Births, Deaths and Marriages Wales in a Year

2012 saw the results of the latest Welsh national census,

but that's just a set of dry statistics.

-It's not flesh and bones.

-Amazing.

It doesn't show us how we really live, or who we really are.

-Our hopes...

-Oh!

-Our fears...

-I don't want her to die in a hospital environment.

Our dreams...

Throughout 2012,

we followed eight very different families from all walks of life, and

from all over the country, to reveal the real Wales behind the numbers.

-See you.

-The result is Wales In A Year, a unique and unfolding

insight into the incredible daily dramas of all our lives.

Hooray!

And tonight, there's a christening.

I baptise you in the name of the father.

-A wedding...

-I, Anita.

-I, Anita.

..and an engagement.

Got it at last!

Wales 2012.

A land of 3.1 million people, and every year for every one of us,

there's at least one momentous moment.

In 2012, there were approximately 35,000 births in Wales,

31,000 deaths, and 12,000 marriages.

And in Bala, North Wales, there are just two days to go

before the marriage of local girl Anita Jones to Freddie Hickish,

24-year-old son of English incomers Toby and Stephanie Hickish.

That was quite something, wasn't it?

Toby and Stephanie run the Bala Leisure Centre cafe,

as well as a busy catering company from their farmhouse.

So the next is one Thai curry and one what's this? Green?

-Tea.

-Oh.

The Hickishes have lived in this Welsh heartland

area for 17 years.

Freddie, who is English-born,

but attended a Welsh-medium school and is a fluent Welsh speaker,

is marrying into a local family whose first language is Welsh.

Good job I'm strong, isn't it, Fred?

There are just 48 hours left before the big day,

and it's all hands on deck at the Hickish family home.

Do you want me to cut anything back?

With the average wedding costing around £16,000, Toby

and Steph have volunteered to help slash the expenses by hosting

and catering for the whole event.

We always said we'd cater it, really.

Then everybody thought that perhaps we'd get professionals in.

But we're too tight to pay for professional caterers!

I did think I was professional, actually!

Bride-to-be Anita is on hand to help with the arrangements,

but she's been running into some relative difficulties!

We're moving house after the wedding,

so I'd gone and moved, you know,

moved a car-load of things over to the new house in Whitchurch,

about an hour and a half away, enjoying myself,

cooking a sausage casserole, sitting down, having a nice time,

when a car turns up in the yard, and my family all pile out,

move into the house like a bunch of locusts,

eating all my bananas and biscuits and everything.

And then produce this list, and say, "Right, Anita. Sit down.

"Have you organised...?"

Oh, I don't know... Like how people are getting from the church

up to the house, decorations, and food, and canapes and wine,

and favours. I don't get the idea of favours.

I should I, or why should we, have to pay for little presents for everyone, you know...

You know, it's our wedding - why should they get presents?

LAUGHTER

Away from the hubbub of the wedding preparations,

Toby makes time to do some work on Rory's circle.

A dearly missed son and brother,

Rory was born with muscular dystrophy.

He passed away five years ago at the age of 14.

This is well, we call it Rory's circle.

It's actually our son Rory.

We've placed him in a little spot over there.

And it was here long before he died...

..as a funny little quiet retreat,

and it just seemed the obvious place to place him.

We rather like this dripping urn thing. Yes, a quiet little retreat.

I think whenever there's a family gathering, we tend to think about

him, and I dare say my parents will wander up here at some stage.

You know, it's our second son to get married. He was our third.

So... but we have fond memories.

You try it. I think the yeast has gone a bit funny.

-Oh, really?

-A bit salty, I'd say.

I didn't put any salt in.

-I don't know.

-It's not going to kill anyone, is it? It's just a bit yeasty.

-It doesn't taste of yeast particularly.

-No.

Put some smoked salmon on it and some cream cheese.

It will be lovely.

I don't want to eat any more though.

SHE LAUGHS

We'll be back in Bala for the big day later in the programme.

Whilst the Hickish family prepare for a happy celebration,

in Merthyr, another one of our families are facing a major concern.

2012 has been a particularly hard year for the Foley family.

Dad Jason has been unable to work due to his chronic epilepsy,

and teenage daughters Savannah

and Lowri are being forced to grow up fast in the house

where their mum Suzanne has had to give up work to become

a full-time carer for her own mother, 77-year-old Gertie Sage.

Gertie has Alzheimer's,

a disease that has been slowly destroying her memory.

-Have I had my breakfast?

-Eh?

-Have I had my breakfast?

-Yeah, you had Shredded Wheat.

-Right.

A wonderful character full of life and fun,

Gertie began 2012 in good heart.

Did you used to go to dances with dad?

-Your father couldn't dance.

-I know, but he used to go, didn't he?

