0:00:00 > 0:00:00- Subtitles
0:00:00 > 0:00:02- Subtitles- - Subtitles
0:00:19 > 0:00:22- A complex man, a complex man.
0:00:22 > 0:00:24- Lots of laughs, lots of fun...
0:00:24 > 0:00:27- ..but a very private man - in many ways.
0:00:27 > 0:00:32- A man with a fairly sad, - melancholic side.
0:00:32 > 0:00:38- It didn't come out in his company - but maybe it did in his songs.
0:00:45 > 0:00:47- He was part of a bardic tradition...
0:00:50 > 0:00:53- ..going back as far - as the sixth century...
0:00:53 > 0:00:57- ..but he also linked - contemporary Wales with the world.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11- Before his sad - and sudden death in 2010...
0:01:11 > 0:01:15- ..Iwan Llwyd was, above all, a poet.
0:01:15 > 0:01:18- A poet rooted - in Wales's bardic tradition...
0:01:18 > 0:01:23- ..but one of those rare Welsh poets - whose work encapsulated the world.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28- When I read Iwan's poetry...
0:01:28 > 0:01:31- ..I had the sense - that he was very rooted in Wales...
0:01:31 > 0:01:35- ..but that he was also - a very global and modern person.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39- One of the obvious aspects - of his work is his imagery...
0:01:40 > 0:01:45- ..his way of treating words - and ideas so colourfully.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48- He's among our most important poets.
0:01:48 > 0:01:49- He's among our most important poets.- - Yes. Yes, I agree.
0:02:00 > 0:02:05- Iwan loved travelling, - taking his poetry to people.
0:02:05 > 0:02:10- But after the show, he'd sit down - to meet and talk to people.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13- He'd get things back - from the audience.
0:02:13 > 0:02:17- That's the important thing.
0:02:17 > 0:02:22- Iwan shared his work on the tours, - but he collected constantly as well.
0:02:22 > 0:02:26- As I was sitting there - in this pub, by myself...
0:02:26 > 0:02:30- ..I started to think, perhaps - this is how a poet should be.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34- By himself, writing by himself, - in some sort of vacuum.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37- In a garret, writing by himself.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41- The poem asks the question, - is that what poetry's about?
0:02:41 > 0:02:44- Or should it be - about communicating with people?
0:02:44 > 0:02:47- "Composing Poetry In Welsh."
0:02:47 > 0:02:50- "Is it like being - in a pub in London? Is it?
0:02:51 > 0:02:54- "The lonely chat with yourself, - and no-one listening.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58- "No-one there knows recognition, - no-one is related.
0:02:59 > 0:03:02- "The words amass - before sinking into someone's drink.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06- "Seeking conversation, - creating stereotypes
0:03:06 > 0:03:11- "Redigesting land, weather and - minor events to anyone who listens.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15- "Avoiding substance - while seeking attention and company
0:03:15 > 0:03:20- "And the last candle - of a pale evening rapidly melts.
0:03:20 > 0:03:24- "Is it like being in a pub - in London as night falls?"
0:03:25 > 0:03:29- When I think of Iwan Llwyd, I think - of the margins and the centre.
0:03:29 > 0:03:33- He liked to be - at the centre of things, socially...
0:03:34 > 0:03:38- ..when he presented his poems - in a pub or club or wherever.
0:03:38 > 0:03:42- He enjoyed - being at the centre of society...
0:03:42 > 0:03:47- ..and hearing society applauding, - enjoying, reacting to his poems.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49- He believed - that poetry and poets...
0:03:50 > 0:03:52- ..were integral to any society.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56- But he also believed that a poet - should be at the margins.
0:03:56 > 0:04:01- He did see himself as looking in - onto society from the outside.
0:04:01 > 0:04:06- That he kept some kind of distance, - and that the distance was important.
0:04:06 > 0:04:10- He was in the margins sometimes, - and in the centre sometimes.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13- That's not a paradox, - it's how he was...
0:04:13 > 0:04:15- ..and that's how things are.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18- Black and white merge to make grey.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22- He was very fond of that borderland - between black and white.
0:04:23 > 0:04:24- The grey world.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28- He really liked the seasons, - and the difference between them.
0:04:29 > 0:04:31- When seasons met each other.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35- He really liked the meeting - of day and night.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39- Dusk in the evening - and dawn in the morning.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43- He also liked the geographical - border between cultures...
0:04:44 > 0:04:46- ..where cultures met.
0:04:46 > 0:04:51- Where they clashed sometimes - but also borrowed from each other.
0:04:51 > 0:04:52- He really liked that.
0:04:54 > 0:04:56- In '90, he won the Crown...
0:04:56 > 0:05:01- ..excuse my pronunciation, at the - Cwm Rhymni National Eisteddfod...
0:05:02 > 0:05:05- ..for a cycle of poems.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08- He also co-wrote - a series of TV plays...
0:05:08 > 0:05:11- ..for S4C, - the Welsh language TV station.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15- I'm pretty sure I could say - an awful lot about this man...
0:05:15 > 0:05:19- ..but instead of me telling you - so much about him...
0:05:19 > 0:05:22- ..I would like - to present to you Iwan Llwyd.
0:05:23 > 0:05:24- When I was a young lad...
0:05:24 > 0:05:28- ..I grew up in the Conwy Valley - in North Wales during the early 60s.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31- One song - that stayed in the memory...
0:05:32 > 0:05:34- ..was 24 Hours From Tulsa.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38- I heard the song on the radio - recently, when I wrote this poem.
0:05:39 > 0:05:40- It brought back memories...
0:05:41 > 0:05:45- ..of the period when the song - was in the charts, in the early 60s.
0:05:45 > 0:05:51- A period of change, - of historic happenings.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54- This poem talks - about how memories...
0:05:54 > 0:05:57- ..come back to someone - when you hear a song...
0:05:57 > 0:06:00- ..and how important - those memories are...
0:06:00 > 0:06:04- ..and how important it is - to catch hold of memories...
0:06:04 > 0:06:07- ..and to remember things - that happen way back.
0:06:07 > 0:06:09- "24 Hours From Tulsa."
0:06:10 > 0:06:12- "On the edge of memory are shadows
0:06:13 > 0:06:15- "Indistinct shapes - that move and whisper...
0:06:16 > 0:06:19- "..like children's watercolours - in the rain.
0:06:19 > 0:06:20- "The heavy snow of '63...
