1950 in Wales

← 1949 1948 1947 1950 in Wales → 1951 1952 1953
Centuries:	18th 19th 20th 21st
Decades:	1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s
See also:	List of years in Wales 1950 in The United Kingdom Ireland Scotland

This article is about the particular significance of the year 1950 to Wales and its people.

Incumbents

• Prince of Wales – vacant
• Princess of Wales – vacant
• Archbishop of Wales – John Morgan, Bishop of Llandaff
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales
  • Wil Ifan (outgoing)
  • Cynan (incoming)

Events

• 23 February – United Kingdom general election, 1950: For the first time ever, the Labour Party contests all Parliamentary seats in Wales. Following the election, Wales has 27 Labour MPs, 4 Liberals, 3 Conservatives and one National Liberal/Conservative.
  • The University of Wales seat is abolished at the dissolution, W. J. Gruffydd having been the last holder.
  • Roderic Bowen is re-elected for Cardiganshire, with the largest Liberal majority in the country.
  • David Ormsby-Gore, the future Lord Harlech, becomes MP for Oswestry.
  • Lynn Ungoed-Thomas, following the abolition of his Llandaff and Barry constituency, is elected MP for Leicester North East.
  • Roy Jenkins, whose Southwark seat has been abolished, is elected for Birmingham Stechford.
  • Elwyn Jones becomes MP for West Ham South.
  • Following the election, Ness Edwards becomes Postmaster-General. During his time in the office, he introduces the greetings telegram.
  • Abertillery's Labour MP, George Daggar, dies on 14 October, to be replaced by Llywelyn Williams.
• 12 March – Llandow air disaster: 80 of the 83 people on board an Avro Tudor V aircraft are killed when it crashes at Llandow in Glamorgan, making it the world's worst air disaster at this time.
• 27 August – Six people are killed in a rail collision at Penmaenmawr railway station.
• September – In Swansea, three houses collapse, killing seven people.
• 2 October – The Welsh Air Service, the world's first scheduled helicopter service, begins operating between Cardiff, Wrexham and Liverpool.
• Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones opens in Amlwch on Anglesey as Britain's first purpose-built comprehensive school.
• Maes Hyfryd and Bryn Teg housing estates at Beaumaris, designed by Colwyn Foulkes, are built.^[1]
• Glanllyn is acquired as a permanent site for meetings of Urdd Gobaith Cymru.
• In the Honours lists
  • Physicist Ezer Griffiths is awarded the O.B.E.
  • Agriculturist Thomas James Jenkin is awarded the C.B.E.
  • Industrialist Herbert Henry Merrett is knighted.
• William Havard becomes Bishop of St David's.
• Margaret Haig Thomas, Viscountess Rhondda, becomes President of University College, Cardiff.

Arts and literature

• February – Dylan Thomas makes his first visit to America.
• The first Welsh Drama Festival is held.
• American photojournalist W. Eugene Smith visits the UK to take photographs of working-class life; three of those published are of the South Wales valleys.

Film

• Glyn Houston makes his film debut in The Blue Lamp, which also stars Meredith Edwards and guest stars Tessie O'Shea.
• Ray Milland stars in Copper Canyon and A Woman of Distinction.

Sports

• Boxing
  • 13 September – Eddie Thomas beats Cliff Curvis at St Helens to become British welterweight champion.
• Football
  • 16 October – Wales international Trevor Ford becomes the most expensive footballer in British history after joining Sunderland for £30,000
• Rugby union – Wales win their fourth Grand Slam.
• Bowls – The Welsh Ladies Indoor Bowling Association is founded.^[2]

Births

• 23 January – John Greaves, Welsh bass player and songwriter
• 7 February – Dai Havard MP, politician
• 16 February (in Nairobi) – Peter Hain MP, politician
• 11 March – Terry Cooper, footballer
• 18 March – Lorraine Barrett AM, politician
• 27 March – Terry Yorath, footballer and football manager
• 3 May – Mary Hopkin, singer
• 5 May (in Saint Kitts) – Pat Thomas, boxer
• 24 May – Geoff Ellis, cricketer
• 26 May – Myron Wyn Evans, chemist
• 2 June – Jonathan Evans MEP, politician
• 14 June – Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury
• 25 August (in Dublin) – Brian Gibbons AM, politician
• 8 September – Martyn Woodroffe, swimmer
• 10 September – Tich Gwilym, guitarist (d. 2005)
• 16 November – Chris O'Brien, rugby league player
• 27 November – Meic Povey, screenwriter, playwright and actor (d. 2017)
• 8 December – Stephen Richards, judge
• 10 December – John Parsons, footballer
• 20 December (in Birmingham) – Sheenagh Pugh, poet and novelist
• date unknown
  • Meg Elis, politician
  • Robert Pugh, actor

Deaths

• 23 January – Jack Rhapps, dual-code international rugby player, 73
• 13 February – Rees Howells, missionary and founder of the Bible College at Swansea, 70
• 28 February – David Lewis Prosser, Archbishop of Wales, 81
• 9 March – Timothy Evans, wrongly executed for murder, 35
• 15 March – Sir Wilfrid Lewis, judge
• 12 April – Joe Rees, rugby union player, 56
• 29 April – Wallace Watts, Wales international rugby union player, 80
• 23 June – Joseph Harry, minister and poet
• 2 July – Henry Haydn Jones MP, politician, 86
• 30 August – Ralph Hancock, landscape gardener, 57
• 14 October – George Daggar MP, politician, 71
• 28 October – Alis Mallt Williams, novelist
• 21 November – Hugh Emyr Davies, poet, 72

See also

• 1950 in Northern Ireland

References