He used to come with me and he would hold the bar up

and he'd fetch me a drink every half-hour!

But over the course of the year, her disease has progressively

taken away her joy and changed her personality.

She just said she hopes you die a horrible death.

Yes, she told me that.

She's getting really nasty. It's not her.

Like she said to Savannah, "I hope you go blind."

Sometimes I can, you know, cope, and then another day then,

I don't even know where I am.

-You can't remember what you're saying, can you, mam?

-Eh?

-You can't remember what you're saying.

What do you mean?

When you do have your funny moments and shout at everybody.

No, I don't shout at people!

Yeah, you do!

I don't, do I? Do I?

Who d'you upset this week?

Oh, God. Don't tell me. Who else have I upset?

-Oh, everybody this week, Mam.

-Have I?

-Yeah.

-Oh. Well, I'm sorry.

-Don't worry about it.

I can't help it. I don't do it on purpose.

It's just that the words come out, and I don't know what they are.

They're all jumbled up.

In August, Gertie had a fall which left her with a broken shoulder,

severe bruising, and infections.

Three weeks later, she remains in hospital,

and the family remain uncertain of Gertie's future.

It's a waiting game, now, isn't it?

That's all it is now make sure she gets better.

It's going to be a while before she comes home, because she's not eating.

She's telling the nurses loads of fibs that she's vegetarian she's never been vegetarian.

So they've got a real struggle to get her to eat.

But I just want her to start eating, take her medication, and get a bit better.

You know, get her back nearly as good as what she was before she went in.

I hope to get her home. It's a big hope.

We'll return to see if Gertie can come home later in the programme.

In New Tredegar, after an up-and-down start to the year,

things are finally looking good for James Mellor,

owner of AJM Sewing, Wales's last underwear factory.

Business has been very good throughout the year, and the future,

the next couple of months, is very good.

After months of hard slog,

James and his team are about to deliver on their biggest-ever order,

for risque lingerie label Agent Provocateur.

The product itself has been very challenging from all aspects.

But fortunately the team here all stuck together and like I said,

we've pulled it off, and it's been financially worth it for the business.

It's the biggest order we've ever done as a company.

In total it's near enough 7,000 garments, and the feedback that we've

had already from the company - because this is very high profile for

them - is that there's a repeat order on the back of this on its way to us.

With more orders on the way, and with a run-in with the VAT

man now behind him, James has found yet another cause to celebrate.

He's finally got engaged to long-term girlfriend Rachel.

I finally plucked up the courage to propose to Rachel.

It was in January. And she...well, we finally picked the ring last week.

We was a little bit delayed because unfortunately

we had a little bit of a VAT bill to pay, and the dreaded VAT man comes first.

Something we never thought either of us would ever do again,

but, you know, it's very nice.

And what better way to celebrate than a trip to Paris?

The city of romance,

thrills,

and frills.

Interfiliere Paris is the world's premier lingerie convention.

It's a panoply of pants, a veritable United Nations of underwear,

and a glittering stage for James to tout for business,

if he can overcome his nerves, that is!

I couldn't be further from my world, at the moment, you know.

This is all alien to me. To say I've got nerves is an understatement.

The first time I came with James, I said,

"You've got to give all your business cards out to everybody in the UK."

Well, you wouldn't do it first of all, would you?

Oh! It was dreadful, you know.

I'd just walk up and down, walking around,

I'd walk past the stand ten times before I could even think about...

And she's going, you know, pushing me in.

But if you're not used to do it, and you haven't got the confidence to do it,

it's something you got to learn, and get through.

So James heads first for a familiar face.

Designer Fleur Turner is one of his most loyal clients.

And AJM made the majority of the designs on her stall.

It's interesting for us because we've got customers all over the world now,

which is fantastic, and we've got customers in China, which is a growing market,

especially for the luxury market, and they're actually asking

only for the products that are made in the UK, which is full circle. It's gone full circle.

That's right. D'you know, the Chinese now have got so much wealth, why would they want

a garment that's supposedly made in England, which is made in China?

It's false economy, isn't it?

They want something to take back and say, "Look what I can afford to buy," isn't it, you know?

It's good at the moment. Long may it continue.

Encouraged by Fleur's reports of an upturn in the Chinese lingerie

market, James moves into card-wielding, flesh-pressing mode.

Can I just leave two business cards with yourself? It's James Mellor, it is, of AGM Sewing.

I'd just like to leave two business cards with you.

Hello. James of AJM Sewing. How are you?

James - James Mellor. AJM Sewing.

-Oh, hello. How are you?

-Not too bad.

How's it going? Sit down.

Ice broken, and a pair of pants in his hands,

James is suddenly in his element.

You can always tell from my point of view, if you have a nice small

stitch on the elasticating, it gives it a little bit more quality.

