presentation on wales

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Wales - talking points

Wales (or Cymru  in Welsh) is the friendly, green, hilly country on the western side of Great Britain. We are about two hours west of London by rail or by road.

Although it’s also a part of Great Britain, Wales is a very different place from England. There’s our language: Welsh ( Cymraeg ) is one of the oldest languages in Europe , spoken by around one in five of the population – though we all speak English too. Then there’s the landscape. It’s green, lush and very hilly. The facts and figures could lead you to believe that Wales is small – it covers an area of just over 8,000 square miles (or 21,000 sq km). But if we could roll the country out flat, we bet it would be bigger than the state of Texas in the USA.

As well as our  five designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty –  now known as National Landscapes – we have three National Parks. That means we have lots of green open spaces – that are ideal for activities such as walking , cycling , golf , coasteering , mountain biking and paragliding .

The sea surrounds Wales on three sides, giving us a 1,680-mile (2,700 km) coastline with a varied succession of beaches, bays, headlands and harbours.

A part of the coastline in Pembrokeshire forms Britain’s only coastal-based National Park. Elsewhere, hundreds of miles of seashore fall within Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (National Landscapes) or have been declared Heritage Coast.

Our population currently stands at around 12.2 million – that’s three million people and nine million sheep – yet there’s still plenty of room!

We also have lots and lots of castles (more than 600 at the last count), the Welsh National Opera (one of the world’s premier opera companies), the largest single-span glasshouse in the world at the National Botanic Garden of Wales , and a cool flag with a red dragon on it .

Our capital city is Cardiff . The Romans had a fortress here in the first century AD, but Cardiff’s a lively youngster, really. It was officially designated the capital of Wales in 1955.

Our weather tends to be mild and variable. Visitors are often surprised by the long summer days, which are a consequence of our northerly latitude. It doesn’t get dark until 10pm in midsummer. Conversely, winter days are short. July is normally the warmest month in Wales, and the highest temperatures occur further away from the cooling breezes of the Atlantic.

