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

  THEY say every day is a school day. Just when you get to the age when you think you know it all, something new comes along to broaden your horizons. A week ago, I didn’t know a thing about community benefit societies. Today, I well on the way to picking the topic as a Mastermind subject. This bit of ‘fast-track’ education is all down to a random meeting with Dan Staveley, co-founder of Swansea’s Elysium gallery and artists’ studios. We met to discuss a totally separate project in west Wales (more on that in a future column). At the end of the meeting, I was staggered at the progress made on the ‘Elysium project’. The Elysium brand has already made its mark on the Swansea landscape, helping to breathe new life into High Street, in particular. Now, Elysium has become a Community Benefit Society (a type of social enterprise), with big plans for a new city centre location, combining studios, a gallery, cafe, education centre and function rooms. The plans centre on a building which ho...

  ALL together now! Panto season is coming around. Oh, no, it isn’t! Oh, yes, it is! One of the most eagerly-anticipated pantomimes in west Wales is the show staged by Theatrau Sir Gâr / Carmarthenshire Theatres at The Lyric in Carmarthen. This year, it is the turn of Beauty and the Beast, which will run from December 12-29. The festive favourite promises to be a spectacular show filled with magical moments, plenty of laughs, and all the panto fun that families have come to love. Following on from the success of last year’s pantomime (seen by nearly 8,000 local people), Beauty and the Beast will be produced in-house again by the Theatrau Sir Gâr team, in arrangement with the renowned pantomime producing company, Imagine Theatre. This year’s Beauty and the Beast cast includes three Carmarthenshire-born cast members. The line-up includes - •        Steve Elias as the hilarious and larger-than-life Dame Sylvia Scrub-it. Steve is delighted to be ...

IT may be 80 years on, but the people of a Dutch city show no signs of ever forgetting the role Welsh soldiers played in their liberation during World War Two. Back in 2011, I was privileged to join the old Côr Meibion Llanelli Male Voice Choir at anniversary liberation celebrations in s’Hertogenbosch in the North Brabant Province, Netherlands. At the time, veterans of 53rd Welsh Division were still able to attend a weekend of liberation commemorations. This year, there will not be any veterans, but the actions of Welsh soldiers will still be remembered by people who call their homes city Den Bosch. Thanks for hard-working folk, both here in west Wales and in the Netherlands, the link between Wales and Den Bosch will still be remembered on the last full weekend in October. One of the key figures in continuing the relationship with Den Bosch is Lieutenant Colonel David Mathias, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Dyfed. In recent years, he has been instrumental in securing the services of Welsh c...

South Wales Evening Post column, Friday, April 19, 2024 GIVEN an audience of at least one man and a dog, I can raise my game and my ability to bore people to Olympic levels. All I require is that someone draws breath and allows me sufficient pause to start rambling on the benefits of walking. The subject of walking is one I approach with almost missionary zeal. As the survivor of two heart attacks, my tweaked internal plumbing requires that I follow the British Heart Foundation guidelines of getting at least 10,000 steps a day. Hitting that daily target now borders on an obsession. Most days, I will chalk up more than 12,000 steps and on big marathon days I will complete more than 25,000. All of this is recorded on a Fitbit tracker on my wrist and an app on my mobile phone. See, I told you I was obsessive; I need two methods to record my daily walks. As for planning my day, I follow the advice of the American naturalist and writer Henry David Thoreau, who once declared: “An early morni...

Cor Meibion Llanelli Male Voice Choir singing Impossible Dream at their weekly rehearsals at Furnace Community Hall #Llanelli If you want to join the choir, turn up at the hall on Mondays, 7pm. https://youtu.be/tj2XDWk6vlw

The latest podcast from Phil Evans and Robert Lloyd. The Big Cwtsh - Episode 42. Now available on Soundcloud. https://soundcloud.com/thebigcwtsh/the-big-cwtsh-episode-42

The Jenkins Bakery has released details of its Easter range of products. “There’s something for everyone to enjoy at Easter time,” said the Jenkins Bakery’s operations director Russell Jenkins. “Our staff always enjoy producing new ideas for Easter and I’m sure our customers will enjoy sampling the products we have on offer.” Easter Sunday falls on April 21 this year. The long bank holiday weekend begins on Good Friday, April 19, and Easter Monday on April 22 is the final day in the bank holiday festivities. Mr Jenkins: “May I also take this opportunity to wish customers, staff and suppliers a very pleasant Easter holiday.” The Easter range includes – CHOCOLATE SPRING NEST £1.25 Moist chocolate Swiss Roll enrobed with chocolate and decorated with mini chocolate eggs in a nest of chocolate buttercream. BUNNY KRISPIES £1.25 Our chocolate krispie confectionery with an edible sugar bunny and drizzled with white chocolate. EASTER BUNNY BISCUIT £1.00 Our top quality shortbread ...