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

Toot-Toot...Puff the Magic Dragon and a few of his friends are coming to Llanelli Retrofest on September 26-27. With open top bus tours and town criers, traders and exhibitors, church bells ringing out and a lot more besides, all that has been missing from the festival build-up has been monster hissing steam engines from ages past. But Llanelli and District Model Engineers Society have come to the rescue, agreeing to send steam engines into town that will roll up and down Vaughan Street and Stepney Street giving a real yesteryear feel to all the activities. The magnificent machines gush plumes of white steam and will present some fantastic picture opportunities when they chug up and down Llanelli’s high street. It is thought this will be the first steam engines of this kind will have appeared in the town’s streets for more than 100 years. Steam engineers chairman Robert Raynor said Llanelli Retrofest collided with their ninth annual autumn steam rally at Pembrey Country Park, which r...

Ammanford traders are giving the Gwyl y Twrch Trwyth Festival a colourful welcome to the town centre. The Festival and the Support your Local High Street Initiative is providing a shop window for what traders have to offer and they have decorated their shop windows to promote the festival, too. The displays follow a boar theme linked to the produce sold at each shop. Among the businesses that have decorated their shop windows is the ismooth cafe in College Street where one of the two boars in the window is good enough to eat! Erika Beynon of ismooth said: “We decided to make a boar out of cake which we have cooked and decorated and put in our window. We also have the original papier mache boar made for the launching of Twrch Trwyth. “Traders have really got behind Twrch Trwyth which is nice to see. There has been a lot of decorating. It is helping the Third Sector as well as private traders and has brought us together. For traders these are exciting times!” Angela Phillips ...

Buskers from as far away as Bristol are talking about the Llanelli Retrofest. Their music is going to be the mainstay of the event bringing the streets of Llanelli alive, in what is hoped to become a massive annual event in Llanelli’s calendar. More than 20 buskers are already registered, each vying to become the best busker, with singers from Llanelli’s strong folk scene keen to show what they can do, as well as those from further afield. Busker sites will be created along Vaughan Street and Stepney Street over two days and more sites are being set up on the Curly Path leading to Asda and in the Stepney Street and Cowell Street precincts. Buskers or historical street entertainers who are interested in taking part should call 01267 224923.

The town of Ammanford is set to come alive with medieval fun, games and laughter from September 25-27. Partners including traders, the Chamber of Trade, Carmarthenshire County Council , and Ammanford Town Council have joined together to organise the three day Gwyl y Twrch Trwyth Festival. The town will step back in time for three days to help strengthen its future. Traders in costume from the Middle Ages will sell boar-themed produce while street entertainment will include historical re-enactments and a traditional craft market. The town will draw inspiration from the mediaeval Twrch Trwyth legend of Culhwch and Olwen that is linked to the Ammanford area. It is a mystical tale from the Mabinogion. Prince Tared (or Taredd Wledig), is cursed into the form of a wild creature; he has poisonous bristles, and carries a pair of scissors, a comb and a razor on his head, between his ears. King Arthur and his knights chase this Enchanted Boar from St Davids to Ammanford. The Enchanted Boar w...

There's been a massive increase in entries for the Carmarthen Bay Film Festival. Entries have flooded in from all four corners of the globe to hit a magnificent total of 135 submissions. There's just four weeks to go to the start of the third annual festival on Tuesday, May 6. "Excitement is building and the foundation blocks laid by the first two festivals are paying great dividends, " said festival founder and chief executive Kelvin Guy. "In our first year, we received 35 entries from film-makers. Last year, the total was 65. This year, we've hit the figure out of the park with a massive 135 film entries. "Obviously, we won't have time to screen them all during the festival, but the schedule will see 130 films screened to the public - and it's all free!" Mr Guy said entries had been submitted from Iran, Chile, South Korea, Cyrus, Japan, Hong Kong, Argentina, Brazil, Finland, Serbia and Kosovo. "I've had my world atlas o...

Shaheen Jafargholi, of Britain's Got Talent fame, is set to play at the Llandeilo Festival of Senses on Saturday November 24. Shaheen shot to fame during the 2009 Britain's Got Talent and later played his own tribute at Michael Jackson’s memorial service in Los Angeles. He will be performing on the main stage in Llandeilo's King Street after the Llandeilo's got Talent winners perform at 4.30pm. The evening will close with a magnificent fire work display, by Geraint Price of Nice Price News. For full Entertaiment listings go to: www.llandeilochristmasfestivalofsenses.co.uk

Cash-strapped trio fined for jumping fence into Beach Break Live | This is South Wales Three unemployed men arrested for jumping the fence into Beach Break Live at Pembrey claimed they thought the festival was free. More than 16,000 people paid £110 each to watch artists such as Dizzee Rascal, Ben Howard, and Friendly Fires perform at the three-day event. But Andrew Pearman, 29, Paul Gliddon, 28, and 22-year-old Liam Keith Davies — who are on benefits and did not have enough money to buy a ticket — thought they could walk through a gap in the fence.