Wales: fast facts

• The Red Dragon appears on the Welsh Flag . Legend has it that the Welsh King Vortigern was building his castle in the mountains of Eryri (Snowdonia), but the foundation stones kept disappearing. He consulted a young magician called Merlin (from Carmarthen), who told him that underneath the castle was a pool where two dragons lived – the white dragon of the Anglo-Saxons, and the red dragon of Wales. It was prophesied that they would continue to fight, red against white, until at last the dragon of Wales would triumph. A friendly rivalry lives on between the two nations of England and Wales – particularly on sporting occasions.
• Leeks and daffodils are both emblems of Wales. Legend has it that when Welsh soldiers were fighting the English on a muddy battlefield, the Welsh identified themselves to each other by wearing leeks from a nearby field in their helmets (and went on to win the battle). The daffodil has more recently become the national flower of Wales – perhaps because its Welsh name, cenhinen Bedr , translates as ‘Peter’s leek’. (More on the Symbols of Wales )
• Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon)  is the highest mountain in England and Wales. You can access the summit via the Snowdon Mountain Railway – the only rack-and-pinion railway in Britain – or take one of the seven main walking routes to the top. Sir Edmund Hillary and his team trained in the mountains of Eryri (Snowdonia) before their first successful assault on Everest.
• St David is the patron saint of Wales . There’s a cathedral bearing the saint’s name in St Davids, Pembrokeshire – Britain’s smallest city,  with fewer than 2,000 residents. Its city status was confirmed by Queen Elizabeth II in 1994.
• King Arthur is claimed as a Welsh hero, although a number of other places with Celtic connections also claim him as their own. Many locations in Wales are said to be associated with the Arthurian legends.
• Llyn Tegid in Bala is home to a unique fish known as the gwyniad . The species was left isolated in this single location at the end of the last ice age.
• The royal corgis once owned by HRH Queen Elizabeth II were a specific registered breed from Wales: Pembroke Welsh corgis. (More about corgis - a very Welsh dog breed )
• Britain’s only leech farm can be found in the south west of Wales. Biopharm Leeches was established in 1812, and moved to Hendy, near Swansea, in 1984.
• There’s an established population of rare red kites in Mid Wales, attracting birdwatchers from all over the world.
• Robert Recorde, the man who invented the equals sign (=), came from Tenby in Pembrokeshire.
• The smallest cathedral in Britain is at St Asaph, North Wales.
• Rupert Bear’s most famous illustrator, Alfred Bestall , lived in Beddgelert in Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park.
• Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland stories were inspired by Alice Liddell, who spent her childhood summers in Llandudno, on the North Wales coast.  There’s now an Alice in Wonderland trail in the town.
• The world’s fastest and Europe’s longest zip line is Zip World Velocity at Penrhyn Quarry. It’s at the heart of the Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Welsh gold has been used in wedding rings for the British Royal Family for over a century.
• The Great Little Trains of Wales are 12 narrow-gauge steam railways with spectacularly scenic routes. Many sections date back more than 100 years.
• The world’s first passenger-carrying railway ran along the seafront between Swansea and Mumbles on the South Wales coast. Established in 1804, it began passenger services in 1807 using horse-drawn vehicles. The railway closed in 1960.
• Built by Richard Trevithick, the world’s first operational steam locomotive ran between Merthyr Tydfil’s Penydarren ironworks and Abercynon in the South Wales Valleys in 1804 – beating Robert Stephenson’s Rocket by 25 years.
• The world’s first major suspension bridge was built in North Wales. Designed by Thomas Telford and completed in 1826, the Menai Suspension Bridge still provides a road traffic link between the island of Anglesey and the Welsh mainland, and is a Grade I listed structure.
• Walk the full 186 miles (299km) of the Pembrokeshire section of the Wales Coast Path , and you’ll cover 35,000 feet (10,667m) of ascent and descent – with no chance of altitude sickness!
• The last-ever attempted invasion of Britain took place at Fishguard on the Pembrokeshire coast, by an ill-equipped French force of 1,400 men on 22 February 1797. Legend has it that local women led by Jemima Nicholas dressed as soldiers, foiled the attempt. A tapestry in Fishguard tells the tale.
• With over 500 tranquil lakes and reservoirs in Wales , covering a total of about 50 square miles (130 sq km), there are plenty of opportunities for sailing, fishing and relaxing by the water.
• Wales was the first country in the world to establish a continuous path running along its entire coastline. The Wales Coast Path is 870 miles (1,400 km) long and offers endless views of secluded bays and pristine beaches.
• The Offa’s Dyke Path is a beautiful 177-mile (285 km) National Trail that links South and North Wales, tracing the England-Wales border. The dyke itself was built by Offa, king of Mercia from 757 to 796, to mark the border between his own lands and the Welsh kingdom of Powys.
• Visitors can follow in the footsteps of Owain Glyndŵr, Prince of Wales and a national hero , on Glyndŵr’s Way . The long-distance footpath loops through Mid Wales from Knighton to Welshpool, with spectacular views along its 135-mile (217 km) route.
• Around 1,200 miles (1,930 km) of the National Cycle Network are within Wales. The routes use a mixture of cycle lanes, traffic-calmed streets through urban areas, traffic-free paths along dismantled railways, canal towpaths, forestry roads and quiet country lanes.
• Many Welsh castles were built by Edward I of England. He declared his son and heir to be Prince of Wales , starting the tradition that the heir to the English throne was granted this title.
• There are over 600 castles and castle sites across Wales. Since 1986, Caernarfon, Conwy, Beaumaris and Harlech Castles have been part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site – the Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd.
• Wales is home to seven UNESCO sites . There are four World Heritage Sites (a title reserved only for the planet’s most significant landmarks): The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales , Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd , Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal and Blaenavon Industrial Landscape . Wales also has two Global Geoparks , GeoMôn in Anglesey and Fforest Fawr in Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons), and a Biosphere Reserve (the Dyfi Biosphere).
• Wales has been a popular filming location for TV and film productions for many years. Shows made here have included Doctor Who, Gavin and Stacey, Sex Education, His Dark Materials, Requiem, The Witcher and The Prisoner , which was set in Portmeirion. We have also provided the backdrop for international blockbusters such as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life .
• Welsh footballer Gareth Bale broke the record for the world's most expensive footballer when he was transferred to Real Madrid in 2013 for £85.1 million.
• Coasteering (a mix of swimming, jumping and scrambling along the coast) was invented in Pembrokeshire. It’s a thrilling way to explore the wonderful Welsh coastline.
• Llanwrtyd Wells in Mid Wales is home to the World Bog Snorkelling Championship , which takes place every year.
• Pendine Sands was used as a venue for car and motor cycle races in the early 1900s. Five world land speed records have been set there.
• Harlech Castle overlooks Royal St David’s Golf Club , the most famous course in North Wales.
• Harry Wilson from Wrexham is the youngest player to be capped for playing for Wales’ national football team . He made his debut at 16 years and 207 days.
• Rugby union is the national sport of Wales, although you’ll see football played here a lot as well.
• Wrexham AFC made headlines when it was purchased by two Hollywood stars, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. It’s the oldest football club in Wales, and the third-oldest in the world.

