everything I wrote to Lucy my first wife. If she said it wasn’t right there was something wrong with it. I never used a typewriter in my life. My second wife Margaret began to type my work and eventually went on to using a computer to type my work. I eventually learned how to use the computer and I can tap away at it now. I write everything on screen and Margaret can go through it and make corrections. Cordell was very helpful and he had a look at my novel Heron’s Mill. He was living in Cheltenham at that time. He told me to bring my manuscript to him. I sent it to him and called on him a few weeks later. I asked him to tell me if he thought I was wasting my time trying to write. He told me ‘If you were wasting your time I wouldn’t be wasting my time talking to you’. He told me to take the manuscript home and that I should learn my craft. Words are diamonds, jewels, precious gems, every word must carry the story forward, every word must count. He said ‘You go home remembering everything I told you and start again and I’ll edit it as I think it should be’. I came home and I started again and I knew I could write. I sent it to him and when it came back it was worse than ever. One thing I remember and if you’re ever thinking of writing boy you remember this. One thing that drove it home to me. If you read my novel Heron’s Mill you’ll see that these two boys were going to Sunday school and they came on a badger in a trap. Evan Harter went running back to fetch his grandfather who was one of the big characters in the book and the other boy ran on to Sunday school. Granfer Jenkins was standing by the gate smoking his pipe. He said ‘Granfer, Granfer, come quick there’s a badger in the trap’. When they got there Granfer put the fork down on the badger’s neck to hold it down. They put some tar or something on the injured foot. A few hours later when they went back to the house they went into the kitchen. Ben Harter was very upset and the two girls were crying. Granfer said, ‘What’s the matter’ and Ben said ‘Cosiah, she’s dead’. Granfer Ben said, ‘Dead’. With that, Evan was running up the stairs before anyone could stop him. He looked in through the bedroom door and there was his mother lying on the bed on the old patchwork quilt and the old brass knobbed bedstead. I had written ‘Mam, Mammy’s dead, but there was no reply’. Cordell had crossed off the first Mam. ‘One Mam is enough’. ‘but there was no reply’, he (Cordell) cut it off. He (Cordell) put in the margin, ‘She’s dead isn’t she?’ It then read, ‘Mammy’s dead, go to the side of the bed he touched his mother’s face and at eight years of age he knew death’ full stop. I knew I could write, I can’t speak but I can write. The significant thing is that I have been very fortunate to have mixed with very good journalists. (Cordell’s comments are in bold). Alexander Cordell, Welsh Novelist wrote Rape of the Fair Country (1959). Alan: A lot of your work is illustrated with photographs. Do you believe that a picture is worth a thousand words? Roscoe: Oh, ten thousand words. Every picture tells a story. I have worked with some very good photographers in my time. I wasn’t a bad photographer myself. Alan: Do you have a favourite photograph? Roscoe: Yes I do. They all bring back different memories. One favourite is hanging inside the door as you come in. That’s a picture of my late wife Lucy taken four weeks to the day before I found her dead on the floor. Its bound to mean something isn’t it? I’ve got another lovely photograph of Margaret when we were on honeymoon with the Blaskets in the background. Alan: One of your most controversial pieces of literature is A Pembrokeshire Pioneer written about William Frost. You claim that he was the first man to perform a flight in an aircraft. How did you come to that conclusion? Roscoe: How did I come to the conclusion? Good God I knew the man I was there, he showed my father the patent and the pictures. My mother had been the Sunday school teacher there and Bill Frost was the Sunday school supervisor. Alan: What do you think you will be remembered for? Roscoe: Me! Being argumentative I suppose. I’d like to think that I’d done a bit of good I can’t tell you. How do we know? I’d like to think that I would be remembered for saving things, which might have been forgotten. I could be wrong. Alan: You’ve reached your ninetieth birthday. If you could sum up your life in a few words what would they be? Roscoe: I’d like to think that I would be remembered for standing up to be counted. Not afraid to say my piece. I think that if I have achieved anything in life without anyone realizing it was when crooked people were intent upon putting a sewerage scheme in Saundersfoot, which would have been discharged into the sea. It would have been deathly for Amroth and the whole area. Evil people financially motivated it finished up with some of them going to jail. Many thanks for your time. ©Alan Evans, 30th November, 2009 Find books by Roscoe Howells on Gomer