BBC News - Beach Break Live: Extra security for Pembrey festival Organisers of a student music festival in Carmarthenshire have agreed to improve security for this year's event after concerns from police. There will be better CCTV coverage, fencing and extra patrols at Beach Break Live at Pembrey Country Park. Police asked the council to review the licence for June after a rise in arrests and drug seizures last year among 20,000 festival-goers.

West Wales to host a major new literature festival | Wales | Creative Boom Magazine Literature Wales is pleased to announce that a lively new festival celebrating the very best of literature will be held at Dinefwr Park and Castle in west Wales in 2012. The Dinefwr Literature Festival is a collaboration between Literature Wales, the National Trust, and the University of Wales, Trinity Saint David (as lead partner in the Coracle programme).

The Oxjam Brecon “Takeover Day” returns for a third year on Saturday, October 15. Tickets are £7 in aid of Oxfam GB and are on sale now at Theatr Brycheiniog in Brecon (01874 611622). The charity music festival is sponsored by The George Hotel, Brecon, owned by the award-winning Llandeilo-based brewers Evan-Evans of Llandeilo and BRFM Community radio, based in Brynmawr. Headline acts include Revoker and The Last Republic, alongside Under The Driftwood Tree and Pamela Wyn Shannon. The full line up has now been announced on Oxjam Brecon’s website at www.oxjambrecon.com , where online tickets are also available. Les Rees, Manager of The George Hotel, said:"We are very pleased to be supporting Oxjam Brecon - the festival has got a terrific line up with big acts alongside up-and-coming bands. All proceeds are in aid of a worthy cause, Oxfam GB.“ The main Oxjam “Takeover Days” now take place in 37 towns in the month of October, with Brecon being easily the smallest. Oxjam Brecon has rai...

Today, FfotoAber, the first photographic festival of its kind to be held in Aberystwyth, is launching a registration system for keen photographers to to participate in a photomarathon. The photomarathon which takes place on 22 October, and is sponsored by Aberystwyth Business Club, aims to challenge competitors’ creativity and mental agility. Anyone interested in taking six photographs, related to six themes, on one day, using a digital or mobile phone camera is encouraged to visit www.ffotoaber.com to register. Deian Creunant, from FfotoAber commented: “As part of the new FfotoAber festival which launches in Aberystwyth this October, we’re introducing a pioneering event to the town, a photomarathon. We sincerely hope that this event will appeal to anyone, amateur and professional photographers alike, and those who simply want to try their hand at it.” At 10am on Saturday 22 October, two themes will be released to the competitors at the Morlan Centre, Aberystwyth and they are expecte...

There will be a Songs of Praise festival at Burry Port harbour on the evening of Bank Holiday Sunday August 28. Hundreds are expected to attend, creating a cacophony of sound across the waves. The event has grown in recent years to quite a spectacular festival attracting support from all churches and chapels in the community with more than a 1,000 thronging the harbour walls. Carmarthenshire County Council’s tourism department is sponsoring the event providing a marquee to accommodate both the championship winning Burry Port town Band and Burry Port Male Voice Voice Choir. County Councillor Pat Jones said: “The harbour is looking fantastic this year with flags flying and this event is becoming a traditional way to see out the end of the summer holidays in the community. “Last month we had the carnival. Last weekend we had the fishing festival and now we have a Songs of Praise. You cannot argue that we do not have variety in this busy seaside community!” Everyone is welcome to att...

Arrangements for a new festival in mid Wales are well underway. During October and November 2011, FfotoAber will be celebrating the art of photography through a series of exhibitions and events in Aberystwyth. FfotoAber is the first festival of its kind for Aberystwyth, if not Wales, and is arranged by residents of the town for residents of the town, the local area and visitors from all parts of Wales. Catrin M S Davies, one of the festival coordinators explains: “During the past few months, a group of local business people, photographers and volunteers have been meeting on a regular basis to arrange an event which celebrates photography here in Aberystwyth. All members of the local community are invited to participate in the range of events and exhibitions currently being organised. “This annual festival will start during October half term and conclude with the Lens festival at the National Library of Wales on the 18-19 November. We hope that it will provide a focus for the town du...