Cymraeg! The Welsh language

• Cymraeg (Welsh) is a thriving Celtic tongue , and is spoken by about half a million people in Wales.
• It’s known as Cymraeg (pronounced Kumreyeg), and is a language with entirely regular and phonetic spelling – although you wouldn’t necessarily know it to look at a word like ‘Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwll-llantysiliogogogoch’ (the longest place name in Wales - shortened by locals to Llanfair PG). Most Welsh words are a lot shorter, and once you know the rules, you can learn to read and pronounce Welsh fairly easily.
• The language has been in daily use in Wales for centuries . Although it’s mainly heard here, the language is also spoken in Y Wladfa, the Welsh colony in Patagonia, Argentina. You’ll also find Welsh speakers elsewhere within the UK, and in the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
• Cymraeg is a living language , used in conversation by thousands and heard throughout Wales. Legislation including the Welsh Language Act 1993 , the Government of Wales Act 1998 and the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 ensure that the Welsh and English languages are treated equally. Public bodies are required to prepare and implement a Welsh language scheme. Local councils and the Welsh Government use Welsh as an official language, issuing literature and publicity in Welsh as well as in English. Road signs in Wales are in both languages, and include the Welsh versions of place names.
• Studying Welsh is compulsory for all pupils in all state schools in Wales up to the age of 16. This has had a major effect in keeping the language alive and thriving.
• The language has greatly increased its prominence since the creation of the Welsh language television channel S4C in November 1982, which broadcasts exclusively in Welsh. There is also a Welsh language radio station, BBC Radio Cymru , which was launched in 1977.
• More recently, there has been celebrity interest in the language, with Wrexham AFC’s Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney speaking Welsh while promoting the club.
• The Welsh language was first heard across the airwaves on 13 February 1923, when the song Dafydd y Garreg Wen was broadcast from a tiny studio on Castle Street, Cardiff.

Our capital city: Cardiff (Caerdydd)

• Cardiff is a  sporting capital . The Principality Stadium has hosted countless big events – including the Rugby World Cup final and yearly Six Nations rugby matches, the UEFA Champions League final, the FA Cup final and League Cup final, football matches for the 2012 Summer Olympics, Wheelchair Rugby European Championships and Wales Rally GB. The city was a venue for the Volvo Ocean Race 2018 and the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup and the more recent Wheelchair Fencing World Cup.
• Cardiff was designated the world’s first Fairtrade capital , in a bid to encourage ethical trading and pay fair prices to producers in the developing world.
• Cardiff is one of the flattest cities in Britain, making the Cardiff Half Marathon a popular event for runners.
• National Museum Cardiff, part of Amgueddfa Cymru (the National Museum of Wales) has one of the biggest collections of Impressionist paintings outside Paris .
• The £1.8 billion development of Cardiff Bay was Europe’s largest waterfront regeneration project – and the opening of the £106 million Wales Millennium Centre helped turn Cardiff into an important destination for leisure and business travel.
• Cardiff is known as a vibrant centre of learning . Cardiff University, Cardiff Metropolitan University, the University of South Wales and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama all have campuses there.
• The first time the British Royal Family were captured on film was in 1896. Pioneering cinematographer Birt Acres filmed the Prince and Princess of Wales visiting the Cardiff Industrial and Fine Art Exhibition.
• Award-winning singer Dame Shirley Bassey was born in Cardiff's Tiger Bay in 1937. She is one of the best-selling female artists of all time.
• Cardiff has one of the oldest Somali communities in the UK.
• The author Roald Dahl was born in Cardiff and was christened in its Norwegian church.
• Robert Falcon Scott’s ill-fated 1910 expedition to the Antarctic set off from Cardiff – though without its leader. Scott joined the Terra Nova in South Africa.
• The Coal Exchange in Cardiff is reputedly where Britain’s first million-pound deal was struck.
• Cardiff has the oldest record shop in the world – Spillers , established in 1894.
• The director of Hollywood films Return of the Jedi and Jagged Edge was the Cardiff-born Richard Marquand.
• Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp grew out of a women’s peace march that started from Cardiff in August 1981.
• Author Bernice Rubens – the first woman to win the Booker prize , for The Elected Member in 1970 – was born and brought up in Cardiff.
• The cartoon characters  Superted  and  Sam Tân (Fireman Sam)  were created in Cardiff in the 1980s – originally in Welsh to be shown on S4C, Wales’s Welsh-language television channel. They were later translated into English.
• In 1896, a hospital for sailors suffering from cholera was built on Flat Holm island , around five miles from Cardiff in the Bristol Channel. This helped prevent epidemics of the disease breaking out in Cardiff.
• In 1987, David Bowie headlined the first rock concert staged at Cardiff Arms Park.
• The famous landscape architect Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown was involved in laying out Bute Park in the 18th century.
• Michael Barratt, better known as singer Shakin’ Stevens , was born in Ely, Cardiff on 4 March 1948.
• Ken Follett , author of Eye of the Needle, Lie Down with Lions and On Wings of Eagles was born in Cardiff in 1949.
• Sir Anthony Hopkins , who has twice won the Oscar for Best Actor – for The Silence of the Lambs (1992) and The Father (2021) – was a student at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in the 1950s.
• Cardiff-born David Ivor Davies, better known as Ivor Novello , was a composer, singer and actor who became one of the most popular entertainers of the early 20th century.

