Pennod 5 Cymoedd Roy Noble

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-The Valleys

-have always been my home.

-Each valley with its industrial

-scars and colourful characters...

-..have left

-a lasting impression on me.

-Over the coming weeks,

-I'll revisit the Valleys...

-..and meet characters

-who are truly welcoming.

-Why not jump on board my ride?

-I'm shifting gear

-and heading for the horizon!

-The Loughor valley is historically

-linked to the maritime industry.

-But the river Loughor

-starts up the Black Mountain...

-..before flowing towards Ammanford,

-Garnswllt and Pontarddulais.

-Hendy and the Loughor estuary...

-..is the place where the river meets

-the waters of the Gower Peninsula...

-..which also divides Carmarthenshire

-and Swansea.

-My journey begins in Pontarddulais,

-the largest village in the valley.

-On the high street

-is a traditional shoe shop...

-..which has served the locals

-for many years.

-Your wife's family owned the shop.

-Your wife's family owned the shop.

-

-Yes, the wife's family.

-How many worked here back then?

-Around three... Five in all.

-Were there?

-In the shop?

-Three in the shop

-and two were cobblers.

-It was busy back then.

-It's changed over the years.

-Yes, it was busy. People used to

-put them on the slate.

-People couldn't afford

-a pair of shoes...

-..so there was

-some kind of club here.

-They would pay five shillings

-or a couple of shillings a week.

-When they needed shoes,

-they would get them.

-Of course, they should

-have paid for it first...

-..but they couldn't afford it.

-So they were bought

-on the never-never.

-The shoes lasted.

-The shoes lasted.

-

-Yes.

-After buying them, they came here...

-After buying them, they came here...

-

-..to be repaired.

-At one time, there were clog shoes,

-when the tinworks were here.

-The soles were made from wood.

-The workers worked in hot places,

-standing on hot floors.

-They would often need

-to go to the cobblers.

-Grenson's and Genny's.

-High-quality makes.

-They're familiar makes

-sold in the shop over the years.

-I'm 6.5, 7 when I feel healthy.

-I'm quite wide, and this is high.

-I have trouble with slip-ons...

-..and this bit

-becomes marked quickly.

-When we fit shoes...

-Your heel is there.

-Your arch is there

-and your foot ends there.

-We fit the foot.

-The toes are different.

-Your second toe

-is the same length as your big toe.

-We sometimes have problems

-in terms of different-shaped shoes.

-Styles and fashion change.

-They say that if your second toe

-is longer than your big toe...

-..you're very clever.

-I think you're right!

-How does that feel?

-How does that feel?

-

-It's tight.

-I'm wide, you see.

-I'm wide, you see.

-

-Quite right.

-Getting shoes which fit my feet

-perfectly has always been a problem.

-Ken isn't happy

-until he measures my feet properly.

-Another shoe, Ken?

-One with a longer length and width,

-I hope.

-We're in.

-Now then.

-Pull up the tongue.

-Pull up the tongue.

-Right.

-You think I could be 8.5?

-Perhaps.

-Well, Ken, I'm a mixture

-of excitement and regret...

-..for the years I've spent

-wearing wrong-sized shoes!

-Thank you.

-Your mind is elsewhere

-and your feet have to follow.

-Your mind thinks ahead

-on everything you do.

-These are great.

-Where have I been?

-Where have you been in my life?!

-I cross the bridge, and the border,

-to Hendy to meet Garry Owen...

-..a Pontarddulais lad...

-..who's a familiar voice and face

-in journalism.

-After three years...

-..Tony Blair has finally written

-his account of his time at No.10.

-Garry, I was going to say we're

-more or less in your home patch...

-..but you've moved.

-We're in Hendy.

-It's another country!

-It's like something religious -

-you've crossed the bridge!

-I have crossed the bridge

-and the border.

-The River Loughor is a border

-between Carmarthenshire and Swansea.

-It's also a border

-between Hendy and Pontarddulais.

-I've crossed the river.

-There's always been a rivalry.

-There's always been a rivalry.

-

-Quite a rivalry.

-Especially in rugby. Sport.

-Especially in rugby. Sport.

-

-Rugby more than anything.

-There's an old rivalry

-between Hendy and Pontarddulais.

-In terms of rugby, crossing the

-river is a big thing in this area.

-It's been like that for decades.