0:06:21 > 0:06:25- "..when the half-mile to school - was like crossing the South Pole.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29- "Reciting She Loves You, despite - Liverpool being as alien as Cuba.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32- "Seeing a cavalcade of black cars
0:06:32 > 0:06:36- "As death came to Dallas - and America's neck bowed.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40- "Like an old song's - fairly familiar tune
0:06:40 > 0:06:43- "Everything's at the edge of memory.
0:06:43 > 0:06:47- "The moments that disturbed - the journey, the profligate bends
0:06:47 > 0:06:50- "Part of our history - but yet so close.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53- "I'm in the shower, - trying to make out the colours
0:06:53 > 0:06:55- "Before losing them forever - in the dirt."
0:06:57 > 0:06:58- I don't think you can avoid...
0:06:59 > 0:07:03- ..the influence - of the chapel and religion...
0:07:03 > 0:07:05- ..on any son of the manse.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08- It stays with you forever.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11- I'm sure it stayed with Iwan - until the end.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15- All the influence - of traditional Welsh religion.
0:07:17 > 0:07:22- All the biblical literature, - the hymns and so on...
0:07:22 > 0:07:25- ..which seep into a man's spirit - and nature.
0:07:26 > 0:07:27- It's all there.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30- I don't think Iwan, - any more than I have...
0:07:31 > 0:07:35- ..ever totally turned his back - on religion during his life.
0:07:35 > 0:07:40- It was always there - as a very important influence.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45- Just as he questioned religion, - religion also questioned him.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48- I never got the idea - that any son of the manse...
0:07:49 > 0:07:52- ..was on a pedestal - or anything like that.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55- When we moved to Bangor, - we lived on an estate.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58- Iwan and I mixed - with all the other children...
0:07:58 > 0:08:01- ..the huge gangs of children - that were around.
0:08:02 > 0:08:06- We never thought we were different, - but what was different...
0:08:06 > 0:08:10- ..was Sunday, - and keeping the Sabbath and so on.
0:08:10 > 0:08:15- There was no football on Sunday, - which did make us a bit different!
0:08:16 > 0:08:18- The other boys - still played football on Sunday.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21- We didn't - we went to chapel - three times.
0:08:22 > 0:08:26- The linguistic characteristics - and the literature...
0:08:26 > 0:08:29- ..had a strong influence - on his poetry, I'm sure.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43- "Copacabana Christ"
0:08:43 > 0:08:45- "He's too far away - to cast his shadow
0:08:46 > 0:08:49- "Over the naked thighs and breasts - that worship the sun.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53- "Senorita, I couldn't settle down.
0:08:53 > 0:08:57- "I came to the top of this peak - between the sky and the beaches
0:08:58 > 0:08:59- "To look down on Copacabana.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03- "It's too high for anyone to notice
0:09:03 > 0:09:07- "The mercy that shines down - onto Giannini and Angelina
0:09:08 > 0:09:10- "Senorita, I can smell the rain
0:09:10 > 0:09:13- "Rising up from the heat that falls
0:09:13 > 0:09:15- "From the Vila Canoas favela
0:09:15 > 0:09:17- "And the prophets' ranch
0:09:17 > 0:09:21- "Like the marijuana smoke, - is sweet and capitalistic
0:09:21 > 0:09:23- "He's too big to be mistaken
0:09:24 > 0:09:26- "For a celluloid image - from the southern sea
0:09:27 > 0:09:29- "Senorita, you can have a photo.
0:09:30 > 0:09:31- "I won't refuse.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35- "There are worse photos - than those of a crucifixion.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39- "He's as primitive - as a cross and nails
0:09:40 > 0:09:44- "And the girls' bargains - between the games and the seaweed."
0:09:53 > 0:09:54- .
0:09:58 > 0:09:58- Subtitles
0:09:58 > 0:10:00- Subtitles- - Subtitles
0:10:08 > 0:10:11- # Good day, Rhiannon
0:10:12 > 0:10:16- # The river Ogwen's in full flow #
0:10:17 > 0:10:20- The idea of travelling - and constantly moving...
0:10:20 > 0:10:22- ..appealed greatly to Iwan Llwyd.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26- The road he talked so much about - made his heart beat faster.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29- But it was here, in Talybont - near Bangor...
0:10:29 > 0:10:31- ..that he organized his thoughts.
0:10:31 > 0:10:36- This is where he weeded out - his ideas and perfected his verses.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40- This was his home with his wife, - Nia, and daughter, Rhiannon...
0:10:41 > 0:10:44- ..the subject of the beautiful song, - Dydd Da, Rhiannon.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50- Amidst all his bardic objects...
0:10:50 > 0:10:54- ..he turned to those black notebooks - and the endless notes he took...
0:10:54 > 0:10:58- ..turning them into memorable poems.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01- It was here, in his library - on the banks of the river Ogwen...
0:11:02 > 0:11:04- ..where his influences - are evident...
0:11:04 > 0:11:08- ..that the desire to go away - would come to him time and again.
0:11:08 > 0:11:11- In a pub conversation - in the Globe...
0:11:11 > 0:11:17- ..Iwan and the whole gang were in - good spirits and were quite noisy...
0:11:17 > 0:11:22- ..but then there was a pause, as - happens naturally in a conversation.
0:11:22 > 0:11:24- No-one said anything.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28- Then someone said - that angels had just passed by.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32- Iwan had never heard the saying - before.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34- It was in his nature - to want to find out more...
0:11:35 > 0:11:38- ..so he quizzed that person - for more information.
0:11:38 > 0:11:42- It was explained to him - that it was a tradition...
0:11:42 > 0:11:47- ..that when the conversation came to - a stop and everyone was quiet...
0:11:48 > 0:11:52- ..it always happened either at - twenty minutes past the hour...
0:11:52 > 0:11:54- ..or at twenty minutes to the hour.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57- He loved that concept.
0:11:57 > 0:12:02- He really enjoyed reading the poem - and telling that story.
0:12:03 > 0:12:04- Angylion
0:12:05 > 0:12:08- "Whenever the angels fly past
0:12:08 > 0:12:10- "Sounding like dew forming on leaves
0:12:11 > 0:12:13- "Or frost forming on windows
0:12:13 > 0:12:16- "As the young lads - in their borrowed tweeds
0:12:16 > 0:12:19- "Drive home the ewes - from the rock and the heather
0:12:19 > 0:12:22- "Their flight - shatters the rough speech
0:12:22 > 0:12:25- "A ray glistening - through the murky morn
0:12:25 > 0:12:28- "Sends a spasm of panic - through the town traffic
0:12:29 > 0:12:32- "When beating wings come - from the edge of nowhere
0:12:32 > 0:12:35- "Sending a buzz of dangerous peace - through the area
0:12:36 > 0:12:38- "Every conversation, - every breath pauses
0:12:39 > 0:12:41- "Whenever the angels fly past"
0:12:43 > 0:12:48- I don't think there had been any - suggestion that Iwan wrote poetry...