Business in Wales

• There are 149,045 students enrolled at the eight universities in Wales.  
• Wales has a higher rate of active graduate start-ups than any other country in the United Kingdom, accounting for 13.25% of the total UK figure.  
• At just under two hours by train, Wales is the closest UK capital city to London.  
• From its headquarters in Cardiff, IQE has a 55% global market share in compound semiconductor technology – so your smartphone probably contains a little piece of Wales.  
• Wales is home to more than 100 cyber security companies and is a founding member of the Global Epic initiative. We have an internationally recognised cyber ecosystem, boosted by Cyber Wales – one of the largest cyber forums in the UK, with over 2,000 active members.  
• Wales was the birthplace of the insurance aggregator, and is now one of the UK’s top emerging fintech hubs.  
• Wales has a rich heritage in manufacturing, employing more than 150,000 people in the sector.  
• The life sciences sector in Wales has over 260 companies across all disciplines, with established clusters of excellence in medtech, in-vitro diagnostics, single-use technology and wound care.  
• The UK’s first commercial offshore wind farm was North Hoyle, located off the coast of North Wales.  
• Wales was the first nation in the world to declare a climate emergency.  
• Wales was the first country in the world to create an independent office to act as a guardian of future generations. The Future Generations Commissioner for Wales is responsible for providing advice and support on sustainable development, encouraging government and public bodies to take a longer-term view on policy decisions, and to protect and promote the needs of future generations.

Creative industries in Wales

• Wales is a nation brimming with creative talent. The creative industries employ more than 35,000 people across film, TV, animation, games, music and publishing, generating an annual turnover of £1.7 billion.  
• Our talented workforce, well-developed infrastructure and breathtakingly diverse landscape have attracted major production companies to work in Wales – including Bad Wolf, Netflix and Lucasfilm.  
• Wales has a broad range of initiatives for the commercial music industry and musicians, providing funding for grassroots venues and businesses. We have superb venues, festivals, promoters, studios and record labels. Our international stars include Stereophonics, Super Furry Animals, Funeral for a Friend and Manic Street Preachers.  
• Across our nation, games developers are producing interactive masterpieces, with strong hubs in South East and North East Wales. From here, brands such as Wales Interactive and Tiny Rebel Games make their way to screens across the world.

Find out more about the creative industries in Wales and the funding and support available on the creative.wales website.

A taste of Wales - food and drink

Welsh food and drink is a secret worth sharing. Welsh food has a long-established reputation for distinctiveness and quality. Our nation prides itself on supplying some of the finest produce, and we value freshness and variety.

Traditional Welsh foods include cheeses, crempog (pancake), bara brith and cawl – a rich stew made with bacon, Welsh lamb and vegetables including Wales’ emblem, the leek.

A great way to find out about food in Wales is to visit a local farmers’ market. These are held at many locations throughout Wales, letting you buy food direct from producers.

