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

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 -------------------- WHAT’S ANOTHER YEAR? The old song “Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think” definitely applies to me because my watch loses seven minutes every hour. I’d get it fixed, but by the time I get to the jewellers, they’re always closed. Tempus certainly does Fugit. We’re almost half-way through 2015 and already many of the events marked on my calendar have gone - and the pencil I used to mark them. I’ll be visiting Argos again soon for a replacement. I’ve already received e-mails advertising hotel breaks at Christmas and New Year! But I’ve deleted them. Don’t worry. You’ll still be able to tuck into a turkey dinner, watch another fight break-out in the Queen Vic and sing “Auld Lang Syne”. It was the e-mails I deleted...not Christmas and New Year. Valentine’s Day, Eurovision, m...

The latest 'On Song' column (about the choral scene in and around Llanelli) from the Llanelli Star - It’s been a busy weekend for Côr Meibion Llanelli Male Voice Choir. Adulam Chapel in Felinfoel was converted into a temporary recording studio for the choir as they laid down the tracks for album for the Sain recording company. “We had 52 choristers in the chapel for Friday night and most of Saturday,” said Côr Meibion Llanelli musical director Eifion Thomas. “It was a great experience and the choristers worked very hard on the recordings. “We were assisted by our regular accompanist Aled Maddock and our guest organist Allan Fewster. “In addition, the celebrated soprano Adele O’Neill was our guest for a number of tracks. “The end result will be in the shops later this year. The choir has a well-deserved reputation for producing an excellent sound and we hope that this recording will reflect the very high standard of choral singing we regularly achieve on our travels both...

Today, saw the official launch of ‘Rescue 365’, a community interest company that specialises in providing Health and Safety Training and Advice. Based in Carmarthen in West Wales, Rescue 365 provides training and consultancy in many areas including health and safety, first aid, fire safety, working at height and water rescue, as well as bespoke solutions depending on the client’s needs.  Rescue 365 is a Community Interest Company run by Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service. As a community interest company, profits are reinvested back into Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service (MAWWFRS) community safety initiatives, or the wider community. In just its first few months, Rescue 365 has seen rapid growth with clients ranging from global companies such as TATA Steel and RWE in the private sector, as well as local authorities and education providers right across Wales and England. At Rescue 365’s official launch at the Dylan Thomas Centre in Swansea, MAWWFRS Chief Fire ...

The international award-winning brewer Evan-Evans has launched a new range of beers at the start of a new summer sales campaign. Evan-Evans is widely recognised as being one of the leading brewers in Wales and the UK. The brewery is launching 10 beers to celebrate the very best of Welsh summer. Some of the beers are old favourites; others are new beers which have never been tasted before. Brewer James Buckley said: “Summer is an important time of year for us at Evan-Evans and this year we are launching a series of new beers to celebrate Welsh Summertime. “These include delicious new ‘golden’ beers, using continental hops. “Generally, our summer beers are designed to be drunk slightly cooler and are golden in colour, but this year we are producing some new light amber-coloured beers, which are more hoppy and have a distinct summer feel to them.” Beer lovers can look forward to trying ales from the Evan-Evans family of beers, which includes the Artisan range and the Porter Street Londo...

Andy Fairweather Low, one of the UK’s best-known guitarists, will be headlining Jazz@Llandeilo 2015. Fairweather Low will arrive at the fourth annual jazz festival in Llandeilo (July3-5) hot on the heels of landmark concerts with Eric Clapton at the Royal Albert Hall, London. The festival, centred around the Evan-Evans brewery ‘tap’ pub, The White Horse Inn, continues to grow every year. This year, the festival will boast three different stages and more than 30 different acts. “It is now a fixture on the jazz music festival calendar for the UK and is hugely popular with festival-goers and musicians,” said James Buckley of the Evan-Evans brewery. “It is a wonderful showpiece occasion to put Llandeilo on the map. Andy Fairweather Low is regarded as music royalty – an international artist with a wonderful reputation. He is the headline act, but there will also be a lot more quality entertainment during an action-packed weekend.” Fairweather Low has established a reputation as a peerless...

Tywi Valley fencing contractor Gary Davies doesn’t sit on any fences; he takes pride in making quality fences of all descriptions. And with some awards already under his belt, he is now planning an assault on the seventh Annual UK Fencing Championships. Gary’s popular business, Dyfed Fencing, based in Capel Isaac near Llandeilo, has been asked to compete at this year’s Driffield Show in East Yorkshire. The Driffield Show is the regular venue for the UK Fencing Championships, which will be held on July 22 this year. “It’s the place where the best of the best in the world of quality fencing in the UK go to compete,” said Gary. “It’s something of an honour to be asked to compete and there is a lot at stake - a £1000 cash prize and the prestige that goes with being judged the best fencing operator in the land.” Gary has been a fencing contractor for more than 25 years and has previously visited the Driffield Show to observe the competition. He said: We are under no illusions about the te...

Ambitious plans to redevelop Burry Port have moved a step closer today as the Welsh Government has lifted a stopper notice preventing approval of a major element of the proposals. Yesterday’s meeting of the county council’s planning committee unanimously voted that it was minded to approve six planning applications - for up to 230 homes at the former Grillo site, for infrastructure for that site, for a 134 unit housing development alongside the former Grillo site, for construction of a 330-place Welsh Medium Primary School off Burrows Terrace, for a commercial leisure development at Burry Port Harbour East, for employment space alongside Silver Terrace. The council could not make a decision to actually grant permission following a Welsh Government intervention before the previous planning committee giving formal notice under Article 18 that it was not in a position to approve any of the six applications including the school. But today the Welsh Government removed the notice covering...