The bigger the stitch, the faster it goes through the machine.

You are supplying the fabrics, the trims?

I am supplying fabrics, trim, and everything else.

And what feathers are they?

Raven. I know. It's a very Emo bra, isn't it?

The production rate starts at 35p a minute.

The UK is extortionate for prints.

It's a shame something like that can't command a price.

Who says it can't? At the end of the day, if you've got an idea of volumes, you know,

we can have a look at it, and see if there's something I can do.

-Amazing. Let's talk. OK?

-OK then. Well, thank you very much for your time.

-Thank you for yours.

-Thank you very much.

-Pleasure to meet you.

-Thank you. Speak to you very soon.

-James, it's so nice to meet you.

-A pleasure to meet you as well.

-Thank you so much.

-Thank you.

There's countries on the board that I've never even heard of.

After years of bumping along the bottom, James's trip to Paris has renewed his hopes for AJM Sewing

and the British lingerie industry.

From what I gather, there's going to be a return to UK manufacturing.

The Chinese market, the affluent market, the people who've got the money,

you know, they want to take it home and show their friends.

"I've got a £100 pair of knickers that were made in the UK."

So from that, you know, sense,

I think it's going to be a very good couple of years coming up.

Church weddings in Wales are in steady decline.

Civil ceremonies now account for around 70% of all weddings.

Overall, the numbers of marriages in Wales are at their lowest in 150 years.

But in Bala, today is a beautiful day for a white wedding.

The marquee's in situ, groom-to-be Freddie, is taking mum, Steph,

through the last of the seating arrangements.

Dad, Toby, is checking his alfresco kitchen.

The last-minute food prep appears to be in safe hands..

..probably!

And the best man's having a last-minute panic.

All is as it should be.

-We'll be down at a quarter past one and the service sheets are there already.

-Time to get to the church.

Freddie and Anita are getting married in a bilingual ceremony

at Eglwys Crist y Bala. Christ Church, Bala.

Along with Anglesey, Gwynedd is now one of only two areas in Wales

where Welsh is spoken by over half the population.

Wel, ga i groesawu chi gyd yma i Eglwys Crist heddiw

ar gyfer achlysur pwysig iawn, iawn, iawn ac arbennig.

May I extend a very warm welcome to you to this church, Christ Church in Bala today

for this very important and very, very special occasion.

-Fred, derbyn y fodrwy hon.

-Fred, derbyn y fodrwy hon.

Yyn arwydd o'm cariad a'm ffyddlondeb.

Yyn arwydd o'm cariad a'm ffyddolondeb.

-Anita, yr wyf yn derbyn y fodrwy hon.

-Yn arwydd o gariad.

-Yn arwydd o gariad.

-A ffyddlondeb.

-A ffyddlondeb.

-Rhyngom ni'n dau.

Rhyngom ni'n dau.

Felix, they are husband and wife. Mr and Mrs Hickish.

I think this is the appropriate time that they kiss each other.

Their very, very first kiss as a married couple and there will be many more,

so don't have too long a kiss but have a nice kiss.

APPLAUSE

As the happy couple make a leisurely return to their wedding reception,

-Steph and Toby hotfoot it back to get the ovens fired up.

-I thought we'd done all the teas

but there is another wave of teas to go out. I've got sausages which won't go brown,

but they will because I've told them to. Erm, yes, we're getting there, really.

Actually, it really has been great. Without thinking about what the actual party was going to be like,

I was just fussing about everything coming together. Everything does, it has.

I think we've all had a thoroughly enjoyable day.

-I think it went really well.

-It was excellent, I really enjoyed it.

I was this close to crying all the way through which would have been horrific.

There was a couple of times when both of us had that.

A lot of work goes into weddings.

When done professionally, it can be a nightmare.

I think we've pulled this one off, just about!

In Merthyr Tydfil,

the Foley family's worst fears have been realised.

On Sunday, September 23, 2012, after a six-week battle,

Gertie passed away peacefully at Mountain Ash Hospital.

She was 77 years old.

MUSIC

Three days after the funeral, the family are sorting through Gertie's possessions.

Just going through some of my mother's stuff, doing it slowly.

I wish I could keep it all in here like a shrine to her.

All her worldly possessions and everything has got to go.

Stuff that she struggled to get all her life.

-She had a lovely send-off, didn't she?

-Yeah, it was really nice.

-She had a really good one.

Savannah stood up in church and said a little bit for her nan with Lowri by the side of her.

Then, they played Songbird. Savannah sang Songbird, which was lovely.

I think Savannah sorted nearly everything out in my mother's funeral

because my head wasn't in it.

Savannah more or less arranged everything,

what the minister was going to say, the songs in the church, the hymns, the flowers.