Swansea Market is the largest and most fascinating food market in Wales. Visitors can sample a range of Welsh delicacies, including cockles from Penclawdd and laverbread. Fresh, locally caught fish can also be bought here.

Laverbread: Laver is an edible seaweed commonly found on the coast of South West Wales. It needs to be prepared at great length – by washing many times, boiling for up to five hours, and draining to form a gelatinous puree. It is usually mixed with fine oatmeal, formed into small cakes and fried in bacon fat.

Laver sauce: This is particularly good with shellfish and lobster. The laver needs to be prepared as for laverbread, and is then heated and whisked with orange juice, butter, cream and mutton (or lamb) stock.

Welsh cakes: The Welsh cake is a traditional Welsh snack, somewhat similar to a scone. The cakes ( picau ar y maen in Welsh) are sometimes known as bakestones because they are traditionally cooked on a bakestone – a thick cast-iron griddle that’s placed on the fire or cooker.

Bara brith: In past times, the stove was lit once a week in Welsh homes for baking day. As the heat began to fade, a handful of currants would be added to the last of the bread dough, and the speckled loaf became valued as a treat. This spiced, honey-glazed fruit bread is still produced all over Wales.

Welsh rarebit: Welsh rarebit, or caws pobi is an ideal savoury snack. It consists of toasted bread covered in a thick cheese sauce, often made with ale and mustard.

Crempog: These are thick Welsh pancakes, served hot and buttered. Traditionally, the filling would be whatever the cook had to hand, or the household liked the most. A savoury crempog, hot and fresh, makes an excellent starter.

Glamorgan sausages: These are made to a vegetarian recipe, mainly from grated cheese mixed with breadcrumbs, herbs and chopped leeks or onions.

Cheese: A wide range of award-winning cheeses are made by independent producers in Wales. One example is Caws Cenarth, which makes farmhouse Caerphilly – a traditional crumbly Welsh cheese – along with a range of other artisan cheeses including Perl Las and Perl Wen. The family farm with its own herd of cows is fully organic, and no artificial fertilisers, insecticides or pesticides are used.  www.cawscenarth.co.uk  

Meat: The world-famous Welsh Black beef and Welsh mountain lamb are featured on menus in pubs and restaurants all over Wales.

Thanks to leading chefs across Britain, mutton is enjoying a revival in our kitchens. Mutton (meat from fully grown sheep) has a particularly rich, gamey flavour, making it suitable for casseroles and hearty stews. Graig Farm Organics is known for its award-winning produce – not just Welsh mutton, but sustainably caught fish, rabbit, pheasant and a range of other organic goods. www.graigfarm.co.uk

The Beacons Farm Shop at the Welsh Venison Centre, in the heart of the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) National Park is a family firm that observes the highest standards in animal welfare. It produces premium-quality Middlewood Welsh lamb as well as venison.  www.beaconsfarmshop.co.uk

Gower Salt Marsh Lamb gets its distinctive flavour from the coastal marshlands on which the sheep graze. In 2021, it became the first product to be awarded UK Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status, preventing imitation and guaranteeing its quality. www.gowersaltmarshlamb.co.uk

• Afon Mêl Honey Farm: This is the largest honey farm in Wales, with 500 hives across the counties of Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire. The unspoilt countryside of this part of West Wales means the honey comes almost entirely from wild plants that grow in the hedgerows, valleys and clifftops, such as sycamore, hawthorn, willow, clover and blackberry. As well as its range of raw honeys, the farm also produces award-winning mead, preserves and even skincare products. www.afonmel.com  
• Penderyn distillery: Launched in 2004, Penderyn was the first new whisky distillery to open in Wales for more than 100 years. It now produces its multi-award-winning spirits at three locations: its original Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) headquarters, a second distillery in Llandudno, and a third in Swansea Copperworks. As well as its range of single malt whiskies, Penderyn makes gin, vodka, rum and a cream liqueur, and exports to over 50 countries. www.penderyn.wales  
• Celtic Spirit Company: The Celtic Spirit Company is based near Holyhead, Anglesey. It produces a range of spirits and liqueurs, including the award-winning Black Mountain fruit brandy and Danzy Jones whisky liqueur. www.celticspirit.co.uk  
• SA Brain & Co Ltd: Having been in the brewing business for more than 130 years, Brains is proud of its strong Welsh heritage. The company brings together centuries of brewing tradition and a willingness to innovate. The beers produced at the company’s Dragon brewery in Cardiff include time-honoured favourites such as Brains Bitter, Dark and SA, and newer additions including Bayside Welsh Lager and Barry Island IPA. www.sabrain.com  
• Food Festivals: Wales’ culinary calendar includes a wealth of food festivals throughout the year, celebrating the nation’s great flavours. Popular events include Cardiff International Food and Drink Festival, Cardigan River and Food Festival, Abergavenny Food Festival and Barmouth Food Festival. The events are a great opportunity to taste, talk about and buy the best local produce directly from farmers and producers. www.visitwales.com/things-do/events/festivals/welsh-food-festivals

Statistics and data correct at time of writing - page last updated February 2024.