0:12:49 > 0:12:52- ..until he went to Ysgol Friars, - Bangor.
0:12:52 > 0:12:56- I think he developed - an interest in poetry...
0:12:56 > 0:13:00- ..because of the influence - of certain teachers.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04- I think Hywel Bebb - was very influential...
0:13:04 > 0:13:07- ..especially in relation - to literature.
0:13:07 > 0:13:11- He took an interest in Williams - Parry and T H Parry-Williams...
0:13:11 > 0:13:13- ..from an early age.
0:13:13 > 0:13:17- A serious lad. Very pleasant. - He was conscientious and thorough.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21- He had plenty of imagination - and always produced good work.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25- He came to Bangor - when he was about ten years old.
0:13:25 > 0:13:30- His father had been called to the - ministry at two chapels in Bangor.
0:13:30 > 0:13:36- They came from Talybont in the - Conwy Valley, a Welsh stronghold.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39- Coming to Bangor - was a bit of a culture shock.
0:13:40 > 0:13:46- The Englishness of Ysgol Friars - may have been an influence on him.
0:13:47 > 0:13:53- That may have been one reason - for the apparent seriousness.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56- Yet there was also plenty of humour.
0:13:58 > 0:14:04- Iwan Llwyd speaks regularly - about his time at Ysgol Friars.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08- He refers to this period as the time - when he started to write poetry.
0:14:08 > 0:14:12- He published a few of his early - poems in the school magazine...
0:14:12 > 0:14:15- ..The New Dominican.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20- The first poem dates from 1973, - when he was in the fourth year.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22- That was when he was about 15.
0:14:23 > 0:14:26- Those early poems are very innocent.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28- By the time he reached - the sixth form...
0:14:28 > 0:14:31- ..the influence - of T H Parry-Williams was evident.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34- When he was in the fourth year - or so...
0:14:35 > 0:14:40- ..I must have been discussing - the sonnet form with the class.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44- Iwan came to me - at the end of the lesson.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48- He wanted to know more - about this metrical form...
0:14:48 > 0:14:53- ..and the poets who used it - in their work.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56- Sonnets were the main metrical form - he used...
0:14:56 > 0:14:58- ..by the time - he was in the sixth form.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01- The influence - of T H Parry-Williams...
0:15:01 > 0:15:05- ..is clear in the choice of metre - and in the language used...
0:15:05 > 0:15:08- ..as well as in the themes.
0:15:08 > 0:15:09- If I remember rightly...
0:15:09 > 0:15:12- ..his first volume of poems - was a volume of sonnets.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15- That was T H Parry-Williams's - influence...
0:15:15 > 0:15:19- ..because he'd taken to his poems, - sonnets and rhyming verses.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21- He also uses rhyming verses.
0:15:21 > 0:15:26- There was no rebellion in Iwan as - a young man, as far as I remember.
0:15:29 > 0:15:33- If anything, I remember him going - through quite a religious phase.
0:15:33 > 0:15:40- I think there are very early poems, - written when he was at school...
0:15:40 > 0:15:46- ..under the influence of Hywel Bebb, - his Welsh teacher at Friars...
0:15:47 > 0:15:50- ..that are quite religious - in nature.
0:15:50 > 0:15:54- I think the rebel in him - developed later in life.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57- It strikes you straight away...
0:15:57 > 0:16:00- ..how many Christian references - there are in the poems.
0:16:01 > 0:16:07- A number of the poems show Christian - conviction, not just references.
0:16:07 > 0:16:11- The references continue - throughout his poetic career.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14- However, by the time - he's at university...
0:16:14 > 0:16:18- ..there isn't much in terms of - conviction about Christian ideas.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21- Alongside these religious - references...
0:16:21 > 0:16:24- ..there are references - to the Welsh language...
0:16:25 > 0:16:28- ..and his sense of Welshness - which inspired him.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32- One essay talks about - how Ysgol Friars is very anglicized.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36- Writing those poems - may have been his way of rebelling.
0:16:38 > 0:16:39- "Outside the Cathedral
0:16:40 > 0:16:44- "In the year marking the founding - of Saint Deiniol's cell in Bangor
0:16:45 > 0:16:50- "In the year of Wales for Christ, - in March 1975
0:16:52 > 0:16:57- "David's month, Wales's month, - the Welsh New Testament's month
0:16:57 > 0:17:01- "During Lent, a week - before Good Friday and Easter
0:17:03 > 0:17:08- "A row of small soldiers - stood ready to fight for justice
0:17:09 > 0:17:14- "And mighty Bangor's leaders - encouraged them to great things
0:17:15 > 0:17:19- "And there to watch the pageantry - and the spree
0:17:19 > 0:17:24- "All the respectable people - of our respectable city
0:17:27 > 0:17:30- "Putting the freedom of the city - into outsiders' hands
0:17:32 > 0:17:35- "And imprisoning the Welsh - in the depths of their cell"
0:17:38 > 0:17:41- He mentions this poem - in a few of his essays.
0:17:42 > 0:17:49- He talks about how the tension - between two contrasting elements...
0:17:49 > 0:17:51- ..inspires him to write.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54- On the one hand, - there is the Celtic tradition...
0:17:55 > 0:17:57- ..and the Christian tradition - of the Cathedral.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02- On the other hand, there is - the military force, the RAF...
0:18:02 > 0:18:04- ..which represents British power.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09- This is something that is evident - throughout his career.
0:18:09 > 0:18:13- In later works, this tension between - different elements is clear.
0:18:15 > 0:18:17- This was a young Iwan.
0:18:17 > 0:18:22- They weren't particularly good - but Iwan Llwyd was the best of a...
0:18:22 > 0:18:25- As the Brazil manager - said of his goalkeeper...
0:18:25 > 0:18:29- .."he's not very good, - but he's the best of a bad bunch."
0:18:30 > 0:18:33- I wrote that in a review - and it stuck!
