Castell Newydd Emlyn Cynefin

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-Wales is known the world over

-for its magnificent scenery...

-..but its history

-goes back centuries.

-This tradition

-goes back thousands of years.

-How hard can it be?

-History, ghost stories and legends

-are steeped in these stones.

-In this programme,

-we're in the Newcastle Emlyn area.

-Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion

-and Pembrokeshire all meet up here.

-The River Teifi

-snakes between them...

-..sometimes a border...

-..and sometimes linking the crafts

-and traditions that define us.

-I've wanted to come here for years,

-and I can't believe I'm here.

-It's a special part of Wales...

-..of rolling hills and wide valleys

-in every direction.

-Castles, wars,

-fiery dragons and bloody battles.

-They're all part

-of the unique Emlyn district.

-That's alongside living traditions,

-a revival of local crafts...

-..and one eye always on the future.

-This is our habitat.

-The main town is Newcastle Emlyn...

-..although the castle

-isn't all that new.

-It was built about 800 years ago...

-..to replace the old one,

-a few miles downriver.

-The castle, and the river,

-of course, are still here.

-We're on the northern side

-of Newcastle Emlyn.

-The River Teifi is there,

-and we're in a different county.

-I grew up here in Adpar as a child,

-in Cardiganshire, now Ceredigion.

-So, this side

-is the village of Adpar?

-It's Adpar now, but many years ago,

-it was called Trefhedyn.

-There were two pubs here,

-a corner shop, everything.

-I even went to primary school here.

-Although you lived here,

-in a different county...

-..did you still consider yourself

-to be Newcastle Emlyn people?

-Definitely, and if we went away

-and were asked where we were from...

-..we'd always say Adpar

-in Newcastle Emlyn.

-It was

-an important part of the town.

-We're Adpartonians,

-a special breed.

-Special!

-We're by the river now.

-It's like an artery for the area.

-Yes, definitely.

-It flows down from the Teifi Pools,

-up near Tregaron...

-..and powers several mills en route.

-Woollen mills, and some

-that generated electricity...

-..like the one in town years ago.

-Back in the 1800s,

-the Cawdor estate this side...

-..and the Fitzwilliam estate

-on the other worked together...

-..to run water to the mills...

-..but also to maintain

-an open flow for salmon.

-Salmon fishing

-was important at that time.

-As children,

-we crossed from Adpar there.

-There was a wooden footbridge

-which is sadly no longer there.

-We'd cross the bridge

-to that island there.

-When we were naughty,

-we'd cross these falls...

-..over to Carmarthenshire,

-to the castle.

-It was a big adventure,

-many happy childhood memories.

-How would you describe the town?

-How would you describe the town?

-

-Newcastle Emlyn is a unique town.

-The market's been important

-for years, and remains so.

-The market in town, attracting

-the surrounding rural communities...

-..to sell livestock.

-Capel Iwan, Talgarreg,

-Beulah, Ffostrasol...

-..feed the town with Welshness.

-It's nice to see

-local young people...

-..setting up new businesses

-and promoting the language here.

-It's very nice to see.

-So, a traditional rural area

-with a seemingly quiet market town.

-But the Emlyn district

-does harbour darker stories...

-..from medieval times

-to the present day.

-I'm walking through Adpar,

-with Newcastle Emlyn behind me.

-This part of the village

-has an unusual name...

-..which ties in

-with several bloody tales.

-I'm making my way to Bryndioddef -

-the hill of suffering.

-During the Civil War,

-Cromwell's men...

-..killed every local soldier

-after blowing up the castle.

-Apparently, he executed some of them

-and their heads rolled downhill...

-..and that's how Bryndioddef

-got its name.

-Some bloody tales

-belong to distant history...

-..but there are also

-more recent chilling events.

-It doesn't look much, I know...

-..but I'm standing

-on something very unexpected.

-A nuclear bunker.

-I'm going to do something

-not many get the chance to do.

-From the 1950s to the early '90s,

-throughout the Cold War...

-..there were similar bunkers

-all over the UK...

-..to gauge the effects of a nuclear

-bomb should one strike nearby.

-It's a good job

-I'm not scared of spiders.

-There's a lot of water down here.

-Volunteers were trained to measure

-a nuclear bomb's side effects...