-You travel to Cardiff every day.

-It's a different life

-to the one you were expecting.

-You were going to be a solicitor.

-You were going to be a solicitor.

-

-Yes.

-I did a Law degree in Aberystwyth.

-I began working as an article clerk

-in an office in Llanelli.

-It didn't appeal to me much

-I must admit.

-I'd been working in Swansea Sound...

-..the local radio station

-in the area since university.

-As you know, Roy, that bug gets hold

-of you and you can't shake it off.

-Then an opportunity came

-to move into broadcasting full time.

-In a speech from the White House...

-..President Obama said America

-had paid a high price...

-..to ensure

-that Iraqis decide their own future.

-You obviously enjoy it.

-You do English-language bulletins

-at weekends...

-..but Welsh

-is at the centre for you.

-It always has been

-and it still is.

-I present Taro'r Post every

-weekday lunchtime on Radio Cymru.

-I get to discuss different subjects

-and speak to different people.

-Speaking to people

-is what I enjoy doing.

-Half a million Lesotho people are in

-danger, a quarter of the population.

-They don't have enough food.

-I've just come back from Lesotho

-in southern Africa...

-..where there's famine

-at the moment.

-I was filming out there.

-You saw children not getting enough

-food. Families having a tough time.

-You sympathize

-and you try to show it...

-..but you have to step back a bit

-and look at the fuller picture.

-You can't let yourself...

-Of course you feel for people

-but you also have to be objective...

-..so you show people

-the true situation.

-Now an experienced broadcaster...

-..Garry lives a stone's throw

-from his native village.

-It's obvious that Pontarddulais

-and Hendy are close to his heart.

-This area's given me a lot.

-It might sound a bit cheesy but

-the community has given me a lot.

-Lots of opportunities.

-My father

-was in Pontarddulais Male Choir.

-As a child, I went to

-their rehearsals to sing or recite.

-I'd get the choir's response

-to how I sang a particular song.

-Those things have stayed with me.

-I feel now

-I can give something back.

-I'm compering a Pontarddulais Male

-Choir concert tomorrow actually.

-It works both ways.

-It works both ways.

-

-It does.

-They've contributed a lot to my life

-so I'm giving something back.

-This area is very important to me.

-I'm now heading to the northern

-part of the valley, to Bynea.

-It's a chance to meet an old friend.

-Terry Davies represented Wales

-in rugby at fullback.

-Perhaps he's remembered

-for one unforgettable story.

-During a Wales v England game

-at Twickenham...

-..Terry had a penalty kick from

-the halfway line to win the game.

-The kick was straight and true until

-the wind got hold of the ball...

-..and knocked it

-against the crossbar.

-A very famous draw...

-..but that wasn't the end

-of the story.

-My brother and his friend

-had driven up.

-He asked me to come back with them.

-We stopped for a cup of tea

-and something to eat.

-We went in.

-It was packed full of Welsh fans

-on their way home.

-You're used to people

-asking you for autographs.

-Two men at the far table

-came over...

-..and asked me

-to sign something for them.

-He went out and then came back in.

-There was a piece of wood

-painted white.

-He put it on the table.

-He asked me to sign it in three

-places as he wanted to cut it up.

-I agreed

-and signed it in three places.

-I asked which crossbar it was.

-"It's the crossbar at Twickenham

-that the ball hit."

-"Good God,"

-I was thinking to myself.

-"I've signed this.

-I'll be sent to jail!"

-I went home.

-On the Monday morning,

-Dad went with me to work.

-"The Union wants you to ring them,"

-he said.

-"Eric Evans is very ill."

-So I phoned him.

-"Have you seen the papers today?"

-he asked.

-"No," I said.

-"Well, I've never seen anything like

-it. You've signed that crossbar.

-"Were you involved in it?

-"Because the English rugby union

-want to jail everybody."

-It was on the front page

-of The Times.

-You're in trouble when that happens!

-On the Tuesday, an old codger

-gets up in the House of Lords...

-..and says to the Home Secretary...

-.."What are you doing

-about the perpetrators...

-"..that desecrated Twickenham?"

-Reuters got hold of it

-and the news reached New Zealand.

-They all made fun of the English.

-Everyone was enjoying

-reading about it in the papers.

-I said to myself...

-I decided to go to the Post Office

-and send a telegram to Twickenham.