0:18:39 > 0:18:41- "The weather turned bad
0:18:41 > 0:18:44- "Stormy showers - swept across the compacted earth
0:18:45 > 0:18:48- "There was nothing for it - but to turn up the coat collar
0:18:48 > 0:18:50- "And take the fight to the wind
0:18:51 > 0:18:54- "We all remember - the legendary hot summers
0:18:54 > 0:18:57- "Drizzly festivals - smiling benevolently
0:18:58 > 0:19:01- "Before rushing to the shop - for a fistful of sweets
0:19:02 > 0:19:03- "We all long for them
0:19:05 > 0:19:08- "In an empty pub with a fag - and a pint and some dodgy tales
0:19:09 > 0:19:11- "We shed a tear - and greet the good times
0:19:13 > 0:19:15- "Then head outside - into a strange land
0:19:15 > 0:19:19- "Stubborn, but the load lifted, - taking things as they come
0:19:19 > 0:19:22- "A nation of complications, - heading for the promised land
0:19:23 > 0:19:27- "Some of us hold tightly - to the reins of the mild west
0:19:27 > 0:19:30- "And lose ourselves - in the company of the pampas
0:19:30 > 0:19:33- "Others read old posters - yellowing on monoglot walls
0:19:35 > 0:19:38- "Half-recognizing faces - from the long-haired years
0:19:40 > 0:19:43- "Wherever we roam - from our hidden shelters
0:19:44 > 0:19:47- "As we shake the dust from our hair - and moisten our lips
0:19:48 > 0:19:52- "Alone, stealthily or heroically, - looking to the horizon
0:19:53 > 0:19:56- "It's time to remove our badges, - and live"
0:19:59 > 0:20:02- I could understand - what Iwan wanted to say...
0:20:03 > 0:20:05- ..the first time - I listened to a poem.
0:20:05 > 0:20:10- He put great emphasis - on presenting his work orally.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12- Clarity was very important to him.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16- He wanted to communicate - with the audience.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18- He wanted them - to follow and understand him.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22- On reading them again, and - on returning to them years later...
0:20:22 > 0:20:25- ..they're still - very comprehensible...
0:20:25 > 0:20:28- ..but you discover deeper layers - all the time.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31- That's something - that's very special about him.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35- You can understand his work - on the surface...
0:20:35 > 0:20:38- ..but there is also - a lot of depth in his poems.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44- The Bobby J Memorial Band, - Robert Johnson.
0:20:55 > 0:21:00- # I've got ramblin', - I've got ramblin' on my mind
0:21:06 > 0:21:08- # I've got ramblin'
0:21:09 > 0:21:11- # I've got ramblin' on my mind #
0:21:11 > 0:21:15- It was interesting to me - when Iwan became a "traveller"...
0:21:15 > 0:21:18- ..and how he linked his travels - to his poems.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21- I don't think that was something - he did early on.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25- In the 1960s and 1970s, - people started going abroad.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29- We weren't lucky enough - to be in that situation.
0:21:29 > 0:21:33- Dad would always combine a holiday - with going somewhere to preach...
0:21:33 > 0:21:35- ..like Anglesey or Cardiganshire!
0:21:36 > 0:21:39- My father had a lot of family - on Anglesey.
0:21:39 > 0:21:43- We spent weekends - at Llanrhuddlad and Caergeiliog.
0:21:43 > 0:21:46- We had family there - on farms and smallholdings.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51- They were very ancient places.
0:21:52 > 0:21:58- My mother was brought up - in Brongest, Cardiganshire.
0:21:59 > 0:22:04- We'd go to the area of Brongest, - Beulah, Newcastle Emlyn...
0:22:05 > 0:22:07- ..and spend long summers...
0:22:07 > 0:22:10- ..on the beaches of Tresaith, - Aberporth and Llangrannog.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14- That area greatly influenced - my brother's poetry.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17- Another interesting poem - from that early period...
0:22:17 > 0:22:20- ..is another sonnet called Rhianfa.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24- Rhianfa refers to his grandmother's - smallholding in Brongest.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27- It's a place that draws him back.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30- He insists on going back and feels - it is some sort of refuge for him.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36- Rhianfa, December 1975
0:22:38 > 0:22:41- "As I feel the chains - of the town's false life
0:22:41 > 0:22:44- "Stifling - my eighteen-year-old conscience
0:22:45 > 0:22:47- "Before I sample the joys - of heaven and earth
0:22:48 > 0:22:52- "My footsteps echo weakly, - empty, without root
0:22:52 > 0:22:55- "Upon the concrete streets - of my inheritance
0:22:56 > 0:22:58- "Unable to escape - my arduous captivity
0:23:00 > 0:23:02- "I see the mellow acres of my land
0:23:03 > 0:23:06- "Choking under a mass - of withered blooms
0:23:08 > 0:23:10- "But my spirit is free - to fly towards the place
0:23:11 > 0:23:14- "Where all my yesterdays - come alive once more
0:23:15 > 0:23:18- "I see the hope - as I approach the church
0:23:18 > 0:23:20- "Where I discover - what living means
0:23:21 > 0:23:25- "While these roots still flourish, - I can't complain
0:23:26 > 0:23:29- "Despite the numerous dreams - drowned in the rain"
0:23:31 > 0:23:36- He wrote this article - about Brongest and Rhianfa.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39- He talks about how the place - has been anglicized.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43- His mother and grandmother - wouldn't recognize the place...
0:23:43 > 0:23:44- ..if they saw it now.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49- The degeneration of the language, - if we can call it that...
0:23:49 > 0:23:54- ..happened over a very short period - in the 1960s and 1970s...
0:23:54 > 0:23:59- ..when a huge number of people - bought holiday homes here...
0:23:59 > 0:24:02- ..as the older generation - in small villages passed away.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05- We saw it happening - when our grandmother died.
0:24:06 > 0:24:10- I think that had a great influence - on my brother's poetry.
0:24:11 > 0:24:17- The poem for which he won the Crown - at the Cwm Rhymni Eisteddfod...
0:24:17 > 0:24:21- ..was full of references - to that type of thing.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24- The death of a specific way of life.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27- Peace!
0:24:27 > 0:24:32- May the bard be seated - in the peace of the Eisteddfod.
0:24:32 > 0:24:32- .
0:24:43 > 0:24:43- Subtitles
0:24:43 > 0:24:45- Subtitles- - Subtitles
0:24:48 > 0:24:51- One of the many things - Iwan Llwyd did...
0:24:51 > 0:24:55- ..during his university days - in Aberystwyth...
0:24:55 > 0:24:58- ..was learn to write cynghanedd - with Roy Stevens.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01- He may have won the Urdd - and intercollegiate chairs...
0:25:01 > 0:25:05- ..he already had his eyes - on a higher prize.