-..from this room,

-15 feet underground...

-..with a concrete floor,

-walls and roof...

-..between seven inches

-and a foot thick.

-This is when they expected the end

-of the world, 23 minutes to three.

-I don't want to spend another minute

-here, let alone having to work here.

-Horrible.

-Such places haven't been closed

-for all that long.

-This is what they looked like

-underground.

-A ladder to climb down,

-a bunk to sleep two persons...

-..and monitoring equipment.

-We're only talking

-about the 1980s and 1990s here.

-Very recent history.

-We can only hope that we'll never

-have to use such places again.

-The Teifi is one

-of Wales' prettiest rivers...

-..from its source

-in the Cambrian Mountains...

-..to the dolphins

-in its estuary on Cardigan Bay.

-It also runs the length

-of the Emlyn district...

-..and draws the area together.

-But even on this short stretch

-of river, stories abound.

-One man knows this stretch of the

-river like the back of his hand.

-He's also familiar

-with the river's characters...

-..including a local man

-who was quite a fisherman...

-..and also something of a poet.

-William Griffiths' bardic name

-was Gwilym Gloff Glan Teifi.

-He wrote articles and poems...

-..for a magazine

-called Seren Gomer...

-..back in the 1800s.

-Someone showed me a poem of his

-and it wasn't that great.

-He should have stuck to fishing,

-I'm telling you.

-This is where he caught salmon.

-This is where he caught salmon.

-

-He had the rights to this stretch.

-He was one of the last

-with rights to use a spoon net.

-He'd cast it into this pool

-to catch large fish.

-Someone had carved a niche

-in the rock where he could stand...

-..and it's still visible now.

-Fishermen from the past

-have left us more than that...

-..including names for pools

-that are steeped in history.

-What's this place called?

-What's this place called?

-

-Pwll Defaid - sheep pool.

-This is where

-they used to dip sheep.

-Local farmers

-bought their sheep here...

-..to dip them, to wash the wool.

-The sheep were driven

-over the bridge to this point.

-It's called Flat Rock today,

-but it was Pwll Defaid years ago.

-They washed the sheep here.

-The flock was driven around

-three times.

-The sheep had to swim

-from this side to the far side.

-This photo shows everything.

-This photo shows everything.

-

-There are boats in the water here.

-They're coracles,

-one is my Uncle Wil's.

-That's either Jac or John Trevor.

-John Trevor used to dip sheep,

-but he gave it up.

-A sheep jumped into his coracle...

-..and it went a bit topsy-turvy!

-..and it went a bit topsy-turvy!

-

-A fight broke out!

-I was dipping a flock one day

-when a sheep got into trouble.

-I got her to the bank down there,

-but she was on her last legs.

-I was rubbing her,

-applying pressure and so on.

-Massage?

-Massage?

-

-That's right.

-Wil came over and said,

-"Why are you doing that?

-"Today's method is mouth-to-mouth!"

-Then I had to listen to him...

-BLOWING SOUND

-..blowing into the sheep's mouth.

-He was such a blaggard,

-I couldn't raise any doubts.

-But there we go, these things pass.

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-Esgair, Bargoed and Bran streams...

-..converge here at Drefach Felindre.

-They once powered 24 woollen mills

-in this village alone.

-This skilled art

-is still practised at Melin Teifi.

-It was once one of Wales'

-most important industries.

-I started here with a summer job

-while I was at college.

-The manager at the time, Mr Willden,

-asked if I'd like to stay on.

-In the meantime,

-I had met Diane, my wife upstairs.

-You keep her upstairs!

-You keep her upstairs!

-

-Yes, upstairs.

-We both worked together

-for many years here...

-..until it closed in 1980.

-I then asked Brian,

-who worked here at the time...

-..he's my foreman here now...

-..if he'd like to carry on,

-and we tried to open up ourselves.

-There were so many woollen mills

-in this one village.

-That's right.

-What is it about the area

-that created so much industry?

-Three streams

-run through the village.

-They're important because you needed

-power to drive the machinery.

-A few started

-and others then followed suit.

-The same water, the same river,

-could turn several wheels.

-The industry fell into decline

-in the 1980s. Why was that?