An Interview With Alan Evans

Since joining Americymru Alan Evans has contributed many interesting and provocative discussions, video clips and photographs. Today we thought our members would like to learn more about him and his photography. We’ll have to leave his many other interests for a later discussion. Americymru: Were you always interested in photography? What other interests do you have? Alan: I was given my first camera as a Christmas present when I was about nine years of age. Photography always interested me and seemed like a glamourous occupation. I was always experimenting but lacked the formal training. At forty I enrolled on a BA honours photography course at art college. I was still using film and the digital revolution was about to take off. The formal learning gave me more confidence and established a clearer identification of what my work was about. I have many other interests including sport, early childhood education and cookery. Find more photos like this on Americymru Americymru: What factors influenced you to become a photographer and chronicler of people and places? Have you always had an interest in photography? How did you prepare yourself to enter the profession? Alan: I always admired the work of French photographer Robert Doiseneau and saw his work as a benchmark to aim for. People have always interested me and I have found myself chatting to people from all walks of life. I believe that the social interaction is an important part in the process of photographing people. When the subject has relaxed you get a truer representation of the personality. I guess my preparation is based in my upbringing, one of four brothers brought up on a large working class council estate in Llanelli. There really was no place to hide and you had to deal with all sorts of life issues. Americymru: Do you have a favorite subject matter? Why do you like shooting this type of subject? My favourite subject mater is people. Alan: I find the human face fascinating. Everyone is equal but different. The human face can provide so much information about life itself. I love shooting portraiture because it allows me to look very closely at a fellow human being. I feel like a scientist observing the subject matter. Americymru: What is your favorite medium, digital or film and why? Do you shoot in both? Alan: I love shooting with film because it slows the process down. You have to think a lot more about the fundamentals of photography with a film camera. There is something that challenges your confidence when using film. There is no second chance, delete, re shoot. Everything has to be correct so you go through the technicalities over and over again. I still use film but the demand to provide images within minutes to a client means that it becoming unrealistic to use film. I tend to take digital and film only using film when things have settled down. Americymru: What is your opinion of photo enhancement programs as a photographer? As an artist? Alan: I am very snobby about photo enhancement. My bleief is that if you can't shoot it in camera then you're not up to it. I have not really got into photo enhancement programmes other than Photoshop for adjusting the curves which is similar to giving the negative more or less time at the development stage. Americymru: Your portraits are especially appealing to me, that is not to say that your other subjects are not appealing. How do you get your subjects to reveal their inner selves, to you? How do you choose your subjects? Alan: It takes time and some mutual respect for the subject. I love to chat with people and this is probable a contributing factor to the final image. I will be chatting for a while and then casually raise the camera and start taking photos. I usually keep chatting and the camera seems to become non threatening to the subject. I keep talking whilst taking the photos. Given time the subject drops their guard and you start to see the true personality. I guess it is the same for most people when you meet them for the first time. More often than not the people I photograph are not usually photographed. Americymru: In addition to portraits and commercial photography, you have exhibited a wide variety of landscapes and seascapes in both area and time. Do you travel to a specific area to shoot landscapes and seascapes or do you just keep your eyes open for a good shot when there? How much of your time is spent on looking for “the shot”? Alan: I tend to base my landscapes and seascapes around days out with the family. We arrive at a destination and if the light is right, I disappear for most of the day and sometimes most of the evening. we are lucky to live in an area of outstanding natural beauty so wherever we travel, there is going to be some form of landscape to photograph. I would like to spend more time looking for the shot but I am lazy. I prefer to lay on the beach all day. The window of opportunity for landscapes is early morning or dusk. Americymru: Based on your experience, what advice would you offer to a person who may be considering photography as a career? What do you feel separates the amateur photographer from the professional? Alan: I would say that you should find an area of photography which really interests you. Improvise with the equipment you have and fine tune your skills in your specialist area. Look at the work of the greats in your specialist area and learn from them. Experiment to a point and accept the limitations of your camera. The amateur takes photographs everywhere the professional sees photographs everywhere but only takes the ones which count. Americymru: The recognition that all artists seek is to share their art with others, and hope that they will buy your art. Do you have any planned or existing exhibitions? How do you sell photographs which have not been commissioned? Do you have a website where our members can view or buy your work? Alan: Like all artists I am tortured and suffer for my art. I have a continual lack of confidence in the quality and value of my work. There is a great fear of rejection when exhibiting work. I tend to stay clear of the exhibition space when my work is on display. If someone buys it then this is a bonus. My website is probably my main exhibition space although I have not really promoted my art based photography which tends to be the nude form. This is because my main website is accessed by people of all ages. Ironically it is these images which sell the most. I am passionate about the people and the area in which I live and work. I have a few websites. The Art Based work can be viewed at www.thebeautifulnude.co.uk My main site is www.alanevansphotography.co.uk My work documenting horse racing in Carmarthenshire is on www.ffoslasphotography.com Americymru: Do you have any final comment for the readers and members of Americymru? Alan: Keep you camera handy and the sun on your back Interview by: Howard Evans

