Cymru ar Ffilm: Byw yn y Wlad Cymru ar Ffilm

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-A revolution took place in Wales

-in the 20th Century.

-In the countryside

-and the big towns...

-..the lives of thousands of Welsh

-people were transformed...

-..by political, economic

-and technological changes.

-The traditional Welsh way of life

-ended and a new one was born.

-Witness to it all were the

-BBC's reporters and film crews.

-The fruit of their labours can be

-seen in thousands of film cans.

-Many haven't been opened since

-the day they were broadcast.

-I'm going to share some of the best

-from this lost era with you.

-The films, the stories,

-the characters...

-..that, between them,

-record our nation's history.

-At the start of

-the 20th Century...

-..life in rural Wales hadn't

-really changed for centuries.

-This was a country of small

-Welsh speaking communities...

-..farming for a living.

-People depended

-on their square mile...

-..for their daily needs.

-Dafydd Edwardes is a farmer

-in Penuwch, Cardiganshire.

-He remembers a verse written

-by one of the area's poets...

-..that describes

-the area perfectly.

-An old mountainous land

-That's close to the stars.

-Without trees growing apples,

-figs nor pears.

-It's hard to believe...

-..while talking and watching him

-walk around...

-..that Dafydd Edwardes

-is over 70 years old.

-He's full of energy.

-I was raised under the old order.

-We did everything the old way

-when everything was homemade.

-Peat and nothing else is burned

-on the fire in Tanffynon.

-There's plenty to be had

-on the farm's wet land.

-May is the best month to cut peat.

-There's growth in the land.

-When there's growth in the

-marshland, in the peat...

-..the smell is stronger and

-the peat itself is stronger.

-It takes me about three days

-to cut enough peat...

-..to last me the whole year.

-If we have nice weather it will

-take three weeks to dry out.

-If it's normal weather

-it will take about a month.

-They have to be dried out before

-you move them from the marshland.

-A peat fire is splendid.

-The life of a farmer could be

-lonely at times...

-..but he could depend on his

-neighbours for help...

-..at the busiest times of the year.

-Even by the mechanical era

-of the 1960s...

-..the old community customs

-were still alive.

-An old tradition is 'cymortha'

-when a farmer helps a farmer.

-That was a matter of necessity

-in many areas...

-..for many centuries

-before the age of machinery dawn.

-It has continued in two areas

-up until now -

-Shearing and threshing.

-There would be no way of completing

-the threshing here...

-..without the 'cymortha'. They've

-come from far and wide to help.

-On the haystack is John Williams,

-Cwm Coryn, Llanaelhaearn...

-..and Richard Lewis, Cefn Hirwaun,

-Rhoshirawun.

-On the thresher itself

-is John Davies, Ty Newydd...

-..and Rheon Owen from Tynlon Fawr,

-Llangybi.

-One feeds the thresher

-while the other unties the sheaf.

-Working with the hay

-that leaves the thresher...

-..is less of a problem

-that it used to be.

-Today, it's a matter of feeding

-the baler and moving bales...

-..when they're ready.

-The other side is the most

-important side for the farmer.

-It's where the grain is poured

-into the sacks.

-Will these scenes in rural Wales

-survive for much longer?

-Not for much longer it seems.

-The combine harvester is used

-more and more these days.

-It's time now for another

-tradition, threshing tea.

-There isn't much call for a

-threshing dinner these days.

-Threshing tends to begin

-in the early afternoon.

-But we'll go in to wait for them

-to come in for tea.

-Do you think something's lost...

-..because fewer farmers

-help each other?

-Well, you lose a close community

-and a neighbourhood.

-Is that a big loss?

-Well...

-It's a loss of identity really.

-You can live on a farm...

-..and a farmer who is three or four

-farms away from you...

-..has been there for six months

-and you don't even know him.

-Technology didn't touch some

-aspects of rural life...

-..such as the work of the shepherd

-in Cwm Prysor.

-This is my home.

-I know every mound and rock...

-..even when they're

-covered in snow.

-About three miles above me

-is Llyn Tryweryn...

-..and about three miles below me

-is the Traswfynydd power station.

-But despite the modern

-developments...

-..they haven't affected the way

-Bryn Celynnog is farmed at all.

-The old traditional way is still

-used on Cwm Prysor's mountains.

-You won't hear your mother

-call to you again.

-But your skin will be useful to

-help your mother take to another.

-I've got an orphaned lamb

-near the house.

-I'll put your skin over that one...

-..to trick her with the smell.

-I'll cut it on the legs.

-I'll take the skin off now.

-Hold him.

-I'll put this on him.

-It's a bit too big for him.

-I'll stuff his legs in.

-I'll take him to her now.

-There you go.

-Now then, old thing.

-You've got a little lamb now.

-There you go.

-You have to suckle now.

-It's alright.

-She'll take him, Jack.

-Although the life of a shepherd

-in Cwm Prysor was unchanging...

-..there were changes afoot in other

-parts on Wales in the '60s.

-Thanks to higher wages, more could

-afford to buy a car...