-In my opinion, duvets came in

-and blankets weren't necessary.

-They became very popular,

-and cost became a concern.

-It's turned around now...

-..and demand for traditional

-Welsh blankets is back.

-There's plenty of work about now.

-To be honest, this factory

-could be twice the size.

-But I'm getting on now, and I don't

-need to work any harder than I do.

-While the weaver creates

-traditional Welsh patterns...

-..sewing and dispatching orders

-across the globe goes on upstairs.

-I'm sewing shirts.

-A lot of people buy them

-because it's our special pattern.

-Americans often,

-and this one's going to Germany.

-What's Raymond like as a boss?

-What's Raymond like as a boss?

-

-He's alright.

-I'm up here and he's down there.

-What's this here?

-That was my wage packet

-when I started here, 53 years ago.

-3, 18 shillings and eightpence.

-I don't get much more now!

-This is the wide loom,

-used to make blankets and quilts.

-We're looking at the programme...

-..that tells the weaver

-what the loom is doing.

-Every pulley raises a harness,

-and heads cross between them.

-There's a small chain there.

-That tells the weaver at any time

-what colour is being woven in.

-That's how you get the pattern.

-Do they still make looms?

-Do they still make looms?

-

-No, they're not made any more.

-They stopped for good in 1967,

-and you can't get spare parts now.

-All we have is what we've collected

-down the years...

-..or what you can steal

-off another weaver!

-Weaving and coracles aren't

-the only rural crafts around here.

-The process is the same

-as when my mother did it.

-Of course, she did it

-on a small scale.

-But the process is all done by hand,

-and it's nice that it continues...

-..without any modern machinery.

-Mam made Caerphilly cheese,

-more than anything.

-But she never sold any,

-because we only had two cows.

-The main reason we started Caws

-Cenarth was because of milk quotas.

-Some farmers were pouring milk

-into the gutter.

-But I'd been raised

-too close to Ceredigion to do that!

-It's nice because you can

-forget about everything else.

-You're completely focused

-on making the cheese.

-I think I'm still learning,

-even after 30 years.

-It's a fairly complicated process.

-But it's nice

-to continue the old ways.

-If you gave six people

-the same recipe...

-..the cheese they made

-would turn out totally different.

-Whoever makes the cheese

-puts a piece of themselves into it.

-I firmly believe that the best thing

-you can add to cheese is love.

-Cenarth Falls are among

-the most popular falls in Wales...

-..to be painted or photographed,

-and you can see why.

-It's also home

-to the National Coracle Centre.

-It keeps alive a tradition that

-goes back maybe thousands of years.

-The annual river festival

-is built on this tradition.

-But in order to take part,

-I need to know a bit more.

-This is a Teifi coracle.

-They have different shapes

-on different rivers.

-My great-grandfather

-apparently made them...

-..and fished on the River Neath,

-a long time ago.

-Would they be a different shape?

-Would they be a different shape?

-

-Yes, every river was different.

-But that was before my time!

-Long before your time.

-You're a young man

-to be in a coracle.

-I grew up with them.

-My father had one.

-And you're continuing the tradition.

-And you're continuing the tradition.

-

-Yes, I have my own licence.

-So, I go out myself now.

-How were these made traditionally?

-Cow hide, initially.

-Cow hide, initially.

-

-Cow hide?

-It's like a basket, in a way.

-What's the wood?

-What's the wood?

-

-It's willow, soaked for a year.

-That makes it pliable enough

-to weave into a basket.

-That's covered with canvas

-and painted with bitumen.

-And that keeps the water out.

-And that keeps the water out.

-

-Or it should.

-Yes, it should be waterproof.

-But a coracle

-is useless on dry land.

-As the competitors are arriving...

-..and as I've agreed to race,

-I need a lesson.

-One foot in one corner,

-one foot in the other corner.

-Sit in the middle

-or you'll tip over.

-I don't want to tip over.

-And you're away.

-And I just rotate the paddle.

-Can I turn around?

-Turning's easy.

-What isn't easy is going forwards.

-Keep rotating the paddle.

-You have to turn the blade as well.

-Now, you're moving.

-I am moving, but it's difficult.

-I am moving, but it's difficult.

-

-Come towards me.

-There we are.

-Oh, I see.