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Where's Wales? Is Welsh similar to English? And is Wales a good place to visit? Read and find out!

Instructions

Do the preparation task first. Then read the article and do the exercises to check your understanding.

Preparation

Wales is one of the countries in Britain and the United Kingdom. It’s a small country with England to the east. Wales has got a continuous coastline, around 1,300km long, which means there are a lot of beaches! It has some of the most beautiful beaches in the UK and is a popular destination for holidaymakers and water sports fans. As well as beaches, there are a lot of mountains and also three national parks, including Snowdonia. It is in north Wales and its highest mountain, Snowdon, is 1,085m. The population of Wales is just over three million people, around five per cent of the total UK population. Most Welsh people live in south Wales in the capital city, Cardiff, and two other big cities: Swansea and Newport. In Cardiff you can go shopping, visit the castle, go to the museum or go to a concert or sports match at the famous Millennium Stadium.

The official languages of Wales are English and Welsh and ‘Wenglish’ is a Welsh-English dialect. Everyone speaks English, but if you go to school in Wales you have to learn Welsh until you are 16. Street signs are written in Welsh and English, and villages, towns and cities have an English name and a Welsh name. For example, the capital city is Cardiff or Caerdydd. One of the longest place names in the world is a village in Wales called Llanfairpwllgwingyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllandysiliogogogoch. 

The Welsh language is an old, Celtic language which is very different from English. For example, the Welsh name for ‘Wales’ is ‘Cymru’, ‘Good morning’ is ‘Bore da’ and ‘How are you?’ is ‘Sut mae?’. It is one of the oldest languages in Europe and around 20 per cent of people in Wales speak Welsh. 

The Welsh people love music and there are a lot of singing festivals and competitions in Wales. One of the largest cultural festivals in Europe is the National Eisteddfod of Wales, which is in a different town or city every year. All the events are in Welsh and include literature, singing, art, exhibitions, dance and theatre. Famous singers and groups from Wales include Duffy, Stereophonics and Catatonia.

The Welsh enjoy watching and playing sport, especially rugby union and football. Wales has its own football league and famous Welsh footballers include Ryan Giggs and Gareth Bale. The modern Millennium Stadium in Cardiff can hold 74,500 spectators and is where you go if you want to watch a football or rugby match or even a pop concert. In 2014 Cardiff was the European Capital of Sport.

Water sports are popular in Wales. You can go surfing, wakeboarding (a combination of waterskiing, snowboarding and surfing) or coasteering (climbing up rocks and jumping into the sea).

If you like unusual sports, visit the small town of Llanwrtyd Wells. Every year in this town there is a man versus horse marathon and a bog snorkelling competition. Bog snorkelling is similar to swimming in extremely dirty water.

There are lots of sheep in Wales, so people eat a lot of lamb. Typical Welsh dishes include ‘cawl’ which is lamb stew, Glamorgan sausages and ‘rarebit’ which is a type of cheese on toast. There are also Welsh cakes, which are small, sweet, round cakes with dried raisins inside.

If you ever go to Wales, you will see dragons everywhere! Not real ones, of course, but a red dragon appears on the national flag of Wales. The patron saint of Wales is St David, who is celebrated on 1 March. Other symbols of Wales include the leek (a long, green vegetable) and the daffodil (a white or yellow flower).  

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WALES PRESENTATION

Created on March 25, 2022

More creations to inspire you

Countries lesson 5 group 7/8.

Presentation

STAGE2- LEVEL1-MISSION 2: ANIMATION

Libraries librarians, world wildlife day, food and nutrition, iau@hlpf2019, spring in the forest 2.

