Press Releases

Occasionally we will copy press releases here, in order to maintain a record for future reference.

Press Notice
20th February 2019

Wales — exploited by broadcasters, but never properly portrayed

A new article in Wales Arts Review (1) has slammed Welsh broadcasters and production companies for exploiting Wales and its excellent TV production facilities without ever attempting to give an in-depth portrayal of the country for a global audience.

Gareth Leaman, in an article about the popular new series called “Sex Education”, complains that the makers of the show have used Wales for their locations but have “stripped out” all mentions of Wales, presumably because they judged that any hint of “Welshness” would have reduced its sales potential and viewer appeal. He complains that "the filming of a major television series in Wales, but not setting it there, is somewhat problematic in that it has necessitated a complete erasure of any political or cultural resemblance to this country.” He goes on to say: "Welshness isn’t profitable: it has no value to international capital, and therefore has no cultural worth beyond (or even inside) its borders.”

Leaman broadens his attack, and says: "Ironically this is, in many ways, actually a perfect summation of ‘official Welsh culture’ at present: no real representation of ourselves on screen; a superficial idealisation of the natural landscape; exploitation of crumbling socio-political structures. Wales as a hyper-real netherworld in which decaying infrastructure can only be used as props to tell other people’s stories.”
And he is not the only critic. Sam Parry, angered by the MTV series called “The Valleys”, has also pointed out that on the rare occasions they appear on international screens, the Welsh are portrayed as "simple, poor, indolent and unable to cope on their own.”

In spite of the modest success of Celtic Noir dramas in recent years, there have been many criticisms of the main broadcaster (BBC Wales) and the Welsh Government for failing to promote Wales effectively through TV and film. Nine years ago a report coordinated by the University of Glamorgan (2) repeatedly made the point that the term "landmark television" appears to have morphed itself from the idea of flagship TV programmes ABOUT Wales into the idea of flagship programmes MADE IN Wales. In 2015 the Institute of Welsh Affairs complained that "Series such as Dr Who and Sherlock have been great international successes, and have brought economic benefit to Wales, but they have not contributed to representing Wales to the rest of the UK.” (3)

In a recent article Nia Jones complained: “Apart from the occasional Welsh accent in Casualty or mention of Wales in a small number of Doctor Who episodes, by and large, these dramas are set “elsewhere”. They do not directly represent a Welsh way of life. Even if Wales’s beauty is seen as an asset by BBC producers, Welsh issues have not been deemed worthy to commission shows for national audiences.” (4)

The head of BBC Wales, Rhodri Talfan Davies, and Head of Content Sian Gwynedd, have said very similar things on numerous occasions, and have protested that something must be done about it. But nothing HAS been done, and they are the ones in control. It is still the case — and still a cause for concern — there there has never been a landmark costume drama TV series set in Wales and made in Wales for a global audience (5).

In his 2017 Raymond Williams lecture, Michael Sheen (6) noted that our broadcasters feed us very largely on a British diet when much more of it should be specifically Welsh, if the identity of the nation is to be protected and even enhanced.

Now Welsh artist manager Stephen Svanholm has asked: "Why does Wales hide its identity when Scotland and Ireland flaunt theirs with pride?” The answer may lie in the timidity of the Welsh Government, which has placed great stress on building the Welsh TV industry and promoting Wales as a country in which to work on the telling of other people’s stories. Many successful TV series are currently being made in Wales, but they are not stories ABOUT Wales. In spite of requests, Ministers have refused to follow the example of Ireland, which declares that in assessing applications for financial support, “strong preference" will be given to projects that "tell Irish stories, drawing on and depicting Ireland's culture, history, way of life, view of the world and of itself.” In contrast, the Welsh guidelines simply say “When selecting projects the depiction of Welsh cultural content – Wales and Welsh life - whilst not essential, will be considered.” (7) As we know, this feeble guideline, in almost all cases, is simply ignored.

Commenting on the new article, Welsh writer Brian John said: “I agree with the points that Gareth is making. Wales makes valiant efforts to “sell itself” through the work of Visit Wales, but the marketing efforts are undermined by the “dumbing down” of Welsh TV programming and the failure of the Welsh Government to insist that the Welsh story is effectively told for a global audience.” Film Maker David Ball has said: "Wales will not nurture a domestic industry and will not have the opportunity to inform the world of its history until the culture of money making is succeeded by the need to maintain its cultural identity.” (8) TV producers Ed Talfan and Roger Williams have both said that the application procedure for funds from the Welsh Media Investment Budget is so onerous and prescriptive that they, and other small companies, prefer to have nothing to do with it.

It’s clear that in his Wales Arts Review article, Leaman is being highly critical of not just the TV production companies and the broadcasters but the politicans and the Welsh Government itself. In Wales, it appears that we lack both the motivation and the expertise to effectively sell ourselves to the outside world.

Eluned Morgan AM, Cabinet member in the Welsh Government. Her portfolio includes all matters cultural and media related.