Goginan’s Glory Days Revisited

Once Upon a Time in Goginan is a lively and entertaining account of the village which lies in the hills above Aberystwyth. It includes hilarious and touching anecdotes about the unforgettable local characters, the frequenting of chapels and pubs, the development of the local football league, the effects of the war, and the Boy’s Own-style adventures which the author experienced during an idyllic childhood in Goginan.

Author Ceiriog Gwynne Evans says: “The idea of writing a book of this sort has been gnawing at me for years. Eventually someone told me to get on with it or shut up about it!”


He was inspired to write the book when, on a trip back to Goginan from his present home in Trowbridge, he stopped at Nant-yr-Arian and took in the view of the Melindŵr Valley. “As the memories flooded back, I saw in my mind’s eye a vibrant rural community which lived, laboured and died in this lovely valley. I decided there and then that I would try to perpetuate the memory of these folk by gathering as much information as I could about some of the individuals who contributed to the fabric of society.”

One anecdote concerns the local division of the Home Guard. “I well remember the first recruitment meeting of these elderly personnel. They were a motley crew; most of them were in working clothes, cloth cap or trilby hat and overalls, carrying an interesting variety of ‘weapons’. One or two had double-barrelled shotguns but most were armed with walking sticks, umbrellas or pick axe handles; some of the agricultural fraternity came armed with hoes while the more aggressive types brought pitchforks, some still caked with manure!”

The author’s family played a central role in many of the village’s activities. His relatives included a formidable aunt, Marie, who lived over a hundred years. What was the secret of her longevity? A bottle of whisky a week and one Guinness a day.

The author hopes that his book will “encourage people from other rural communities to stir up reminiscences of their own localities and write them down before they are lost in the mists of time.”

Once Upon a Time in Goginan also traces the history of the village since the time of the Celts and the Romans, examining developments in education, farming, religion and mining. The book features historical photographs of Goginan as well as the author’s own illustrations.

Ceiriog Gwynne Evans was born in Goginan and educated in local schools and the University of Wales, Aberystwyth. He spent his working life teaching and lecturing in and around the London area. He retired in 1990 and moved with his American wife, Cecele, to Trowbridge in Wiltshire.

The author will be signing copies of Once Upon a Time in Goginan on 18 July between 12 and 3pm at Waterstones, 27 Great Darkgate Street, Aberystwyth.

An Interview with Harrison Solow, by Brian y Tarw Llywd

Americymru: Congratulations for being awarded the prestigious Pushcart Prize for your work entitled *Bendithion* - about Wales, Welshness, Lampeter and Welsh tenor Timothy Evans.

Harrison: Thank you.

Americymru: Being curious about what kind of writing would be chosen to receive such an award over 8,000 other entries required us to read the piece. Reading it was an amazing experience.

Harrison: Thank you again. But although there were about 8000 entries, mine was not the only one chosen. The Pushcart Prize is awarded for fiction, non-fiction and poetry and several writers in each category are given awards. It’s a great honour but not a solitary one. The editors of all literary journals and small presses in America are invited to submit to the Pushcart Press up to six pieces of what they consider to be the best writing they have published each year. The Editor, Bill Henderson, and his co-editors decide which pieces will be awarded and included in The Pushcart Prize Anthology. As for what kind of writing, that’s hard for me to answer. If you read the stories, essays and poems in the Anthology, you begin to get an idea. But the renowned editor of AGNI, Sven Birkerts, who (with his Senior Editor, William Pierce) submitted Bendithion for a Pushcart Prize, referred to my opening paragraph in an interview on NewPages: when he was asked to describe how he selects or rejects submissions to his magazine. Also, on the Pushcart website, http://www.pushcartprize.com, there is information about the selection process.

