Pobol y Cwm

Pobol y Cwm
Created by Gwenlyn Parry and John Hefin
Theme music composer Endaf Emlyn[1]
Country of origin United Kingdom
Production
Running time 20 minutes exclusive of commercial breaks
Release
Original network S4C (1982—)
BBC Wales (1974–82)
Original release 16 October 1974 – present
External links
Website

Pobol y Cwm (People of the Valley; Welsh pronunciation: [ˌpɔbɔl ə ˈkʊm]) is a Welsh language soap opera which has been produced by the BBC since October 1974.[2] The longest-running television soap opera produced by the BBC, Pobol y Cwm was originally transmitted on BBC Wales television and later transferred to the Welsh-language station S4C when it opened in November 1982.[2]

Apart from Rugby specials, Pobol y Cwm is consistently the most watched programme of the week on S4C,[3] and in 1994 was briefly shown across the whole of the United Kingdom on BBC2 with English subtitles.[4] Five episodes are produced each week. These were broadcast at 20:00 each weeknight until 2018, when Tuesday and Thursday episodes began airing at 19:30. In addition, a weekly omnibus with in-vision English subtitles airs on Sunday evenings. This omnibus disappeared in 2014, before eventually returning in 2017 to replace the long-running 18:00 weeknight repeats of the previous episode.

From September 2014, following a budget cut of £1m to the programme, the Sunday omnibus ceased broadcasting, and it was announced that the show would be taking two one-week sabbaticals every year. From January 2015, the Wednesday episode was dropped. However, after receiving additional funding later in the year, the Wednesday episode was restored on 16 December 2015 – seeing Pobol y Cwm once again airing five nights a week. In May 2017, the Sunday omnibus resumed its broadcast on S4C.[5]

Setting

The setting for the show is the fictional village of Cwmderi, located in the real Gwendraeth Valley – an area lying between Carmarthen and Llanelli in south-west Wales. Whilst much of the show's early activity took place at a nursing home, storylines are currently centred on the village pub, Y Deri,[6] and its adjacent small businesses and houses. Other frequent settings for storylines include the comprehensive school, Ysgol y Mynach, and a local farm, Penrhewl. There are two other imaginary villages close to Cwmderi, named Llanarthur and Cwrt Mynach.

Originally filmed at Broadcasting House, Cardiff, since 2012 the programme has been filmed at the BBC's drama studios at Roath Lock in Cardiff Bay, other than a few on-location shoots around Cardiff. The exterior outdoor high street of Cwmderi was recreated from scratch, while many interiors are shot inside the Roath Lock studios.

Cast and characters

  • Llinor ap Gwynedd : Gwyneth Jones
  • Luke Jeremy : Daniel Thomas (recurring)
  • Nia Caron : Anita Pierce
  • Jeremi Cockram : Siôn White
  • Sera Cracroft : Eileen Markham
  • Arwel Davies : Eifion Rowlands
  • Donna Edwards : Britt Monk
  • Bethan Ellis Owen : Ffion Llywelyn
  • Elin Harries : Dani Thomas
  • Richard Lynch : Garry Monk
  • Jonathan Nefydd : Colin Evans
  • Victoria Plucknett : Diane Ashurst
  • Catrin Powell : Cathryn "Cadno" Richards
  • Ryon Gower : Siôn Myers
  • Lauren Phillips : Kelly Evans
  • Maria Pride : Debbie Collins
  • Dyfan Rees : Iolo Davies-White
  • Sharon Roberts : Gaynor Evans
  • Andrew Teilo : Hywel Llywelyn
  • Aled Llŷr Thomas : Tyler Davies-White
  • Geraint Todd : Ed Charles
  • Emily Tucker : Sioned Rees
  • Simon Watts : Gethin Thomas
  • Tomos West : Ricky Jones (recurring)
  • Emyr Wyn : David 'Dai Sgaffalde' Ashurst
  • Lisabeth Miles: : Megan Harries (recurring)
  • Bryn Fôn : Dr Elgan Pritchard

Notes

  1. ↑ "Pobol y Cwm: 40 facts to mark 40 years of the soap on its 40th birthday". WalesOnline. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  2. 1 2 Davies, John; Jenkins, Nigel; Menna, Baines; Lynch, Peredur I., eds. (2008). The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. p. 688. ISBN 978-0-7083-1953-6.
  3. ↑ S4C viewing figures
  4. ↑ Welsh BBC adds to drama output, The Independent, 9 February 1993
  5. ↑ Jones, Chloe. "Brill news if you're a Pobol y Cwm fan". Retrieved 2015-10-27.
  6. ↑ Outdoor filming for the pub used to take place at The Sportsman's Rest in Peterston-super-Ely.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.