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6. LANDSCAPE

4. CELEBRITIES

1. INTRODUTION

Part of the United KingdomBordered by England to the eastPopulation of 3,170,000 CardiffPrime minister: Mark DrakefordLocal governamentUnited Kingdom

- Introduction

Tipical thingsfrom wales: wool (sheep), cheeses, leek soup, tea etc...Welsh languageNational sport: RugbyChristians

National day: 1st march: Saint David's day

1282conquered by King Edward I of Englandimpose his dominationbuilt: large castlessuch: Beaumaris, CaernarfonBig impact from the industrial revolution

Independent for long periods Romans domination

Agricultural society into an industrial nation

actor17 november 1978Lucifer Morningstar - Lucifer

Writter 13 september 1916-23 novembre 1990 James and the Giant Peach

4 - Celebrities

highest peak in Wales,England

North Wales

The Dee Valley

6 - Landskapes

https://www.visitanglesey.co.uk/en/things-to-do/activities/beaumaris-castle/#.YnKEcvpBzb0

https://www.voyageursdumonde.fr/voyage-sur-mesure/voyages/guide-voyage/pays-de-galles/infos-pratiques/hommes

https://fr.vikidia.org/wiki/Pays_de_Galles

https://delveintoeurope.com/landscapes-in-wales/

7 - Sources

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Getting to know Wales

This lesson plan for teachers of teenagers and adults at intermediate level explores the theme of Wales. Learners will develop their knowledge of Wales, as well as practising their vocabulary and listening skills.

Introduction

This lesson is part of a series of plans based on interviews with people from around the UK. It focuses on developing learners’ knowledge of a part of the UK, as well as practising their vocabulary and listening skills. It also aims to help their ability to take notes while listening to quite a challenging audio script.

Topic: Life in Wales

CEFR level B1/B2

60 minutes +

• To develop learners’ knowledge of Wales
• To develop learners’ ability to listen to and extract information from a difficult authentic listening
• To develop learners’ intensive listening

The lesson plan, worksheet and audio files are downloadable - right click on the attachments below to save them on your computer.

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Welsh Language

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Croeso i Gymru! This template is the perfect tool for anyone looking to deliver a captivating presentation on the Welsh language. Use the cool slides of the country’s flag and let our favorite distinctive flag animal take over your presentation: the famous red dragon! Write facts about this unique culture, explain the basics of this interesting language on this template and grab your audience's attention from the get-go. The customizable slide layouts and ease-of-use features will create a polished presentation that has never been easier. Save yourself the headache of creating a presentation from scratch and let our Welsh language culture template do the work for you. Download it now and take your audience on a journey through the heart of Wales!

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All About Wales

Subject: Geography

Age range: 11-14

Resource type: Lesson (complete)

Last updated

28 February 2014

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A picture of strength, dignity and courage: Tatler commissions British-Zambian artist Hannah Uzor to honour the Princess of Wales for its third annual cover portrait

By Helen Rosslyn

THE FUTURE QUEEN: A NEW PORTRAIT OF THE PRINCESS OF WALES BY ARTIST HANNAH UZOR, COMMISSIONED FOR TATLER ’S JULY 2024 COVER

To celebrate the Platinum Jubilee in 2022, Tatler commissioned a portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by a Commonwealth artist for the July front cover. The portrait, by Nigerian artist Oluwole Omofemi, was followed in July 2023 by Trinidadian artist Sarah Knights’s portrait of the newly crowned King Charles III. Together, they sowed the germ of an idea, which has recently borne fruit as a new artists’ residency. The Akoje Residency was announced earlier this year, founded by rugby star Maro Itoje and his business partner Khalil Akar in collaboration with the King’s Foundation, for African, Caribbean and diasporic artists to spend time at Dumfries House in Scotland to focus on their artistic practice. In tandem with this exciting development, Tatler is delighted to commission a third portrait in the series . What better way to show our support than to choose as a subject our much-loved and highly respected Princess of Wales – and who better to paint her than fellow mother-of-three, British-Zambian artist Hannah Uzor?