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Coast2Coast USA - Raising Money for the Noah's Ark Appeal and the Childrens Hospital for Wales

Santa Monica - Wikimedia Commons START

St. Augustine - Wikimedia Commons FINISH

(Follow the team's progress on their blog HERE.)

Americymru member Gareth Evans and three friends are setting out to cross the continental US by bicycle, to help raise money for the first children's hospital in Wales.

The Children's Hospital for Wales, constructed next to the Universityof Wales Hospital in Cardiff and part of the British National Health Service, is intended to treat more than 8,000 inpatients and 20,000 outpatients per year and is the first hospital in Wales dedicated solely to the treatment of children. It opened and received its first patients in March, 2005 and now includes a dedicated main entrance and child-friendly reception area for children's services, two children's medical wards with bedside parent accomodation and a pediatric oncology unit which includes its own ward, day care unit, outpatient care and parent accomodation area.

The Noah's Ark Appeal is a charity campaign to raise funds to improve and expand the children's hospital and the care it offers. Noah's Ark raised the funds to build the existing hospital facilities and to provide new equipmentand fund an art program for patients, to make the children's stay thereless frightening. People from all over Wales and celebrities including Charlotte Church and Katherine Zeta-Jones have lent their time and effort to raising money to contribute to Noah's Ark.

Gareth Evans, originally from Newcastle Emlyn and now a resident of Cardiff, is himself father of an eighteen-month old girl, Gwenno-Mai, with his wife, Eleri. Gareth and friend, Andy Edwards, came up with the idea of a challenge ride, in part to help Gareth recover from an injury that sidelined him from rugby. From there it seemed like a good idea tothem to use it to raise money for a charity and the Noah's Ark Appeal was :- "the obvious one for us." Ratcheting it up to a ride across the southern United States, from California to Florida, "was a concept of making the impossible-possible'!"

Signing on for this adventure with Gareth are: Andy Edwards, who operates an outdoor activity centre in Pendine called Morfa Bay Adventure; Richard Belcher, a cyclist originally from Kent and now living in Cardiff who has prior experience as a charity fund-raising cyclist; and Phil Jenkins, of Carmarthen, Andy Edwards' brother in law. Their support crew so far consists of: Tim Wilson, Gareth's brother in law and an army medic from Llandysul; Llandysul hotelier Andrew James, Tim's father and Gareth's father in law; Carmarthen accountant, Ian Stone; Martin Jones, also from Carmarthen; Henry Jones and one additional member still to be confirmed.

Their route will begin in Santa Monica, California, on the Pacific coast west of Los Angeles proper. They'll ride through Joshua Tree and the Mojave to Las Vegas, then on to the Grand Canoyon, Monument Valley and into Taos, New Mexico. From there on to Austin, Texas, where they've found a American-Welsh welcome stopover, then down to New Orleans, across the gulf coast and intend to finish in either Saint Augustine, Jacksonville or Daytona Beach, Florida.

The entire route covers between 3500-4000 miles and their goal is to complete it in fourteen days. Riders will ride in shifts, two at a time, and the team will have to cover about 200 miles a day. They'll have two support vehicles and are hoping for a small recreational vehicle to rest riders in between their legs of the trip and for medical and maintenance services.

The Proposed Route

Gareth hopes to make contact with as many Welsh-Americans as he can to find people willing to host them along their route, help organize fundraising activities in their hometowns and "have a bit of a bash at night time." The team may have a documentary film crew following them and they'd love to be able to show them Welsh communities in the US, as well as having a more enjoyable trip making friends than staying in a hotel room can provide.

On his team's experience and preparation for the trip, Gareth says, "We've never done anything like this before. Richard and myself met on a charity cycle from London to Paris, which was 350 miles over three days. Andy has completed the 'etape,' which is a stage of the Tour de France, a couple of times. Phil is a relative novice! We are all novices. Andy and myself used to play rugby, but had to finish due to injury. We have all been training for this over the last eighteen months, as well as maintain family life and work full time. There is no way we can predict how it will go, which adds to the excitement and apprehension. We have done what we can within the time constraints as far as phsyical preperation is concerned, but as with all endurance events - it's all in the head!"

