National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales preserves and celebrates the sound and moving image heritage of Wales, making it accessible to a wide range of users for enjoyment and learning. Its film collection reflects every aspect of the nation’s social, cultural and working life across the 20th century, giving a fascinating insight into Welsh filmmaking, both amateur and professional.
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Yr Etifeddiaeth/The Heritage
Staring a Butlin’s holiday camp in the face at Pwllheli (capacity: 5,000) can the Welsh in this area maintain the faith, language and traditions of their fathers?
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Overview
The sun sets on an uncertain future for the Welsh of Llyn and Eifionydd who gather on a Sunday to keep the faith, the language and the cultural traditions of the chapel. Amongst them is Pwllheli-born poet ‘Cynan’ (Albert Evans-Jones) who, as narrator, voices the concern. On the other side of the road and poles apart stands the Butlins holiday camp, opened in 1947 and catering for 5,000 bent on fun in English.
Filmed between 1947 and 1949 by 'Y Cymro' photographer Geoffrey Charles with the newspaper's editor, John Roberts Williams as director and script-writer, this film presents the culture, work and rural way of life in Llyn and Eifionydd. Both men came to realise that they were recording a way of life that was vanishing. The film was first shown at the National Eisteddfod in Dolgellau in 1949, attracting full houses for the screenings that included other films made by the pair under the auspices of ‘Y Cymro’ [The Welshman].
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