-You've got it.

-How do you think I'll do

-in the race this afternoon?

-Do you have any words of advice?

-You'll do alright, I think.

-The river's flowing fairly quickly,

-so that will help you out.

-It'll help me, then.

-It'll help me, then.

-

-Yes, but I don't think you'll win.

-I don't expect to win, I just want

-to stop before reaching Cardigan!

-Stop in Cenarth and you'll be fine.

-Five miles upriver from Cenarth

-is Llandyfriog church.

-Settling an argument with a sword

-or gun was once fairly common.

-There are records of at least

-a thousand such duels in Britain.

-The remains of one losing duellist

-lie in this churchyard.

-Thomas Heslop

-was from the West Indies.

-In 1814, he became the last man

-to die in a duel in Wales.

-The row was between Heslop

-and local solicitor John Beynon.

-After a day's hunting...

-..and a few pints

-at the Old Salutation in Adpar...

-..things went from bad to worse.

-Two days later, on 10 September,

-the pair met in this field.

-They should have taken ten paces

-before turning and firing...

-..but John Beynon

-only took five paces.

-He turned, fired his gun

-and Thomas Heslop died instantly.

-That was the last duel

-to take place in Wales.

-John Beynon got away with a fine,

-but he was no longer welcome here.

-He fled to America and disappeared.

-But local people

-still remember Thomas Heslop.

-The winners don't always

-write the history books.

-Most of us have probably slept

-under a traditional Welsh quilt...

-..without truly considering the work

-it takes to weave such patterns...

-..or that the patterns have been

-handed down through the generations.

-Melin Teifi

-sells traditional clothes...

-..and patterns

-like Caernarfon and Dyffryn...

-..next door to the workshop,

-a living exhibit of an industry...

-..that has shaped this area

-for centuries.

-These machines are so big...

-..yet they turn out

-such detailed patterns.

-Every head that comes through

-from the ladder at the back...

-..runs through an eyelet

-that moves up and down...

-..and through those slots here.

-They control

-the width of the fabric.

-I think there are four in each

-of those, and six of those per inch.

-That's 24 threads per inch

-across from here to there.

-It's so detailed.

-It's so detailed.

-

-Yes, it is.

-When you see the completed fabric...

-..you appreciate them so much more.

-How long have you

-been doing this, Ken?

-Oh, it's about 50 years, 1956.

-I saw you working on this,

-the Caernarfon pattern.

-Is it still as popular as ever?

-Is it still as popular as ever?

-

-Yes, it is.

-It's hard to believe

-it's still going.

-I'm fed up of looking at it!

-But, clearly, not everyone is.

-How do you measure it?

-You have to know exactly

-where one ends and one begins.

-What I do is insert this...

-..and keep going

-until I get to the end.

-This mark here means

-that a single quilt has been done.

-When it gets to here,

-I have a double quilt.

-Then you turn the fringe

-and start again.

-You'd better get back to work.

-You'd better get back to work.

-

-Yes, probably.

-You carry on

-and I'll measure for you.

-Hold onto it tightly!

-Watching you at work,

-I can see how satisfying it is...

-..for you to be making a living

-from something that you love doing.

-That's true enough.

-We have been through

-a difficult period...

-..but things have picked up.

-Demand is high

-for traditional products.

-They're back in fashion,

-without a doubt.

-The orders we have coming in...

-..prove that there's enough work

-to be going on with.

-I hope that continues.

-At its peak, the woollen industry

-was driven by the power of water.

-That's celebrated

-on a short stretch of the Teifi...

-..in Cenarth annually.

-The Cenarth River Festival

-has activities for the whole family.

-But there's one main attraction,

-and I'm proud to be taking part.

-It's a river festival...

-..and as such, the activities

-are focused on the river.

-There are coracles every year,

-kayaks have since come in.

-They come here because we want

-to do things on the river.

-There are a lot of tourists here.

-I suppose some come

-especially to see the coracles.

-A lot of people do come for that,

-some for the whole weekend.

-The river

-is the focus of the festival.

-As the crowds gathered on the banks,

-I had just one thing on my mind.

-The great coracle race.

-Would I remember anything

-from my lesson with Matthew?

-Get in and get comfortable.

-I'm fine now.