NOTES

(1) https://www.walesartsreview.org/sex-education-accidental-e…/

(2) Blandford, S., Lacey, S., McElroy, R. and Williams, R. (2010) Screening the Nation: Wales and Landmark Television, Report for the BBC Trust/Audience Council Wales. ISBN: 978-1-84054-248-6.

(3) Welsh Affairs Committee – Inquiry into Broadcasting in Wales, December 15, 2015
Written evidence submitted by the Institute of Welsh Affairs (BIW 17)
http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/welsh-affairs-committee/broadcasting-in-wales/written/24206.html

(4) We’re seeing plenty of Welsh locations in BBC dramas – one day they may be shows about Wales
Nina Jones, The Conversation, March 2nd, 2018
https://theconversation.com/were-seeing-plenty-of-welsh-locations-in-bbc-dramas-one-day-they-may-be-shows-about-wales-92628

(5) “We will need to think hard about how we can strengthen our support for national and regional self-expression.” Rhodri Talfan Davies, Director, BBC Wales
“A national broadcaster should have something to say, not just something to make. " Ruth McElroy
"We should press for more and better content and programming made for Wales, in Wales and about all aspects of Welsh life, including our culture and heritage.” Ken Skates, Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Infrastructure 2016.
“The BBC Wales programming schedule has failed to capture and explore adequately the lives and experiences of Welsh communities.” Christine Chapman AM.

(6) In his 2017 Raymond William lecture, Michael Sheen claimed that the people of Wales are being short-changed by the broadcasters, who feed us largely on a "British" diet when much of it should be much more specifically Welsh. That is not to argue that Wales should be more introverted or parochial. He suggested that unless the current situation changes, the broadcasters will be complicit in the campaign to write Wales out of history and to deny Wales a recognition of its own character and its own narrative.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbVdA7zS8dE&feature=share

(7) http://www.ffilmcymruwales.com/attachments/article/93/Ffilm%20Cymru%20Wales%20Development%20Guidelines%202018.pdf

(8) David Ball and others have expressed great concern about the management of very big Welsh Government budgets for the support of the film and TV industries in Wales, and the control exerted by Pinewood Studios. One scandal has followed another:
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/films-welsh-government-gave-12m-13944789
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-44081643
http://brian-angelmountain.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-pinewood-deal-money-down-drain.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4816916/Ex-BBC-execs-paid-1-3m-despite-making-loss.html
and there has been more severe criticism quite recently from the Welsh Assembly Public Accounts Committee:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-47231099?mc_cid=7d425cb298&mc_eid=e8544fd014

Eve Myles -- the star of Keeping Faith. Very popular, and very dark.........

Richard Harrington, star of Hinterland. Much desolation, and not many smiles.......

7th February 2019

The strange link between a night of delirium and a publishing milestone

Welsh author Brian John is celebrating the sale of 100,000 copies of his “Angel Mountain” novels — exactly twenty years since he suffered from a night of delirium on the island of Gran Canaria.

It’s a spooky tale, and somewhat hard to believe, but he says that the creative urge to write the books came to him over the course of a single night when he was seriously ill. He says that he was struck down on a flight from Gatwick to Gran Canaria, suffering from a high temperature, splitting headache, heavy limbs and other flu-like symptoms. On arrival at the holiday apartment, he went straight to bed, and spent the whole night wide awake, in a delirious fever.

But during the hours of darkness, he says that he was “given” the life story of a young woman called Martha Morgan, who lived in the erly nineteenth century on a ruinous estate on the flank of Carningli, a small mountain near Newport in Pembrokeshire.

“The story was there in every detail,” he says, “narrated to me by Martha herself. I picked up a fast-moving and adventurous narrative, with all of the characters involved, all of the places, and even details of conversations. In the morning, the fever disappeared and I felt much better. When I told my wife about this strange experience, her response was simply to say that I’d better start writing!”
Brian — already a prolific author -- had never written any fiction before, but he obeyed his wife’s instruction, recording in detail everything that he could remember about the early episodes in the narrative. Two years later “On Angel Mountain” was published, with instant success. That title has just gone into its tenth printing, and it has been followed by seven other titles, each one following Martha’s adventures as she grows from pregnant, suicidal teenager to a powerful and very eccentric matriarch.
Now the books are counted among the best-selling fiction titles ever published in Wales — and Brian is still eternally grateful for one night of delirium and the voice that came out of the darkness.

“I’m in constant touch with my legion of fans,” he says, “and many of them wish that they could have been Mistress Martha! As I writer, I love the emotional bond that exists between reader and writer. But there is more to it than that, since this story is really the story of Wales, an allegory that just happens to have been set in Pembrokeshire and just happens to span six of the most momentous decades in Welsh history.”

Contact:
Brian John
Tel 01239-820470

Photos: Steve Mallett
Model: Rhiannon James

NOTES
http://www.brianjohn.co.uk/the-angel-mountain-saga.html
http://www.marthamorgan.co.uk