-I was going to ask them

-if they'd like a new crossbar.

-A week passed with no reply.

-Three weeks later, I was playing

-for the Barbarians in Leicester.

-Sat opposite me was Prentice,

-one of the England selectors.

-I decided to talk to him.

-I said, "Excuse me, Mr Prentice.

-"Why didn't you answer my telegram

-offering you a crossbar?

-He looked down his nose at me

-and said, "My dear chap.

-"Did you ever think that we'd have

-a Welsh crossbar at Twickenham?

-"Not only that. Sir Wavell Wakefield

-is not enamoured by you.

-"He's deleted your name

-off the invitation list...

-"..for champers at Twickers

-with Wakers."

-I laughed at that for a week!

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-In the most scenic part

-of the Gower...

-..one of the Loughor's

-oldest industries is cockle picking.

-At one time, the banks and the sands

-of Penclawdd and Loughor...

-..were teeming with cockles

-and tons of seafood.

-They were traditionally collected

-by women mostly.

-They were then cleaned

-and transported to Swansea.

-It was physical work, but cockle

-picking became known the world over.

-Sadly, the industry's in decline.

-We're on the other side

-of the Loughor now.

-The tide's out, thankfully.

-Are people who collect cockles

-known as fishermen?

-Cockle fishermen.

-Cockle fishermen.

-

-Fishermen is correct.

-There are around 35

-independent fishermen in this area.

-They work hard to keep

-the industry going in Penclawdd.

-There are thousands of cockles here.

-But they aren't as big

-as they should be.

-At the moment, the cockles

-only live until they're a year old.

-A lot of cockles have died

-over the last decade.

-Fishermen still come here and

-collect, but numbers have decreased.

-No-one knows why.

-No.

-Research is ongoing, but no-one

-knows why these deaths occurred.

-My journey continues

-to the village of Loughor.

-The waters and tides

-are treacherous.

-As the third fastest tide

-in the world...

-..a unique service

-is offered by a group of locals.

-They guard the water as part

-of the Loughor Lifeboat team.

-We cover from the Eleven Arches

-from Pontarddulais...

-..and then the Loughor estuary

-as it makes its way out to sea.

-We come about to St Ishmaels...

-..and if you draw a line

-across to Worm's Head...

-..that's our operational area.

-Loughor is renowned

-as one of the most dangerous...

-..with the tidal streams and flows

-we get here.

-It does catch people out.

-It does catch people out.

-

-It's all volunteering, this now.

-Every one of us.

-Apart from the crew,

-they're all volunteers.

-We've got a selection

-who help us fundraise.

-But not one person gets paid -

-it's all voluntary.

-We're an independent

-lifeboat station...

-..so we raise funds

-to keep our service going.

-We're very fortunate that the local

-communities lend us their support.

-We're still providing that service

-today.

-I'm trying to keep my hand away

-from the red button in front of me.

-Don't press that red button!

-Don't press that red button!

-

-Otherwise a helicopter will come!

-All of them volunteers.

-The crew meet up regularly and know

-the dangerous Gower waters well.

-It's nice to see youngsters

-contributing to this great service.

-Jac, how old are you?

-Fifteen.

-When did you start on this boat?

-I started in 2004.

-My father

-would come down to work here...

-..so I would stay in the station

-to help out.

-How old were you then?

-Four.

-Four.

-

-Four!

-Your father was one of the crew.

-Your father was one of the crew.

-

-Yes.

-Do you go out often?

-I'm starting to now.

-I couldn't before because of my age.

-The Loughor reaches the sea.

-The tide goes in and out.

-The tide is in now.

-That's why we're here.

-Is it difficult when the tide turns?

-In the sea, no place is great

-when the tide turns.

-You don't know when or where

-it's going to happen.

-You have to be ready for anything.

-In the future,

-will you be doing Darren's job?

-Yes.

-That was special.

-It's nice today,

-but out there it was breezy.

-Some of the waves were like mounds.

-When that picked up speed, it was

-like riding a bull in a rodeo.

-You can imagine what it's like

-when it's rough.

-These lads do an amazing job.

-I doff my cap to them,

-and my helmet.

-Before I leave the Loughor valley...

-..I'm back in Pontarddulais for

-a special event held over there...

-..the Pontarddulais Show, which

-first took place over 100 years ago.

-I'm meeting some of the officials,

-so the leather and helmet...