0:25:05 > 0:25:07- FANFARE
0:25:08 > 0:25:11- He'd won the crown at - the intercollegiate eisteddfod...
0:25:11 > 0:25:14- ..and a few regional - chairs and crowns here and there.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20- We thought that it could - happen at some point.
0:25:20 > 0:25:26- When that happened, it was a special - experience for me as a brother.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28- I can't imagine what it's like...
0:25:28 > 0:25:32- ..for the people who stand up - in the pavilion.
0:25:32 > 0:25:36- It was an experience - that I'd dreamed of having maybe.
0:25:36 > 0:25:39- I'd never realized - that it was within my grasp.
0:25:40 > 0:25:43- Iwan and myself - won the Chair and Crown...
0:25:43 > 0:25:45- ..at the Rhymney Valley Eisteddfod.
0:25:45 > 0:25:48- That was a very happy coincidence.
0:25:48 > 0:25:52- In one way we both - represented a new generation...
0:25:52 > 0:25:56- ..coming into the national - Eisteddfod's big prizes.
0:25:57 > 0:26:01- Strangely, - we both had a similar theme.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04- We both discussed revival.
0:26:04 > 0:26:08- We talked about a nation - rediscovering their love of life.
0:26:10 > 0:26:16- That was after decades of negative - and sad work about Wales' future...
0:26:16 > 0:26:19- ..and the future - of the Welsh language.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23- I was delighted with these poems - from the very start.
0:26:24 > 0:26:25- They were new poems.
0:26:26 > 0:26:27- They were exciting poems.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30- They were very relevant poems.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32- They were very passionate poems.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37- They said important things about - our problems at those times.
0:26:37 > 0:26:39- They described - our contemporary situation...
0:26:40 > 0:26:42- ..and our battle - to keep our identity.
0:26:42 > 0:26:46- The poems were based - on the 1979 referendum...
0:26:47 > 0:26:53- ..when the Welsh refused self - government with a solid "no" vote.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55- Of course, we start there.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59- It follows the legends of - Australia's true natives.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01- It brings the nation - back to its feet.
0:27:02 > 0:27:03- The nation was dead.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07- That old nation gives birth - to a new one.
0:27:08 > 0:27:09- That's the essence of it.
0:27:10 > 0:27:14- He looks for meaning and particular - places that mean something to him.
0:27:14 > 0:27:18- It gives a semblance of meaning - to the geography of a nation.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21- That's what Australia's natives did.
0:27:21 > 0:27:26- That is, they believed the ancients - had weaved an invisible web.
0:27:26 > 0:27:30- Iwan Llwyd went back to those roots - to search for meaning...
0:27:31 > 0:27:33- ..and hope for the future.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39- Bruce Chatwin had quite - an influence on Iwan.
0:27:39 > 0:27:45- Particularly on Gwreichion. He'd - read The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin.
0:27:45 > 0:27:52- Iwan's prose and strict-metre poetry - were written clearly and simply.
0:27:53 > 0:27:57- They were effective. They weren't - puffed up or pretentious.
0:27:57 > 0:27:58- It was the language of life.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03- "I was at a funeral yesterday
0:28:04 > 0:28:06- "In a windy Anglesey cemetery.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10- "The Irish rain stole the prayers - from the minister's mouth
0:28:12 > 0:28:16- "Gulls sailed the umbrella sea - on the brow of the wind
0:28:17 > 0:28:19- "As they've done so many times
0:28:20 > 0:28:22- "While following - the ploughman's toil.
0:28:24 > 0:28:26- "The ploughman in the soil.
0:28:28 > 0:28:31- "Bowed heads along the roadside
0:28:31 > 0:28:35- "Silently witness - another final journey.
0:28:36 > 0:28:38- "Baring their crowns to the wind.
0:28:39 > 0:28:41- "You were conceived there
0:28:42 > 0:28:44- "A sigh between the flowers - and the grave.
0:28:46 > 0:28:50- "In nine months, you were born, - a strong child for your age
0:28:52 > 0:28:53- "And I sang your name.
0:28:54 > 0:28:55- "Rhys."
0:29:02 > 0:29:05- "The taste of autumn - is on my tongue like dock leaves.
0:29:05 > 0:29:07- "Smoke between me and the sunset.
0:29:08 > 0:29:11- "A car's cinder shell - on the roadside at Llanddulas.
0:29:11 > 0:29:13- "The sunset blushes red in shame.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16- "I cross my turf in the wake - of the shearwaters
0:29:17 > 0:29:19- "That follow the vanishing sun
0:29:19 > 0:29:21- "Relaxed behind the wheel.
0:29:22 > 0:29:25- "Each one heads into the night - and their own harbour.
0:29:25 > 0:29:29- "I launch, put my foot right down - and seize my day in the fast lane
0:29:30 > 0:29:32- "To follow the coast home
0:29:32 > 0:29:37- "And the blurry sparks of light - between the Orme and the darkness.
0:29:37 > 0:29:39- "An umbilical cord sustaining me
0:29:39 > 0:29:43- "Between the brittle tales of the - grey hills and the silent sea."
0:29:55 > 0:29:58- Iwan wrote a research essay - on the poets of the nobility.
0:29:58 > 0:30:03- There was one period between - the 14th and 15th centuries...
0:30:03 > 0:30:06- ..that he absolutely adored.
0:30:06 > 0:30:10- Bards travelling around the country - and given hospitable welcomes.
0:30:10 > 0:30:15- There would be feasts and evenings - at courts, in castles and abbeys.
0:30:17 > 0:30:21- Good food and drink - would please him a lot.
0:30:23 > 0:30:27- I'm sure he would have become aware - that the bards in those days...
0:30:27 > 0:30:30- ..were essentially - professional poets.
0:30:30 > 0:30:32- They depended on noble patrons.
0:30:34 > 0:30:37- It's quite obvious - that the idea appealed to him.
0:30:38 > 0:30:41- Iwan's main source of income - was his poetry.
0:30:42 > 0:30:48- He worked in the field of poetry - at schools and simply wrote poetry.
0:30:50 > 0:30:54- He realized that he was lucky - to be able to do that.
0:30:54 > 0:30:56- He was married to Nia.
0:30:56 > 0:31:01- She had a professional career - in the legal system.
0:31:01 > 0:31:05- He wouldn't mind me saying that - was their main source of income.
0:31:06 > 0:31:09- That's how they - kept their family going.
0:31:09 > 0:31:13- That freed him to follow his life - as he wished to.
