Wales on TV - new series recalls the way we were
25.04.2017
Classic moments from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s
A major series recalling the stories that made the headlines in Wales from the 1960s to the mid-2000s starts tonight on ITV Cymru Wales [Tuesday, 25 April].
Drawing on classic archive footage, Wales on TV combines the most memorable moments from news, sport, entertainment and popular culture from a given year with each year’s music chart hits. The 25-part series will air on Tuesday nights at 10.40pm over the coming months.
Each episode reviews the events of two selected years, from 1960 to 2007, with on-screen captions and music of the time to help jog the memory.
From Tom Jones to Catherine Zeta-Jones; from decimalisation to the Pope's visit to Wales; from Mary Hopkin to the last steam train; from Laura Ashley to the first sex shop; and from Richard Burton to Wales' most unromantic man...Wales on TV recalls the stories and the soundtrack of Wales across five decades, featuring the biggest chart hits with the moments that made the headlines.
Wales on TV has been made with the help of The National Library of Wales, curator of the extensive ITV Wales Cymru programmes archive.
“The ITV Wales archive is a treasure trove of memories and Wales on TV promises to be nostalgic, entertaining and illuminating in equal measure,” says Jonathan Hill, editor of English language programmes at ITV Cymru Wales.
“Older viewers will be able to relive news and events of decades gone by while younger viewers will get a flavour of life in Wales over the past five iconic decades.
"We’re grateful to the staff of The National Library of Wales for their help with this project and for their support in making this wonderful archive available to viewers across Wales and beyond."
Owain Meredith, Archivist ITV Wales said:
“We are very pleased that the ITV Cymru Wales Archive which is based at The National Library of Wales have contritbuted to this series. Only a small selection of our Archive will be seen during the forthcoming weeks, therefore – viewers are welcome to contact the Library to learn more”
Wales on TV is a Barn Media production for ITV Cymru Wales.
Production is well under way with the first batch of programmes now complete:
Episode 1 (April 25). The series opens in 1968 - the year Mary Hopkin becomes an international recording star, the introduction of flat-pack furniture and the opening of Barry Island’s Wall of Death. Plus, from 1985, the programme recalls the end of the miners’ strike, a Ceredigion man’s sail around the world, and the Romans’ return to Caerleon.
Episode 2 (May 2). We’re back to the 1960s with rail closures in Gwynedd, preparations for a nuclear attack in Carmarthenshire and snow chaos for all. Plus, from the 1970s, the winter of discontent, the arrival of Margaret Thatcher and the return home to the Afan Valley of film star Richard Burton.
Episode 3 (May 9). 1977: Hay on Wye declares “independence”, the Queen's Silver Jubilee sees street parties break out across Wales, and construction starts on a new section of the M4. Plus from 1989 Welsh soldiers witness the fall of the Berlin wall, the DVLA auctions off personalised number plates, and skateboarding is all the rage in Caldicot.
Further Information
Elin-Hâf 01970 632471 or post@llgc.org.uk