Gareth writes that all members of the team have worked hard toward this trip, given up a lot and he looks foward to making the trip a reality and completing it successfully. "Personally, my family have made a hell of a lot of sacrifices, with regards to giving up their spare time, especially as we have a young daughter, so I want to get the challenge 'ot of the way,' to spend time with them. We have worked towards this for two years by the time we start. We must finish it. Anything else would be a failure. The fact that we aim to do it within two weeks just adds to the challenge. I have no doubt that we will complete it, unless the worst happens. I also know that the rest of the guys have given up a lot, as have their families, so the hope I have is that all four of
us start together at Santa Monica and all four of us finish (hopefully greeted by our families) in Florida."

Their target is to raise £50,000 for the appeal, or $88,500.00. They are a bit over halfway to their goal but at this point the team needs to focus on physical preparations for their trip. They need assistance in raising more donations, creating attention for the campaign, and help and welcome along the way. In Toas, New Mexico, a photographer has volunteered to photograph them, a fundraiser is being organized and the community is putting the team members up for the night. If anyone can help, Gareth asks, "Please support us. If you're along the route, why not organise an event for us, or even try and host us for the evening - village halls, camper beds, anything! Please highlight the challenge and charty amongst your friends and family stateside, and relatives back here in wales. Any ideas you have would be massively appreciated."

You can contact Gareth Evans here on his member page or through the team's website. Let's all help them make their trip an incredible success.

UN-C: Welsh Music Channel - An Interview With Nia Evans

Press Release	Interview	YouTube Channel

Member Nia Evans lives in Brighton and has a very amibitious plan for her life, her love of Welsh music and all of us.

What is it that you're creating? Is it an online radio station or the youtube channel?


"What I’m creating could actually be a combination of all the above. Essentially it’s a Welsh music channel, to be distributed over the IPTV technology. Essentially, this is internet on television. The channel will be viewed on the internet, on the television as a radio station, the television as a channel as well possibly in the future on a mobile phone."


Right now you have the youtube channel, that's the start of what you're building?


"Yes, the you tube channel was created as a form of prototype to give an idea as to what I’d be looking to achieve on the channel itself. The most important aspect of the channel will be that the viewers get to choose what they watch. Whether it’s choirs, bands, individuals or even instrumental music, it will be the customers who choose via interactive means. This would mean that more people are targeted, as well as ensure a bigger music database to choose from. Although not an exact replica, the you tube channel should give the viewers a taste of what I want to achieve as well as give myself an idea as to the actual interest and need for such a channel."


"[social networking] will be the next step. I have now got a channel available to me on the IPTV platform. Up until now I have tried to keep quiet about the channel . . . not wanting anyone to steal the idea so to speak! There are groups already created on myspace and facebook to see what interest is like."


How has the response any support been from the bands? Anyone particularly who's been help to you?



"There have been a few positive feedbacks from some bands, being Vanta, Frizbee and Caswallon ap Cranc. Those are the one’s have been most supportive, however, to be honest, all bands are different, so it depends on the taste of the viewer, and I hope they find an artist they enjoy!! One thing to mention however is that I have found some old footage of bands from the 80’s and 90’s, which hopefully underlines the range offered. Most of all, I’d like to thank Mei (meilyr) the lead singer of Vanta, who’s comments and support has actually maintained my enthusiasm for this project! "


What are you working toward, what is your vision of what your final product will be?


"I am a very enthusiastic person, so, could say that my future objectives would be to actually offer more than just music, but documentaries, short films, etc those to be offered globally, on IPTV (television), internet, radio and the internet. I would imagine that in the long run, the ability to download will also feature in my plans. I don’t know whether these, what can I say, extensive plans will becomes a reality . . .I guess that will have to depend on how people react to the you tube channel and then the service when offered on IPTV itself!"


How will people get it? Will it be by subscription or pay-per-download or free?


"I had considered subscription, but to be honest, I didn’t think that would actually work. The service will be free, as long as you have the right technology. You’d have to buy an IPTV set top box to connect to the television to view the content on the TV, what is great is that freeview channels will already be offered as well as a wide range of other channels. Looking at how successful the channel is, a pay-to-view method might be introduced when broadcasting live concerts or gigs."