0:31:14 > 0:31:16- He did consider himself...
0:31:16 > 0:31:19- ..to be a bit of a troubadour - in the old tradition.
0:31:21 > 0:31:25- That idea of a bardic network - carrying tales and news...
0:31:25 > 0:31:27- ..across the country.
0:31:28 > 0:31:34- It turned a collection of - small provinces into a country.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37- He really liked that idea.
0:31:37 > 0:31:40- I think that was a part of his - outlook and his way of life.
0:31:41 > 0:31:46- Travelling and visiting schools - made the country whole...
0:31:47 > 0:31:52- ..when it didn't have a cohesive - political awareness.
0:31:52 > 0:31:55- That culture was very important.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59- I knew him more as a musician - than a poet in the early days.
0:32:00 > 0:32:02- He had a group called Doctor.
0:32:02 > 0:32:04- That's how I got to know him.
0:32:04 > 0:32:08- He asked me to join the group. - They needed a pianist.
0:32:09 > 0:32:13- I joined the group and we had - a lot of fun in that band.
0:32:14 > 0:32:18- # Avoiding the bar's bitter gaze
0:32:18 > 0:32:22- # Trying to start a chat - with someone
0:32:23 > 0:32:25- # Buying a round with loose change
0:32:28 > 0:32:33- # I got a taxi home alone - again tonight
0:32:36 > 0:32:39- # Not knowing which way to turn
0:32:39 > 0:32:41- # Or who's a friend
0:32:45 > 0:32:47- # There's no point being helped #
0:32:48 > 0:32:49- He wrote very good music.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53- He wrote incredibly good songs, - both the lyrics and music.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56- That drew my attention - straight away.
0:32:56 > 0:32:58- The songs were better...
0:32:58 > 0:33:01- ..than a lot of the songs - that were sung at the time.
0:33:01 > 0:33:03- I felt the songs said something too.
0:33:04 > 0:33:06- That's where his - bardic nature came in.
0:33:07 > 0:33:10- He wrote a lot of the melodies too.
0:33:10 > 0:33:12- I saw him as a musician and a poet.
0:33:13 > 0:33:15- I got a lot of songs from him - over the years.
0:33:16 > 0:33:18- I'm recording them at the moment.
0:33:18 > 0:33:22- I see them now and I realize - that he's writing about himself.
0:33:22 > 0:33:26- I thought he was writing - about the characters he'd met.
0:33:27 > 0:33:28- Y Gaucho, for example.
0:33:28 > 0:33:32- "He's been wandering since '76 - on a ghost train of a journey
0:33:32 > 0:33:35- "His hair is greying slowly, - but he won't run for home."
0:33:35 > 0:33:36- And then...
0:33:37 > 0:33:39- "His breath smells of sun and booze
0:33:39 > 0:33:41- "Every trip - makes his heart beat faster
0:33:41 > 0:33:43- "It's Obrigado to the chance
0:33:43 > 0:33:47- "Of savouring the feast - and sharing the fun of the dance."
0:33:49 > 0:33:50- You know.
0:33:51 > 0:33:52- It's about Iwan.
0:34:26 > 0:34:29- Iwan would love to have the title - of Rock and Roll poet.
0:34:29 > 0:34:33- I'm pretty sure that he wrote most - of the group Doctor's songs...
0:34:33 > 0:34:38- ..but that was back when he was with - the group when he was very young.
0:34:39 > 0:34:43- After that, a few pieces - of poetry for Geraint Lovgreen...
0:34:43 > 0:34:48- ..and then a variety of people like - Iona ac Andy and people like that.
0:34:48 > 0:34:50- They've used his poetry.
0:34:50 > 0:34:54- I think that writing melodies - to go with his poetry...
0:34:54 > 0:34:56- ..had been there since a young age.
0:34:57 > 0:35:01- He learned to read the guitar at a - young age, around 15 or 16.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06- His early poems were frequently - set to music.
0:35:08 > 0:35:13- I think those two things went - hand in hand from the very start.
0:35:13 > 0:35:18- He didn't differentiate - between the two mediums.
0:35:19 > 0:35:23- Iwan believed very strongly - in the bardic tradition.
0:35:24 > 0:35:27- He was very proud of the bardic - tradition in Wales...
0:35:27 > 0:35:29- ..stretching back - to the 6th Century.
0:35:30 > 0:35:32- Back to Aneirin and Taliesin.
0:35:32 > 0:35:36- He could see every generation - of bards rediscovering...
0:35:36 > 0:35:39- ..stretching and adding - to that tradition.
0:35:39 > 0:35:44- But it was always still related - and deeply rooted to the tradition.
0:35:44 > 0:35:50- You can see in Iwan's work - a feeling towards the primitive...
0:35:50 > 0:35:53- ..and those poems - from the 6th Century.
0:35:54 > 0:35:55- That is to be felt in his poems.
0:35:56 > 0:35:58- Sometimes in the number of lines.
0:35:58 > 0:36:01- Sometimes in the style - or characters he chooses.
0:36:01 > 0:36:05- But he also - pushed the boundaries forward.
0:36:05 > 0:36:08- He was a bard - for the end of the 20th Century...
0:36:08 > 0:36:10- ..and the start of the new century.
0:36:11 > 0:36:14- That's his background. - That's his culture.
0:36:14 > 0:36:19- That's where he got his images - despite also stretching back.
0:36:20 > 0:36:22- He was a modern poet - striding forward.
0:36:24 > 0:36:29- I think he had a wide appeal to all - the generations who followed him.
0:36:29 > 0:36:33- He was very popular - with young people and students.
0:36:33 > 0:36:38- He showed that he was taking - Welsh poetry forward to the future.
0:36:39 > 0:36:39- .
0:36:45 > 0:36:45- Subtitles
0:36:45 > 0:36:47- Subtitles- - Subtitles
0:36:53 > 0:36:56- He often preached that a poem - should stand alone.
0:36:56 > 0:37:01- Early on in his career, Iwan Llwyd - understood that other art forms...
0:37:02 > 0:37:07- ..like music and art - could add so much more to poetry.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11- I don't like thinking about poetry - by itself.
0:37:11 > 0:37:15- I've worked with Iwan Bala - and photographer Martin Roberts...
0:37:15 > 0:37:17- ..on a volume.
0:37:17 > 0:37:21- I like to think, - by combining different mediums...
0:37:21 > 0:37:23- ..you can create a fuller picture.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26- Give the words - a different dimension.
0:37:26 > 0:37:29- There was an understanding - every time we met.