-She has had to grow up in the last couple of weeks, haven't you?

-Yup.

My mother always tells me if we get upset or start crying,

she just says, "Come on, she wouldn't want you to think of her like that."

That one Christmas Eve when she was with us,

she only had a glass of sherry and she was like,

"Oh, that's lovely and warm, can I have another glass?"

We gave her another glass and two minutes later

she was flat out on the settee sleeping and we had to carry her in here.

But, I don't know.

When my mother passed away,

I thought I was going to have the service from the chapel

but then Savannah said she should come home,

so she came home the night before she got buried

and the amount of people that came here, it was lovely.

I dreaded her coming home but when she did, it was lovely.

We were all sitting here.

My mother was by there in the coffin and we were all sat by her, out the kitchen, it was lovely.

We were all talking about her and what she meant to different people.

It was lovely. We slept in here with her, didn't we Savannah?

She was lovely, I know she had this thing with dementia,

she lost her temper sometimes but that wasn't her.

She had her moments where she went got back to the way she was.

She was lovely. One in a million.

10 years ago, 72% of people in Wales described themselves as Christians.

Today, that number is down to just 57%.

Almost a third of the Welsh population, 983,000 of us, have no religious beliefs.

But places of worship are still where many of us go to celebrate the great events of our lives.

In Newport, Gwent, 27-year-old Charlene Christensen

and 25-year-old Sean Lonegan are preparing for the christening of two of their three children.

Three-year-old Alleysha Bullock, who was born with cerebral palsy and severe brain damage,

-and newborn Chealey-Jay Lonegan.

-Oh, bless you!

But before the ceremony,

Charlene and Sean are preparing for a big post-christening party.

They are getting christened today down St Stephen's Church.

We were up for hours doing all the preparation.

-Right, where do you think I should put them?

-What?

-The plates.

-Either end.

With 140 guests invited to the joint christening,

it's going to be an expensive day for Charlene and Sean.

About two grand for everything. I don't know, she's got expensive taste.

The hall and the food was 750 I think, or 700.

Then, we had to pay for a bouncer which is standard procedure.

We had to pay £75 for the bouncer, the girls' dresses, the cake, the DJ.

One DJ let us down last minute

so we had to pay £300 for a DJ. Hell of a rip. All in all, about two grand.

I had to buy a suit, obviously, Charlene had to buy about ten dresses!

Whilst it is a costly occasion, for Charlene it is not a religious one.

I don't go to church or nothing like that.

But erm, I think it is nice to have them christened.

I was christened when I was younger, Elleyah was christened when she was first born as well.

So I thought they all had to get christened.

I think it is nice to get them christened.

MUSIC: The arrival of the Queen of Sheba by Handel.

Chealey and Alleysha will be amongst an estimated 21,000 babies,

children and adults to be baptised in Wales this year.

Sanctify this water, that your servants were to be washed in it

may be made one with Christ, cleansed and delivered from all sin.

We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord

-who lives and dreams you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, now and forever, Amen.

-Amen!

Alleysha, I baptise you in the name of the Father and of the Son

and of the Holy Spirit.

Good girl. Good girl.

Chealey-Jae, I baptise you in the name of the Father

and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Good girl. Are you OK?

For the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ will set you free from sin.

Giving you new birth by water of the Holy Spirit and welcomes you into his Church.

He now anoints you with the oil of salvation.

In the name of Christ, the anointed Priest, Prophet and King,

may you live always as a member of his body, sharing everlasting life.

-Amen.

-Amen.

After the ceremony, the party, and in the absence of spiritual guidance,

is there any secular advise that family and friends would give

-the two newly christened girls in this godless world?

-Don't be judgemental.

Always be polite. Be courteous to others, respect other people.

With Chealey, I am not a pushy parent.

If she wants to go to uni, that's entirely up to her, if she doesn't want to...

Go to uni and be successful really.

Knuckle down at school because it's hard to get a job when you're older.

The two of them are going to pull through. They have got a lot of love and support, especially for Alleysha.

She will be fine, today is her wedding day.

For Alleysha, just that she sees her teenage years I suppose, really.

Just be happy and enjoy your life, that's it.

Whatever comes your way, take it on the chin.

In the final special edition of Wales In A Year,

we visit all eight families to discover if their hopes and fears for 2012

actually came to pass.

The highlight of the year is now looking back on what we've achieved.

I never want to go through anything like that.

It is quite a change, quite a change.

We join them for the festive season.

I just want you to know how much I love you.

And look forward to 2013, the good -

-She has just been accepted to go to Ty Hafan.

-And the bad.

Next time I get a good offer for the ships, I might take it and say, "Bye, Wales."

And beyond all of that, we get out the crystal ball

and make some predictions about how our families and Wales

will appear in the year 2023.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media.