"You have to give it to witches, of course. Have you seen them in their circles in the woods, naked hags with hanging skin like fleshy robes, dancing round bonfires and singing their witchy songs? Solidarity. Sisterhood."
- The sixteenth instalment of our Story | Retold series sees Gary Raymond take inspiration from 'Mrs Armitage' by Emyr Humphreys.
#Dahl100 | The Master of Childlike Language
"Research over the past few decades has revealed that bilinguals are endowed with a cognitive/mental flexibility because they have two sets of vocabulary for one object, providing them with a higher capacity to generate novel ideas."
- Željka Flegar explores the intricate ways in which Dahl played with and championed language, and how it made him one of the most famous and adored writers for children for generation after generation.
Audio | Paul Chambers
Paul Chambers is a world-renowned Haiku poet, whose work has been nominated for all of the top awards in the field, including The Haiku Foundation's Distinguished Book Award in 2016, the form's top prize globally. Wales Arts Review invited Paul to perform at one of our live social nights at the Murenger House in Newport, South Wales. Introduction by Gary Raymond.
WALES ARCHIVE | RICHARD BURTON AND DICK CAVETT
There have been few interviewers to ever touch Dick Cavett for his relaxed, personable approach to his subjects and his talent for making them at ease was rarely more obviously on display than over the two hours of interviews recorded in a studio before a live audience with Richard Burton in 1980.
Travel | Cuba
"The visual impact of this city [Havana], ranging from architectural elegance to the most abject decay, is enthralling, overwhelming."
- With news of the death of Fidel Castro, Cuban revolutionary, leader, and one of the most recognisable of twentieth century icons, Wales Arts Review publishes Jim Perrin's long travelogue on his time in Cuba from his 2002 collection, 'Travels with the Flea, and Other Eccentric Journeys'.
Interview | Guto Pryce - Super Furry Animals
"We’ve always had an internationalist outlook. We come from Wales, and we’re very proud of that. We care about our culture, but we’ve always been very outward looking."
In an exclusive interview Guto Pryce from the Super Furry Animals talks to Craig Austin about Brexit, Wales, the Labour Party and music.
Exclusive | Peter Finch and Elvis
"There are conspiracy theories by the dozen. He did not die. He was abducted by aliens. He’s been seen working in a garage out west; in a tyre shop in Merthyr Tydfil; he’s retired and living as an old man on the warm west coast."
- In an extract from his new book, the winding and wonderful, The Roots of Rock: From Cardiff to Mississippi and Back, Peter Finch explores the allure of Elvis, and the phenomenon that is the King's tribute acts.
Literature | Review
"[Autumn] is instead more of a meditation. A meditation on storytelling: how hope can be found through their telling and the fact that change, good and bad, can be wrought through them, for 'whoever makes up the story makes up the world.'"
- Carolyn Percy meditates on Ali Smith's latest work, 'Autumn'.
A Writer's Block | On Running a Retreat
"Because of the life I’ve led I’ve never run out of ideas and never suffered from the cliché of writer’s block... although the quality of what I write can take a nosedive, the blank page has only ever been a source of excitement for me."
- Chris Clement-Green charts her life as a writer, and how it led to running a writer's retreat in the hills of Powys.
Livestream | Land of Our Fathers
3 May 1979, South Wales. Thatcher is counting her votes, Sid Vicious is spinning in his grave and six Welsh miners are trapped down a coal mine…
Winner of Time Out's Critic's Choice and Fringe Show of the Year 2013, Chris Urch's critically acclaimed debut play is packed full of blistering comedy and echoes a generation of lost voices.