-..have been replaced by a blazer

-and a hat from the time of the Raj.

-Fair play, Pontarddulais people

-know how to put on a show.

-It's August Bank Holiday

-and it's packed here.

-Trevor, you've been

-a part of this show for years.

-About 22 years.

-About 22 years.

-

-You're on the committee.

-I've been on it for 22 years.

-I'm now the vice president.

-What's the secret in Pontarddulais?

-With the cattle,

-it's that all the locals are out.

-I see.

-You have a farm.

-You have a farm.

-

-I do.

-I was milking until last year.

-I now rear youngstock.

-Do you have anything in the show?

-Do you have anything in the show?

-

-Eleven in all.

-Have you won anything so far?

-Have you won anything so far?

-

-I've won my fair share.

-Four first places, three seconds

-and two third places.

-You haven't won

-because you're on the committee!

-No!

-The judge is from Gwent.

-The judge is from Gwent.

-

-There we are then!

-Very good!

-The strength of this show is the

-number of animal classes held here.

-Where there are animals,

-a vet is needed.

-This year,

-Ifan James has that responsibility.

-Do you have

-an umbrella of responsibilities?

-Do you look after specific classes?

-As you know, there are many animals

-at this show.

-There are sheep and cattle.

-There are horses in the Main Ring.

-Horses from different sections

-and ones that jump too.

-We're here to help out.

-It's important

-there's a vet available...

-..so the show can call on him or her

-to respond to an emergency.

-I've been in one where a horse

-got injured and required stitches.

-Maybe a horse will be limping

-after an injury to its leg.

-That can happen.

-A dog might be ill,

-perhaps after overheating in a car.

-There's a dog show here too

-and one might not be well.

-Lots of things happen.

-It's fun. The most enjoyable thing

-is meeting people.

-As a local show,

-a lot of them are clients.

-It's nice to have an opportunity

-to talk to them outside work.

-ANNOUNCER: Calling Class 102,

-please. Ridden Welsh, Section D.

-Come in, please.

-The biggest drama

-can be found in the Horse Ring.

-It's the biggest competition

-in the show.

-Keeping order is Geraint James.

-Keeping order is Geraint James.

-

-Class 111. Part-Bred Arabs.

-Two or three-year-olds.

-Mrs Morgan from Llanrhidian

-with Blaencila Almond.

-Third, 421, Danielle Davies

-from Pontardawe...

-..with Farino Lightning Jack.

-Geraint, how long have you

-been working on this show?

-I've been commentating here

-for ten years.

-I've commentated at shows

-in West Wales for almost 25 years.

-I've listened to you

-and watched you too.

-It's quite a responsibility.

-It's quite a responsibility.

-

-It is.

-The commentator tries

-to keep everything ticking over.

-The commentator also receives

-most of the complaints.

-You have to listen

-to two things at once.

-You've made notes

-all over the programme.

-Is it just the horses you do

-or do you do other animals as well?

-I do the cattle

-at the Royal Welsh.

-I'm one of the commentators

-in the cattle section.

-In shows such as this,

-you have to do a bit of everything.

-I'll be presenting the prizes

-in the cattle section later.

-Generally, I'm a jack of all trades.

-I'll say this quietly.

-Have you made any mistakes?

-Have you announced a winner

-but in fact they haven't won?

-Oh, yes!

-I'll hold my hand up.

-Everyone makes mistakes sometimes.

-But when you're trying to listen

-to one person in one ear...

-..read and listen to someone else...

-..you have to be on the ball

-all the time.

-Geraint, thank you.

-I'll let you get on with your work.

-Well, you know, I'm amazed how

-you can keep so much control here.

-Well, I've been doing it

-for long enough.

-I have an idea what's going on.

-There you are. Keep it up.

-There you are. Keep it up.

-

-Thank you.

-We're judging Class 72, the

-Welsh Mountain Ponies, Section A.

-The best barren mare or gelding.

-It's obviously a valley

-full of colourful characters.

-On the banks of the Loughor

-are close-knit, warm communities...

-..which are proud of their roots.

-My journey comes to an end next week

-at one of Wales's...

-..most beautiful, historic

-and longest valleys, the Tywi.

-We'll meet some more characters,

-so don't go too far.

-Come with me

-for the final ride of the journey.

-S4C Subtitles by Testun Cyf.

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