What kinds of music can people expect to find there?


"Anything I will be able to get my hands on. On one hand, it’s been unfortunate that I’ve had to keep quiet about the channel, it means that I have not got an idea as to whether I have the support of S4C, who have a full archive of music videos which would be great as content for un-c (this channel) however, signed bands will have their own videos, I’m also hoping to film artists and acts myself as well as get help from young media students. By telling you all of this, what I’m trying to say is that all kinds if music will be available."


How can bands get their music on it?


"The bands themselves will be contacted by me personally, or, if they would like to show an interest could get in touch with me. I would then take the necessary steps to get hold of footage or film them performing to play on the channel. As well as playing their music, it would be possible for viewers to have contact information for buying the music and learning about the artists as they play."


Is there anything like this online? What is the online Welsh music scene?


"It’s getting better, but I personally feel like there is a long way to go. There are a few sites online, but either for the lack of advertising or marketing, people don’t seem to know much about them. Saying that, some of the videos available on you tube seem very popular, which shows that there is an interest. On IPTV however, or any form of television broadcasting – there is no channel dedicated to Welsh music. There have also been huge changes within Welsh radio, which at the moment seem to be proving very unpopular with the a few of the Welsh public. Apart from economical factors, it seems like the perfect time to be setting a service such as this one up".


Are you looking or will you look for sponsors and advertisers?


"I will be looking for both sponsors and advertisers. This will be the main form of finance for the channel. And without sounding too eager, this would be a great opportunity for any company to have their name on the site/channel being that it will be broadcasted globally. I’m also looking towards the assembly for help as well, being that the channel essentially could be used (and hopefully will be) to attract people to the Country and more importantly put Wales on the map".


What stage is your project at and what's the next step?


"I can honestly say that I can’t believe how far things have progressed since the initial pitch idea in February this year. I had a meeting last month which concluded with me being offered a channel, I’m now at a stage where I will be meeting with graphic designers to design the brand image and the lay out itself. Then it’s a matter of collecting content!! Within the next few weeks I will also be meeting with the assembly, S4C and such establishments to see if there is support for me. Market research has been conducted, there seems to be an interest so all I can say is that it’s going to be a bit of a busy few weeks!!!"


Do you have past experience in music or broadcast?


"I am a music lover. I like to think I have good knowledge of the Welsh music scene. My undergraduate degree is in film and television studies, where I have created short films and got quite a lot of experience about the broadcasting industry, I have now just completed my masters degree in digital television management and production, which has given me a good platform of knowledge about the technology involved and the business/legal and management needed to create such a service. All together I’m hoping it’ll be a recipe to success!!"


How did you come to this idea, what inspired or catalyzed this concept for you?


"It was something that had just crossed my mind a few years ago, thinking why Welsh songs were not incorporated in the music channels offered on digital now, I never thought anything from it, until I moved away from Wales, and actually found it hard to keep in touch with the Welsh music industry. I couldn’t believe that having just moved from ‘the land of song’ where Welsh music played such a big part to actually hearing nothing apart from my own collection and the little bit offered on the internet. I was lucky that I was offered the opportunity to pitch my idea to business individuals, and somehow they saw the potential, putting me in touch with the relevant people, and I guess the rest is history.


It’s my own personal opinion that the people of Wales don’t realise they have it so good. I hadn’t realised it, until I moved away and was faced with the struggle to actually maintain my interest within different aspects of Welsh culture."



Anything else you'd like people to know about your project?


"The project is still an ongoing development. I will be designing the channel, and meeting with relevant people to discuss funding and so forth, however, as much as I want to develop the idea further, there is still a possibility that it won’t actually become a reality. The response so far has been good, and it seems there is an avenue to use it within schools and other establishments, I’m just hoping that will continue!!


I also don’t want people to be put off by the possibility of the channel being only in Welsh. You don’t have to be able to speak the language to love the Country and it’s traditions. I’m looking to offer a language choice, as well as feature bands who don’t necessary sing in Welsh. If they have some sort of connection to the Country, then there is no reason why they can’t be featured. That includes choirs/bands/artists who live and sing in other Countries, not just Wales. What this channel aims to do is to maintain the traditions and culture of the Country, it’s about time the rest of the world get to appreciate what we Welsh people have known and loved for years!"