-I'm fine now.

-

-Happy?

-Well, the race is over

-and I'm still alive.

-That's the main thing,

-for me and my family!

-The water was moving quickly,

-or it seemed to from here.

-But once I got in the boat

-and went out into midstream...

-..where I thought

-I'd be carried along quickly...

-..it hardly moved at all.

-The experienced coraclers

-sped along...

-..while I was still

-under the bridge like a fool!

-But the crowd was very supportive.

-It wasn't too bad,

-and you only learn from experience.

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-A stone's throw

-from Newcastle Emlyn is Henllan...

-..one of the prettiest areas

-along the Teifi.

-But as you can imagine, the scenery

-doesn't tell the whole story.

-I'll take you back to a time

-when this area, like many others...

-..was under the shadow of war.

-Between 1940 and 1941...

-..a camp was built

-south of Henllan...

-..to hold the growing numbers

-of prisoners of war...

-..flowing into Britain.

-Suddenly,

-this area was full of foreign men...

-..and some left their mark

-in more ways than one.

-Welcome to Camp 70, Heledd.

-Imagine this place

-with no trees and no buildings...

-..just 18 acres of level ground.

-They built a prison camp here...

-..to house Italian POWs

-from the Sahara, Tunisia and Libya.

-Over 1,000 were held prisoner here.

-Here in Henllan?

-Here in Henllan?

-

-Yes, for four and a half years.

-Why here?

-Why here?

-

-It was far from the English Channel.

-More food had to be grown

-during the war...

-..so, they were sent out

-to work on farms every day.

-I'm trying to imagine the place

-as it was so many years ago.

-The sounds, what was here and so on.

-The brick and concrete buildings

-are still here...

-..but there were also 34 cabins

-in which the Italians lived.

-This is a drawing

-of how it would have looked.

-The theatre, the refectory...

-..and the cabins

-where the Italians lived.

-They provided enough activities

-to keep the Italians entertained.

-There was a swing band,

-a la Glenn Miller.

-There were four football teams,

-they played tennis and bowls.

-So, they were treated well.

-The term prisoner of war camp

-conjures up a certain image.

-But this feels rather different.

-Because they'd got rid

-of the Fascists...

-..and royalist Italians had produced

-weapons to fight the Italians...

-..it was the moderate Italians

-who remained...

-..and they were very easy to handle.

-Were they allowed out?

-Were they allowed out?

-

-Yes, some worked on local farms.

-When they went out for the day...

-..they were given Welsh cakes, bara

-brith or apple tarts here and there.

-They had no money at the camp.

-They used paper tokens.

-They couldn't pay

-for the cakes directly.

-At night, after lights out,

-they created little craft items.

-This box is interesting.

-Inside, unexpectedly,

-is a bottle of wine.

-Would you like to remove the top?

-It won't hurt you. What is it?

-Oh, a lighter.

-They took a bullet,

-found a lighter somewhere...

-..put the lighter into the cavity...

-..then they've made a bottle

-as a gift for some farmer's wife.

-Does it work?

-Does it work?

-

-Yes, of course.

-There's something else in the box.

-I have a ring for you here.

-If you'll excuse me,

-we're about to get engaged.

-This ring was made

-from an old threepenny bit.

-They gave them to people

-as a thank you.

-If you'd take it off...

-If you'd take it off...

-

-I don't want to!

-I've got another ring

-which is even better.

-This was made out of a spoon.

-It's incredible

-that they could do such a thing.

-This was their way

-of saying thank you for a kindness.

-All made here.

-The Italians may have been POWs...

-..but their story

-is one of integration...

-..and engaging

-with their new neighbours.

-But it wasn't always so.

-Some local people weren't quite

-as peaceful in the past.

-I'm on the trail of Newcastle

-Emlyn's bloody history...

-..in the castle

-that gives the town its name.

-It stands proudly behind me,

-or it did...

-..with the Teifi that way

-and Adpar to the north.

-The castle dates back to 1240.

-It's one of the few Welsh castles

-locally, built by Maredudd ap Rhys.

-He was a bit fickle,

-truth be told...

-..loyal to both Wales and England

-at different times.

-Or should that be disloyal?

-In 1271, his son, Rhys,

-succeeded him.