0:37:29 > 0:37:31- He was great company.
0:37:31 > 0:37:33- He shared ideas.
0:37:33 > 0:37:35- When we developed ideas...
0:37:35 > 0:37:39- ..it was hard to remember - whose idea it was originally.
0:37:39 > 0:37:42- It changed as we chatted.
0:37:42 > 0:37:47- That's how we started - to think about working together.
0:37:48 > 0:37:52- My work here accompanies the poems.
0:37:52 > 0:37:57- We've worked on different projects - over the years.
0:37:58 > 0:38:01- This was the first one, in 1987.
0:38:01 > 0:38:05- This may have been the first time - he worked with an artist...
0:38:05 > 0:38:08- ..and he's worked - with several since then...
0:38:08 > 0:38:11- ..but this was the first time - I'd worked with a poet...
0:38:12 > 0:38:15- ..drawing images based on the poems.
0:38:15 > 0:38:22- I found his poems very accessible - and easy for me to think up imagery.
0:38:22 > 0:38:25- There's something very visual - in the way he wrote.
0:38:25 > 0:38:29- There's a picture in your mind - when you read his work.
0:38:29 > 0:38:34- Therefore, working with him on - this volume wasn't very difficult.
0:38:46 > 0:38:49- Really, perhaps - because of the history...
0:38:50 > 0:38:52- ..of Celts coming to America...
0:38:53 > 0:38:55- ..somehow he felt - some kind of attachment.
0:38:56 > 0:38:59- American culture, - because of that history...
0:38:59 > 0:39:02- ..but also maybe - because of his own coming of age...
0:39:02 > 0:39:06- ..when American culture was - in its heyday in the 20th century...
0:39:06 > 0:39:09- ..was a way for him - to sort of have a second self.
0:39:09 > 0:39:12- He could recast himself...
0:39:12 > 0:39:18- ..in the role of the rider - of a Harley Davidson or traveller.
0:39:18 > 0:39:24- I guess maybe it gave him a window - into a place and a cultural space...
0:39:25 > 0:39:30- ..that was slightly larger - than the space he had in Wales.
0:39:30 > 0:39:31- Carreg Cennen.
0:39:32 > 0:39:34- "It used to protect the highway
0:39:34 > 0:39:38- "One of a chain of castles - on the banks of the Tywi
0:39:38 > 0:39:40- "Dryslwyn, Dinefwr
0:39:40 > 0:39:43- "Here on top of the valley, - the highest of them all
0:39:44 > 0:39:46- "Keeping a close eye on the world
0:39:47 > 0:39:50- "Today, we must leave the highway
0:39:50 > 0:39:52- "Follow the windy, remote roads
0:39:52 > 0:39:55- "The country roads - that have long left the map
0:39:56 > 0:39:59- "That hide in the hollows - beyond Trap
0:39:59 > 0:40:02- "Where you have to wait - for a tractor or bus to pass
0:40:03 > 0:40:07- "Then, I leave the vehicle - and walk past the ducks and sheep
0:40:08 > 0:40:10- "Before arriving, out of breath
0:40:10 > 0:40:14- "Only the lowing of the livestock - and the whistle of the wagtail
0:40:15 > 0:40:17- "Far, far above
0:40:17 > 0:40:19- "An aeroplane with its white tail
0:40:19 > 0:40:22- "On the highway to the new world
0:40:22 > 0:40:25- "Then another one, - and another one follows it
0:40:25 > 0:40:27- "Flying through the sunset - on the Tywi
0:40:28 > 0:40:30- "Lord Rhys knew it
0:40:31 > 0:40:34- "His castle - is still on the highway
0:40:35 > 0:40:38- "The soaring highway - to the far end of the world"
0:40:39 > 0:40:40- Thank you.
0:40:41 > 0:40:45- To me, that last image - in the last stanza of the poem...
0:40:45 > 0:40:47- ..is a little bit of Iwan Llwyd.
0:40:48 > 0:40:54- Here's this historic, beautiful - Welsh landmark...
0:40:54 > 0:40:58- ..and at the same time, in the - jet age and the information age...
0:40:58 > 0:41:01- ..there's an airplane flying by...
0:41:01 > 0:41:05- ..and here's a man from both worlds - in that poem.
0:41:06 > 0:41:09- Iwan and I spent a few days - in New York...
0:41:10 > 0:41:14- ..after a conference - at Syracuse University.
0:41:14 > 0:41:18- I'd made an installation exhibition - and he was performing.
0:41:18 > 0:41:22- We had a couple of free days, - and it was just after 9/11.
0:41:23 > 0:41:25- We visited Ground Zero...
0:41:26 > 0:41:31- ..and we chatted over a couple of - pints at the White Horse Tavern...
0:41:31 > 0:41:34- ..Dylan Thomas' old watering hole.
0:41:34 > 0:41:38- We talked about the similarity - between Manhattan as an island...
0:41:38 > 0:41:41- ..and Gwales in the Mabinogion.
0:41:41 > 0:41:45- That's how - my chats with Iwan developed.
0:41:45 > 0:41:51- He could jump back to mythology and - jump forwards to film and music...
0:41:51 > 0:41:53- ..and jump - from one subject to the next.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57- It grew as an idea.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00- We saw that the horrors - of the world...
0:42:00 > 0:42:03- ..had had an effect on Manhattan..
0:42:03 > 0:42:06- ..in the same way that opening - the door on Aberhenfelen...
0:42:06 > 0:42:09- ..had affected the island of Gwales.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12- It developed for me - as a series of artworks.
0:42:12 > 0:42:17- The idea of an island - had been present in my work.
0:42:17 > 0:42:19- Iwan then wrote poems.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23- We came up with the idea - of having a book made.
0:42:23 > 0:42:26- Gomer published a book - called Hon, Ynys y Galon.
0:42:27 > 0:42:29- Iwan wrote poems for the book...
0:42:29 > 0:42:33- ..and an essay - about his experiences in New York.
0:42:34 > 0:42:38- Talking to Iwan - was so enriching.
0:42:39 > 0:42:43- He enriched everything...
0:42:43 > 0:42:49- ..through his knowledge and keen - interest in everything creative.
0:42:52 > 0:42:58- I first heard Far Rockaway - on the Bol a Chyfri' Banc tour.
0:43:00 > 0:43:03- I don't think - I'd ever seen it written down.
0:43:04 > 0:43:09- I just heard it being read - in Iwan's half-whispered voice...
0:43:09 > 0:43:11- ..close to the mic.