-..and the flow back and forth

-from the countryside grew.

-Miss Nerys Hughes represents a

-generation who turn to the town...

-..for their livelihood,

-Caernarfon in this case.

-Others travel to the shops or

-factories on the town's outskirts.

-Nant Peris is a village

-where you sleep.

-This is usually the first step

-before a population...

-..leaves the area entirely in

-order to live nearer to work.

-But every time a local person

-leaves...

-..other people, different people,

-take their place.

-Some come here to live, such as

-Miss Galloway, the English artist.

-Others just come here to enjoy the

-area at its best during the summer.

-Almost all of them are English

-and they don't like everyone...

-..who come here to visit.

-I'm inclined to think

-if they're not careful...

-..they'll lose the tourist industry

-because they'll spoil the places...

-..tourists want to go to.

-..tourists want to go to.

-

-In what way will they spoil them?

-By bringing too many people

-because in these mountains...

-..people really want to get away

-and have peace and quiet.

-If they set up too many garages,

-tea shops, hotels and everything...

-..people, I don't think,

-will be interested in coming.

-Do you think, by and large, the

-wrong type of people come here?

-I don't think the wrong type of

-people stay in the village.

-I think they mostly pass through

-in cars or in coaches...

-..and some of the climbers,

-admittedly, are the wrong type...

-..but you expect

-a mixture anywhere.

-But I do think the wrong type

-tend to leave the mess about...

-..which of course we people

-who live here object to.

-Many of the old houses in the area

-are bought by climbing clubs...

-..from all over the country.

-With good weather, climbing in

-Snowdonia is a cheap holiday...

-..without much profit

-for the locals.

-The climbing huts, old houses

-bought by the clubs...

-..cuts the cost for the climbers

-themselves.

-There are about 100 of them

-in Snowdonia...

-..with sharp eyes reading the

-papers every time a house is empty.

-House prices will rise and rise and

-before long, the time will come...

-when Snowdonia's biggest treasures

-will be its small-holdings.

-Within a few years the two-way

-traffic in and out of areas...

-..such as Snowdonia would change

-the character of rural Wales.

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-For centuries, agriculture was

-rural Wales' bread and butter.

-But by the 1970s

-changes were afoot.

-Some farmers saw an opportunity

-to take advantage...

-..of a new generation from the

-city who were discovering...

-..the pleasures of the countryside.

-A stunning location. Opportunities

-for sightseeing are endless.

-Wandering the countryside,

-swimming, horse riding...

-..are all based on 800 acres

-of land in Pembrokeshire.

-It's called Pant y Deri...

-..and it was opened to

-visitors two years ago.

-It isn't a manor house

-but a working farm.

-As well as hosting

-30 visitors at a time...

-..it also looks after 300 sheep,

-80 cows with calf...

-..and the same number

-of dairy cows.

-There's been an increase

-in the number of people...

-..who choose to holiday

-on Welsh farms.

-People come to Welsh farms and

-they love seeing the cattle...

-..seeing the hens and sheep

-and so on.

-It's a package, to use a

-modern term in tourism...

-..it's an attractive package.

-It's difficult to know whether

-farmers have turned...

-..to the unfamiliar work

-of welcoming guests...

-..through choice or necessity.

-I don't think I would have decided

-to do this...

-..if it wasn't for the way

-things are going.

-We have to do something

-as a livelihood...

-..and this place is suitable

-for such a venture.

-There's an opportunity

-to do a lot with it.

-But Wales' countryside wasn't just

-attractive for families...

-..who wanted a taste

-of farm life...

-..but also to people who

-longed for a different way of life.

-These aren't Sioux or Cherokee

-but a group of young people...

-..who've decided to leave the

-monotony of urban life...

-..and have come here to live

-self-sufficiently in a tipi.

-One of these men bought 40 acres

-of land about 18 months ago.

-He intended to live off the land

-and sleep under the stars.

-But there's an estate

-of tipis here now.

-Many of the group have travelled

-abroad and in Britain...

-..but have settled in Cwmann

-near Lampeter.

-Every one of them has similar

-reasons for living like this.

-They're tired of the rush

-and monotony of town life.

-But why live in a tipi?

-They are easy to make

-and suit their way of life.

-Every tipi has its own character

-even its own smell.

-The young man who lives here...

-..intends to sell the leather shoes

-he makes in local markets.

-The same with these candles.

-Cows are too expensive to buy

-at the moment...

-..but the goats give enough milk

-for their everyday needs.

-Some newcomers were happy to live

-a temporary life under canvas.

-But others, who turned their backs

-on English cities...

-..saw the benefit from rooting

-themselves deeper...

-..in their new community.

-Canterbury is a busy place.

-There are a lot of cars and people

-around.

-It isn't very healthy, it's just

-like every other town.

-But here in Cwmtwrch...

-..it's healthier and quiet.

-You see a lot more of nature.

-Esther Horde is 11 years old.

-You'd argue that she's as much part

-of the area...

-..as her neighbours in Cwmtwrch.

-This is her home - Wern Feudwy.