-Unlike his father, Rhys

-remained true to the English cause.

-Once the war ended,

-he was rewarded by the king.

-He was made a knight

-and received lands in Ystrad Tywi.

-But once you get a taste of power,

-you want more.

-The Lord Rhys changed his tune

-and began to fight against England.

-His rebellion came in 1287.

-In June, he seized Llandovery,

-Dinefwr and Carreg Cennen castles.

-He set fire to Swansea,

-Carmarthen and Llanbadarn Fawr.

-At the centre of the fighting

-was this castle.

-The English seized it first,

-then the Welsh took back control.

-Eventually, Edward I's might

-rained down and laid siege to it.

-The defenders

-were left with no food or water...

-..nowhere to turn

-and no-one to save them.

-The soldiers

-couldn't come or go for a month.

-But somehow, the Lord Rhys

-escaped from the King's clutches...

-..and fled to Ireland.

-He came back, ready for more,

-four years later.

-But by then, it was too late.

-His cause was lost

-and his men had lost faith.

-He was imprisoned

-and killed in York.

-He was hung first, then dragged

-by wild horses just to make sure.

-Lovely.

-The river may bind the area,

-but there's much more to it.

-Water and fire come together here.

-This forge has been in the centre

-of the town for 25 years.

-I'm meeting the man who's determined

-to keep this tradition alive.

-I started out renting next door.

-This place was empty,

-there was nothing here.

-We're in an agricultural area.

-Every village around here

-would once have had a blacksmith.

-Yes, maybe even two.

-There was plenty of work,

-repairs and so on.

-Back then, everything was repaired.

-Now, it's a chuckaway society.

-I try to keep that tradition going.

-What would the old blacksmith do

-that you don't do?

-Horses.

-Shoeing horses, things like that.

-Today, that work has split off.

-You have smiths and farriers.

-Right.

-Right.

-

-In the old days, it was one job.

-But I like to keep the work going,

-and that's why I have a forge.

-The old blacksmith

-had the forge going all day.

-As someone who's never

-done this kind of work...

-..is there anything I could do

-to see how it goes?

-You could hit your finger.

-With a hammer?

-I've done that before.

-Weathervanes are popular

-in Barry's workshop.

-But as we're close to the Teifi...

-..he wants me

-to make a salmon weathervane.

-Place it on the metal

-and press this trigger...

-..then follow the line.

-Slowly does it.

-As you did when you traced the mark.

-Did you have whisky for breakfast?

-Alan can show you,

-then you can finish it off.

-Hopefully.

-Put the scrolls on

-and tack it at the top and bottom...

-..and at the bottom again.

-A bit closer.

-A bit closer.

-

-A bit closer? OK.

-Brilliant.

-A salmon weathervane.

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-Subtitles

-Subtitles

-

-Subtitles

-I'm realizing a dream by visiting

-the Catholic church in Henllan.

-It was built

-by Italian prisoners of war.

-It's the only church of its kind

-on the British mainland.

-Why do you have such a strong link

-with the church?

-I did a project on altars

-with the children at school.

-I visited five churches

-and this was one of them.

-I learnt that the artist

-was Mario Ferlito.

-The children wanted to write to him,

-and that's how it all began.

-These eleven-year-olds

-wrote to Mario.

-He read their letter

-and found out...

-..that his work was still here.

-According to his wife, he broke down

-and wept for 20 minutes.

-The relationship

-has lasted over the years...

-..through Mario, Maria

-and now their two daughters.

-We'll go in then.

-If you open that door...

-..we're in the Church

-of the Sacred Heart.

-Your eyes are drawn

-along these medallions...

-..towards the altar,

-and the mural of the Last Supper.

-And he painted all of these?

-And he painted all of these?

-

-Yes, just him.

-If you look at the fifth disciple

-from the left...

-..wearing mustard yellow clothes...

-..that paint was made from onions.

-No!

-Mario created all the colours...

-..out of what the men brought back

-after working on the farms.

-He didn't have any paint.

-There was no B&Q back then!

-He had to create the colours.

-Take the medallions.

-The brown was made

-from ground tea and coffee.

-He also boiled fish bones

-in the kitchen...

-..to make a glue.

-He used the glue

-to bind the paint to the walls.