0:43:11 > 0:43:15- He didn't always - give it much of an introduction.
0:43:15 > 0:43:17- But over a number of poetry tours...
0:43:17 > 0:43:20- ..it became a firm favourite - with audiences.
0:43:20 > 0:43:25- I've also heard him talking about it - with sixth form students and so on.
0:43:25 > 0:43:28- We hear more about the background.
0:43:28 > 0:43:30- Iwan once came to New York...
0:43:30 > 0:43:34- ..and was intending to get on - the A train to come to Manhattan.
0:43:34 > 0:43:38- He got on the A train but the A - train going in the wrong direction.
0:43:38 > 0:43:41- Of course, at the end of that train - is Far Rockaway.
0:43:41 > 0:43:44- He was so hypnotized by the name...
0:43:44 > 0:43:47- ..that he felt inspired - to write a poem.
0:43:50 > 0:43:52- Far Rockaway
0:43:53 > 0:43:55- "I will take you to Far Rockaway
0:43:56 > 0:43:57- "Far Rockaway
0:43:57 > 0:44:00- "The name strums, - a guitar in my head
0:44:00 > 0:44:02- "Sings a choir of summer - and sea-tide rhythms
0:44:03 > 0:44:05- "Talks of lovers over black coffee
0:44:05 > 0:44:07- "On a night-ride in a pick-up truck
0:44:08 > 0:44:10- "Smells of gasoline after rain
0:44:11 > 0:44:13- "Hand in hand - on the trail of the moon
0:44:13 > 0:44:16- "Hunting bullfrogs on a wet lane
0:44:16 > 0:44:19- "The thrill - of that half-remembered tune
0:44:20 > 0:44:22- "I will take you to Far Rockaway
0:44:23 > 0:44:24- "Far Rockaway
0:44:24 > 0:44:27- "Where the heavens' hem - trails in the muddied seashore
0:44:28 > 0:44:30- "And trades witty lullabies
0:44:30 > 0:44:33- "Where the graffiti rainbow - is a frontier
0:44:33 > 0:44:36- "Between the naked walls - and the simmering sun
0:44:36 > 0:44:38- "Where the track - follows the narrow path
0:44:39 > 0:44:42- "Between Saturday's smiles - and Sunday's scowl
0:44:42 > 0:44:46- "As we both share - our secret burdens arm in arm
0:44:47 > 0:44:50- "I will take you to Far Rockaway
0:44:50 > 0:44:52- "Far Rockaway
0:44:52 > 0:44:54- "Where the city police - are sketching poems
0:44:54 > 0:44:56- "As they await the train
0:44:56 > 0:44:59- "And swap stories - with their submachine guns
0:44:59 > 0:45:01- "And the poets - on their high rise ladders
0:45:01 > 0:45:03- "Are daubing cynghanedd - on four walls
0:45:04 > 0:45:05- "Drinking whisky and dew
0:45:05 > 0:45:07- "Playing left-handed chess
0:45:08 > 0:45:11- "The name is one long drawn-out kiss
0:45:11 > 0:45:14- "Far Rockaway, Far Rockaway"
0:45:16 > 0:45:20- What's amazing about it - is that it's a like a lyric.
0:45:20 > 0:45:22- It reminds me of Ar Lan y Mor...
0:45:23 > 0:45:26- ..and verses from the hen benillion - folk poetry tradition...
0:45:26 > 0:45:29- ..where place names are enticing.
0:45:29 > 0:45:31- That's what it's all about.
0:45:32 > 0:45:35- When he saw the name, - it awoke something inside him.
0:45:35 > 0:45:38- The place itself - was nothing like the poem.
0:45:38 > 0:45:42- But the name, that word, those - words, had awoken something in him.
0:45:43 > 0:45:45- That's what poetry is.
0:45:45 > 0:45:49- Words playing with each other - and calling for each other.
0:45:49 > 0:45:53- I think this poem - captures the essence of poetry.
0:45:54 > 0:45:57- You create this magic - from just a few words.
0:45:58 > 0:46:01- Tributes have been paid - to Chief Bard Iwan Llwyd...
0:46:01 > 0:46:04- ..who was found dead - in his home in Bangor yesterday.
0:46:05 > 0:46:07- He was 52 years old.
0:46:08 > 0:46:11- I found Iwan's body - in the house in Bangor.
0:46:11 > 0:46:13- I went into the house...
0:46:13 > 0:46:19- ..and found him lying - between the bed and the wall.
0:46:19 > 0:46:24- I immediately thought about - his song, Hen Drefn...
0:46:24 > 0:46:26- ..and these lines in particular.
0:46:26 > 0:46:30- "An old order, an old discussion, - an old covenant broken
0:46:31 > 0:46:33- "An old fall between wall and bed
0:46:33 > 0:46:35- "An old fire in an old house."
0:46:36 > 0:46:37- He goes on.
0:46:37 > 0:46:42- "An old song, an old penny, an old - pain in the pit of my stomach."
0:46:42 > 0:46:46- He actually had a bad ulcer, and - that's what killed him in the end.
0:46:46 > 0:46:51- "An old dog hobbling home alone. - What will become of the old man?"
0:46:52 > 0:46:54- He never mentioned the pain.
0:46:54 > 0:46:57- He could have had treatment - for the ulcer...
0:46:57 > 0:47:00- ..instead of suffering - and writing about it.
0:47:00 > 0:47:02- But that's how he dealt with it.
0:47:02 > 0:47:04- He drank to numb the pain.
0:47:04 > 0:47:07- I feel that he had already - produced his best work.
0:47:07 > 0:47:10- Everyone has their time - on this earth.
0:47:11 > 0:47:15- Some of us achieve so much more - in less time than others...
0:47:15 > 0:47:20- ..who go on for much longer but who - don't manage to achieve as much...
0:47:20 > 0:47:22- ..despite having double the time.
0:47:22 > 0:47:25- We all miss him greatly.
0:47:26 > 0:47:29- Yet we're all proud to have shared - some of the journey with him.
0:47:30 > 0:47:34- We know that it had to come - to an end. That's how it is.
0:47:35 > 0:47:39- But it was quite a ride - by his side!
0:47:41 > 0:47:44- # A strange hotel, pretty eyes
0:47:45 > 0:47:49- # A distant voice in a poet's heart
0:47:49 > 0:47:53- # Through the noisy telephone kiosk
0:47:54 > 0:47:58- # There's another city - down the road #
0:48:00 > 0:48:02- S4C Subtitles by Testun Cyf.
0:48:02 > 0:48:03- .