Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

The latest 'On Song' column (about the choral scene in and around Llanelli) from the Llanelli Star -  Following ‘Super Saturday and Sunday’ last weekend, it’s another Mega Saturday on the choral scene in and around Llanelli. Lleisiau Hardd choir from Llanelli will be celebrating 10 years as a choir with their special concert at Ffwrnes Theatre, Llanelli, on Saturday (July 18). Over the course of 10 years, the choir has grown in stature, reputation, and gained recognition on many fronts. Over the past years, concerts have attracted sell out audiences, with some star guest appearances. The choir is under the musical direction of Bridget Radford. Tickets are £10 and are available from Carmarthenshire Theatres and members of the choir. The evening starts at 7.30pm. Also on Saturday, Côr Meibion Dyffryn Tywi will be celebrating their 40th anniversary with a concert at the Princess Gwenllian Centre, Kidwelly (7pm). The choristers of Cor Meibion Dyffryn Tywi have an excellent line-up

The latest Phil Evans column from the South Wales Evening Post. Comedian Phil Evans is from Ammanford. He is known as the man who puts the ‘cwtsh’ into comedy. www.philevans.co.uk -------------------- We must win: It’s been 10 years since the appalling, horrific London bombings of July the 7th 2005. Services and ceremonies were held in St Pauls Cathedral and at the 7/7 memorial in Hyde Park, both very emotional occasions for those involved and those watching on television. Coincidentally, this sad anniversary occurred just a week or so after the massacre of holidaymakers in Tunisia by someone who possessed the same twisted ideology as the 7/7 bombers. I’ve long suspected that suicide bombers and gunmen who shoot innocent people indiscriminately, knowing that they too will be shot dead, aren’t the sharpest knives in the cutlery drawer. Anyone with an iota of intelligence would realise nobody’s entitled to pass through the Pearly Gates to be greeted by 21 virgins because they bombed t

Côr Meibion Llanelli Male Voice Choir, Y Tri Tenor (The Three Welsh Tenors), Côr Ysgol Iau Llangennech Junior School Choir. Côr Meibion Llanelli’s annual summer concert at the Selwyn Samuel Centre, Llanelli. You name it and Côr Meibion Llanelli’s annual summer concert had it. Confirmation of Côr Meibion Llanelli’s status as one of our finest male voice choirs.  Appreciation of the dazzling young talent we have in Llanelli in the shape of the Ysgol Iau Llangennech junior school choir.  Admiration for three of the finest tenors in Wales in the shape of Rhys Meirion, Aled Hall and Aled Wyn Davies.  It was a show with something for everyone – and, above all, it reflected the fact that the passion and enthusiasm for singing in Wales is in very safe hands. Côr Meibion Llanelli’s choristers were happy to play second fiddle to their guests on an occasion when there was lovely summer garden party feel to proceedings at the Selwyn Samuel Centre. Ysgol Iau Llangennech had won the

A landlord who failed to properly manage a home he rented out in Llanelli’s Tyisha ward has become the first landlord prosecuted by Carmarthenshire County Council under its Selective Licensing scheme . The council introduced Selective Licensing in Tyisha in 2014 in an effort to improve living conditions for tenants and bring down levels of anti-social behaviour. The scheme requires all landlords to apply for a license, but landlord Brett Richard Taylor had failed to apply. He pleaded guilty at Carmarthenshire Magistrates Court on Friday, June 26, to an offence contrary to Section 95 of the Housing Act 2004, in that he failed to correctly licence his premises. He was fined £290 with further costs totalling £433. His tenant may now be able to claim back all the rental payments made during the period the property was unlicensed. More significantly, because of his conviction, Taylor is not classified as a ‘fit and proper person’ to manage any properties he owns in Tyisha and must nominat

Children across Carmarthenshire will start their summer holidays with a splash! Carmarthenshire County Council’s grounds maintenance team are preparing to fill the paddling pools at Crown Park and Parc Howard in Llanelli, which Llanelli Town Council has agreed to fund. The paddling pools will open from Saturday, July 18, and will be open with an attendant from 10am to 6pm seven days a week during the school summer holidays. As well as the paddling pools, splash pads managed by community volunteers at Havelock Park and Penyfan Park in Llanelli are already in operation, as is the popular splash pad at Ammanford Park, which is managed by Ammanford Town Council . The splash pads work on an automatic timer system from 10am to 7pm seven days a week. Llanelli Town Council Leader Carl Lucas said: “I am delighted that the town council has reaffirmed its decision to support local facilities, particularly when this involves provision of recreational services for children in our community that w

Proposals to help control dogs in Carmarthenshire’s public places have been given the go ahead by Carmarthenshire Council’s Executive Board. The board met to discuss making Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) subject to a formal consultation exercise being carried out. The orders include cleaning up after your dog on all public land in the county, putting your dog on a lead when directed by an authorised officer and excluding dogs from children’s play areas. Further recommendations from the Environmental and Public Protection Scrutiny Committee to introduce orders for dogs to be kept on leads on sports pitches, parks and playgrounds and on all public highways were not taken forward at this time. However, Executive Board Member for Environmental and Public Protection Cllr Jim Jones said a review would be carried out in six months. Cllr Jones said: “This is long overdue, residents and community councils have been asking us to act on this for some time. “I am pleased with the three

The Swansea Bach Choir, The Singhs violin trio and pianist Guillaume Mathias. Loud Applause productions Midsummer Music concert held at St Elli Parish Church, Llanelli. As you’d expect from a concert in the wonderful surroundings of St Elli Parish Church, this was a ‘heavenly’ occasion. It was music to stir the soul; choral singing at its very best, blended with virtuoso musicianship. The packed audience at Llanelli’s Parish Church can consider themselves well blessed in being allowed to sit in on such a musical masterclass. The Swansea Bach Choir has made its mark down the years in performing Baroque classics, the major works of Bach and, basically, most of the great choral works of the last five centuries. There was no Bach on the programme, but no-one was complaining as conductor Greg Hallam carefully chose a repertoire designed to showcase the very best of the choir. Britten’s Hymn to St Cecilia set the standard for the evening and was followed by Walton’s A Litany and two works

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