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The popular BBC Wales sports presenter Bob Humphrys has died at the age of 56, only two months after he revealed that he was suffering from cancer.
Bob was the one of the faces of BBC Wales for over 20 years and his professional approach to his job and his witty sense of humour made him extremely popular with viewers, colleagues and sportsmen alike.
However Bob started his career as a columnist for the Western Mail and later moved on to current affairs journalism, presenting Week in Week Out with his older brother John, the voice of Radio 4’s ‘Today’ programme. Bob’s reports outlining the scale of the AIDS epidemic in New York were heavily praised.
Sport however was always Bob’s passion and in 1988 he became head of sport for BBC Wales, hosting the sports results every Saturday afternoon. A seat on the Wales Today sofa would follow but Bob would always venture away from the comfort of the studio to be out in the thick of it whenever a big match was being held. He was soaked by champagne after Glamorgan won the County Championship in 1997. He abseiled from the roof of the Millennium Stadium with the then Welsh coach, Graham Henry. He would always be seen with the Welsh fans in the pubs before a crucial match, after all he was one of them
His work in sport made him popular with sportsmen the world over. Matthew Maynard, Colin Jackson, Mark Hughes and Graham Henry were all close friends. He championed smaller sports that nobody were before interested in. He interviewed Olympic Gold medallist Nicole Cooke long before anyone had even heard of her. In 2004 he was given a lifetime achievement award by the BBC, a recognition of his tireless effort.
Despite his enthusiasm for the job, Bob always remained highly professional and was a perfectionist in everything he did. To work with, Bob was the dream colleague. He always had time for everyone, was always willing to help everyone and after spending ten minutes with him you felt like you had known him for a lifetime. Farewell Bob, you will be remembered with a smile.
Every now and again a talent catches your eye that leaves you in no doubt that they are heading for greatness. This is most certainly the case for young playwright Katherine Embling.
Eighteen year-old Katherine from Coychurch recently held a play night in her home village entitled ‘Kath’s little play night’ which fully displayed her ability as a first class writer.
The evening featured a collection of 7 short plays, all written by Katherine. The plays featured actors from the renowned drama group, the Bridgend Castle Players. The plays ranged from comedy and drama to the complete surreal but all displayed high quality performances which were greatly appreciated by the audience at a packed Williams Memorial Hall.
Performances by Kate Williams and Joshua Lovell in ‘The Waiting Room’ brought the audience into roars of laughter as they play a separated couple who are waiting for news of their daughter brought into hospital after an accident. The couple who dislike each other intensely are brought back together by the news that their daughter will make a full recovery. Despite their humorous actions to stop meeting each other, true love inevitably takes its course. The night also featured an emotionally charged play called ‘Don’t look down’ about a young man on the verge of suicide following the death of his mother. The storyline showed that Katherine is not afraid to explore the most challenging issues faced by the young.
The highlight of the evening was a play entitled ‘We will remember them’ an accurate portrayal of life in the trenches during the First World War. The story focuses upon two soldiers, Barry Davies and Jack Jones, played by Derek Traverse and Len Edwards who are thrust from everyday life into the most unimaginable conditions of war. The audience almost feel part of the story as they share the extreme lows of the conflict with the two men. The play also shows what life was like at home for the loved ones of the soldiers, focusing upon the wife of one of the men and his young son who he had never seen. A play about the horrors of war could so easily be spoilt by a happy ending but the First World War was unbelievably horrific and happy endings were few and far between. Therefore when one of the men is killed by a German bullet, it brings home to the audience, particularly the younger members just how horrific the war was.
Katherine’s plays have already been noticed by the industry. ‘The Waiting Room’ is to be performed as part of ‘Script Slam’ at the Sherman Theatre in September. Last month, the Castle Players also performed ‘We will remember them’ across the Bridgend County Borough.
Perhaps what is most astonishing about Katherine’s ability to write is the fact that she is only eighteen years of age. Her ability is already recognised in South Wales and she has yet to undertake a course at University which will help to nourish her talent and improve it still further.
Having thoroughly enjoyed the evening in Coychurch, I am left in no doubt that Katherine’s talent will one day grace the finest theatres in the country.
Nathan Hughes - April 2008
Barack Obama has said he believes he is fighting both Hillary and Bill Clinton in the race to be the Democrat candidate for the US Presidential election.
At last night’s heated debate in
The debate marks the start of a key fortnight in debating, before voters in 24 states, including
In turn, Mrs Clinton attacked Obama for voting in favour of Bankruptcy legislation and hit him for his links to a
Meanwhile, the other main Democrat candidate, John Edwards, who has failed to win any primary elections to date, stated that he believed he was still in the contest. Addressing the audience, he said “I want to make it clear that this is a 3 way contest”.
Wednesday’s primary election’s in
The election continues to grip the entire nation with turnout at ‘Super Tuesday’ expected to be at an all time high. The two candidates for November’s election should be known by March.
22nd January 2008
New station set for Christmas opening
After years of delays, a village’s new railway station is set to open before Christmas.
Residents of Llanharan, near Bridgend have campaigned for a new station for over a decade but had faced many set backs and long delays.
However in 2006 the final agreement was signed and construction on the station stated in spring of this year. It is hoped that the station will be ready in early December.
The station will be served hourly by the Arriva Trains Wales service between Maesteg and Cardiff, although there are proposals for the Milford Haven and Carmarthen trains to also call at the station.
Llanharan’s original railway station was removed in the late 1960’s, and for over 40 years, residents have been forced to travel to Pontyclun or Pencoed to access a rail service. This is despite Llanharan’s ideal location on the main line between Swansea and London.
Local Councillor, Geraint Hopkins said “The works are on schedule and we should be able to do our Christmas shopping in Cardiff”.
Resident Alice Hughes said that the station “would provide much better links between the village and big cities such as Cardiff and Bristol”
The opening of the station co-insides with the construction of the Dragon studios project in the village. The project led by Sir Richard Attenborough will build a multi million pound film studios in the village, as well as a business park and thousands of homes.
It is hoped that the certain increase in population will mean that Llanharan is classified as a town for the first time in its history.
Mr Hopkins added that he felt “the future for Llanharan was extremely bright”.
December 2007