-You're talking about vegetables,

-flowers, fruit, onions.

-That's what all these colours are.

-This is one of the candlesticks.

-A tin of vegetable oil, perhaps.

-At the top is the lid of the can,

-to hold the wax.

-All here since the 1940s.

-All here since the 1940s.

-

-Yes, still here.

-A series of pillars

-run down either side.

-The tops of the columns

-resemble Greek architecture.

-Schoolchildren collected these tins

-and brought them to Henllan...

-..and they were used

-to create these scrolls.

-Just ordinary tins,

-peas, baked beans, whatever.

-And local children

-gave these to the prisoners?

-There's an arched piece of wood

-on the top part of each window.

-It gives them the appearance

-of church windows.

-He hadn't had any formal artistic

-training, it was all instinctive.

-The commandant asked him

-if he'd like to paint the church.

-It was quite an honour,

-and it's still here today.

-Wherever you go around here,

-the world 'wiber' is evident.

-It was a type of flying dragon

-that once terrorized local people.

-The story starts in Newcastle Emlyn,

-Carmarthenshire...

-..and ends on the banks

-of the Teifi, in Ceredigion.

-It was the day of the summer fair,

-and the town was packed.

-Suddenly,

-a shadow came over the town.

-People looked up and saw this beast

-landing on the castle tower...

-..roaring and breathing fire

-and beating its wings...

-..and whatever else

-they used to do.

-The fair was over, and it would

-have been the end of the town...

-..were it not

-for one brave soldier...

-..who jumped into the river

-and stripped.

-Why the nudity's important, I don't

-know, but it's in all the stories.

-He took aim at the beast.

-The beast had thick skin,

-as hard as stone...

-..but there was one soft part,

-its navel.

-The bullet hit the beast,

-which roared and flapped its wings.

-Then it came down to the Teifi

-to die.

-It was impossible to drink the water

-or fish in the Teifi for days.

-The beast's blood and venom

-had contaminated the river.

-It's a wild tale,

-an imaginary tale most probably...

-..but in nearby Llandysul,

-there's a special laboratory.

-It's one of the world leaders

-in the manufacture of antivenom.

-It must be something in the water.

-Legends aren't the only things

-being kept alive in Newcastle Emlyn.

-The old tradition

-of forging decorative metal...

-..remains at the heart of the town.

-This is a 12 millimetre square bar.

-It's been twisted

-and it'll end up like this.

-This is the traditional part

-of a smith's work.

-This is the forge...

-..and this is how blacksmiths

-used to work all day.

-By the forge in the morning,

-and they didn't leave it all day.

-They used to melt the metal,

-bend the metal, make scrolls.

-How do you know

-that it's ready to be worked on?

-The colour, which is reddish.

-If you see sparks flying,

-it's too hot.

-The forging heat, as it's called.

-There's that saying,

-strike while the iron's hot.

-Clearly,

-this is where it comes from.

-It's over to you now.

-It's square, the shape's changed.

-I see.

-There we go, like that.

-Bend it down.

-I want it like this.

-I want it like this.

-

-Do I hit it like this?

-Hit that at the tip, slowly.

-Pretty good.

-No problem at all, very good.

-Great!

-What I find interesting, Barry...

-..even though you have

-all these machines here...

-..you carry on the old traditions

-with the forge and so on.

-It'd be a great shame

-if that died off.

-I get great pleasure

-working with the fire.

-A lot of people come in

-and they enjoy watching...

-..hearing the hammer

-strike the anvil...

-..and seeing the forge.

-As long as I'm alive, there'll be

-a forge in Newcastle Emlyn.

-There is a popular image of Wales

-that is, I must admit...

-..close to the impression

-I've had of this area.

-A bit out of the way, where time

-seems to have stood still.

-Where old industries and traditions

-still hold their own...

-..despite every attempt

-to sweep them off the map.

-But the more you scratch

-the surface, the more you see.

-Lost stories, and others

-that shatter the peaceful image.

-They prove that you can't

-take anywhere for granted.

-It's a small area,

-but a proud area...

-..that's happy to share its secrets

-if you know where to look.

-I wonder what others will come

-to light when I return here.

-S4C Subtitles by Testun Cyf.

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