-It's an old farmhouse

-that's seen better days...

-..but is being restored.

-Jeremiah Horde, her father, is a

-landscape and portrait artist...

-..who used to teach anatomy

-and illustration part-time...

-..at Camberwell College, London.

-He moved his family to Wales

-six years ago...

-..and Wern Feudwy is their home and

-centre for his small business...

-..Lluniau Cymreig.

-This is truly a family business

-with everyone helping out.

-But this family is an exception.

-They have decided to be part of the

-valley's tightknit community...

-..and have integrated

-into the community.

-Unlike many of the other families

-from England...

-..Welsh is spoken at Waun Feudwy.

-How long did it take you

-to learn Welsh?

-In the classes, three winters.

-But I have to listen and hear

-the language...

-..at every opportunity.

-I am very proud...

-..to have the opportunity to speak

-with Welsh people.

-But not everyone made the effort

-to integrate themselves...

-..into the Welsh rural community.

-As a result, that changed the

-nature of that community.

-If you've ever considered Dolgellau

-as a Welsh area...

-..maybe it's time you reconsidered.

-Over the last few weeks

-it's become apparent...

-..that something's not right and

-the area has become Anglicised.

-On the face of it,

-Dolgellau is a Welsh town.

-Notice the name of the shops

-and evidence shows...

-..businesses priding themselves

-on their Welshness.

-But you can get the best picture of

-the linguistic situation...

-..of every area

-at the local school.

-One non-Welsh speaker enrols

-at Ysgol y Gader every two weeks.

-Last week, we read a piece

-about Twm Sion Cati.

-This is the first year's

-Welsh class.

-These children are a minority

-in the school.

-At one time, the children

-all spoke Welsh...

-..with an English atmosphere to

-the school. Now, it's the opposite.

-The teachers are Welsh with the

-pupils speaking English.

-The majority of them are people

-who have been here on holiday...

-..every summer with most of them

-living in the Midlands.

-They decide to buy houses here

-and establish themselves here.

-The area's unmistakeable beauty is

-attracting the new population.

-You can't blame anyone for wanting

-to live here.

-But the character of villages like

-Friog, Bontddu and Brithdir...

-..changes quickly these days.

-# Do you remember

-this little village?

-# Everyone spoke Welsh

-# Only five years ago

-# Then the jobs were scarce

-# And the Welsh had to move away

-# And the foreign thieves

-replaced them

-# Come away with me

-# Let's return to our homeland... #

-Some campaigners avidly protected

-those rural communities...

-..that, in their eyes, were the

-heartlands of the Welsh language...

-..and culture.

-# We'll go back to the west.. #

-At the start of the summer...

-..a few weeks before Bro Dwyfor

-Eisteddfod some local people...

-..noticed Y Fro Gymraeg's road

-signs, Mudiad Adfer's campaign.

-Adfer developed to improve life in

-the villages of West Wales...

-..by renovating old houses and

-selling them to Welsh speakers.

-According to Adfer, Y Fro Gymraeg

-should include...

-..Anglesey, Arfon, Dwyfor, Meirion,

-Ceredigion, Preseli...

-..Carmarthen, Dinfewr, Glyndwr

-and Montgomeryshire.

-A Welsh education

-system is expected...

-..Welsh administration

-for local authorities...

-..as well as a special policy from

-the UK Government or Cardiff.

-We should return from exile

-in the English cities...

-..and settle in Y Fro Gymraeg.

-We will have to live entirely

-through the Welsh language.

-We'll have to shut out the

-English language completely.

-Not just stop speaking it.

-A Welshman isn't free if he has

-to watch hours of English TV.

-You have to ask yourselves,

-is this an English surname?

-Are these English clothes?

-Are these English morals

-and traditions?

-If so, they aren't good enough

-for Y Fro Gymraeg citizen.

-The more I thought about the idea

-of Y Fro Gymraeg...

-..the more I rejected it.

-I don't want to live

-in a monkey cage...

-..or feel I'm being jailed

-in any way.

-I think restricting a nation and

-looking inward to an area...

-...called Y Fro Gymraeg

-is destructive.

-But by the end of the 1970s...

-..so much was the concern over the

-crisis of Welsh rural areas...

-..some turned to more

-fiery tactics...

-..such as Meibion Glyndwr's

-campaign to burn down second homes.

-The house at Mynydd Llwydiarth

-between Llanddona and Pentraeth...

-..on Anglesey was set alight

-during the night or early morning.

-Pant-y-Bwlch is a three bedroomed

-house and was still smouldering...

-..when we arrived.

-The house is owned by Mr Bob Dew

-from Bury St Edmonds.

-They don't come here often because

-according to Mr Dew...

-..it's expensive to

-travel 300 miles.

-Their daughter, Jane, is at Bangor

-University and she comes regularly.

-Children from a local farm saw the

-fire as they fed their horses.

-Within a few decades, rural Wales

-had turned into a battlefield.

-Several of its characteristics

-and traditions...

-..are nothing but memories

-on film strips.

-S4C subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

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