THE PORTRAIT IS THE THIRD IN A SERIES OF COMMONWEALTH PORTRAITS WHICH TATLER HAS COMMISSIONED: PICTURED, THE QUEEN ON THE COVER OF JULY 2022

By Isaac Bickerstaff

By Annabel Sampson

TATLER HERALDED A NEW ROYAL ERA WITH A HISTORIC PORTRAIT OF KING CHARLES III ON THE COVER OF THE JULY 2023 ISSUE

Uzor first shot to prominence in 2020 when she undertook a wide-reaching project using portraits to highlight historical figures of the African diaspora who had played a part in English history and the complex relationships they had with Victorian society. Her striking portrait of Sara Forbes Bonetta came to the attention of English Heritage and became the catalyst for their major initiative Painting Our Past. Inspired by Uzor’s work, the charity went on to commission five other portraits from five other artists, an achievement of which Uzor is rightly very proud. ‘Sara’s story is very important because it helps to bring the complete story of our history and to question some of our own prejudices,’ she says.

I talk to Uzor as her first solo show is opening at the Niru Ratnam gallery in Fitzrovia. She recently finished an MA at the Slade School of Fine Art, where, in 2021, she won the inaugural Milein Cosman Scholarship for Drawing. She has been given just three weeks to complete the Tatler commission but is unfazed by the challenge. ‘I work quickly,’ she says. ‘Once I start painting, it will only take me two or three days.’

UZOR, PICTURED AT HER HOME IN ST ALBANS WHERE SHE HAS BEEN WORKING FROM A SPARE ROOM SINCE WELCOMING HER SON, GABRIEL, THREE MONTHS AGO

She tells me that her practice is driven by her interest in history, particularly diasporic culture and its manifestation in personal and public memory. The act of researching and observation is just as important to her in building a picture of the sitter as the research material she discovers. Each body of work is centred on a particular research focus, drawing from a variety of references, including archival images, historical paintings, family photographs and literature.

For this commission, she predicts that she will spend a lot more time preparing and researching than actually painting. There is a lot of material to cover – there are more than 189,000 pictures of the Princess of Wales in the Getty Images archive, she tells me. But she doesn’t seem daunted and intends to look at as many photos as she possibly can before basing the final work on a composite image.

‘When you can’t meet the sitter in person, you have to look at everything you can find and piece together the subtle human moments revealed in different photographs: do they have a particular way of standing or holding their head or hands? Do they have a recurrent gesture?’ Has the recent video released by the Princess of Wales’s household, in which she explains her cancer diagnosis, given Uzor a new perspective? ‘Without a doubt,’ she replies. ‘All my portraits are made up of layers of a personality, constructed from everything I can find about them.’ The video has added another layer to Uzor’s reading of the princess, showing ‘a moment of dealing with something difficult, speaking from the heart, having the courage to tackle it head-on’.

MEETING THE MONARCH: UZOR WITH KING CHARLES III IN JANUARY 2023 DURING HIS TOUR OF THE AFRICA CENTRE, A SOUTH LONDON-BASED CHARITY

Uzor places a lot of emphasis on how both the visible and invisible parts of a character can be revealed through a painting. She works with acrylics and will start with the background, which she will paint in a colour wash. For the Princess of Wales, she already has a colour in mind: ‘A green-blue, which I chose based on her eye colour and also trying to get elements of being in a garden and on water – rowing being one of her [favourite] sports and in some pictures.’

The next step will be the figure, which she will construct from elements pulled together from the countless photographs she has used for inspiration. The important thing for her in any portrait is to convey the layers of the subject’s personality – in this case, more specifically to capture the dichotomy between the public persona and the private. Uzor expresses huge admiration for the Princess of Wales: ‘She has really risen up to her role – she was born for this. She carries herself with such dignity, elegance and grace.’

‘I CAN’T QUITE REMEMBER WHEN I PAINTED MY FIRST PORTRAIT', UZOR PICTURED IN HER STUDIO AT HER HOME

Uzor’s palpable confidence comes from a lifetime of expressing herself through art. From as early as she can recall, she would record her memories through drawing. Her father remembers how, when she was a very young child, they went on a road trip together and when they got home, she painted the whole journey in detail. ‘I think a lot of my work has to do with evoking a memory,’ she says, ‘the spectator looking in at a moment in time.’

She was born Hannah Hasiciimbwe in Lusaka, Zambia, in 1982, but came to England with her parents as a baby and lived here until the age of two, ‘so I started walking and talking in England’. The family returned to Zambia, where Uzor spent her formative school years. She remembers constantly doodling and finds it difficult now to pinpoint exactly when she painted her first portrait: ‘I can’t quite remember because I have been painting for so long. It was probably during my teenage years and probably a portrait of one of my siblings, as I was always painting them.’

A BRUSH WITH THE PAST: UZOR WITH HER 2022 PORTRAIT OF SARA FORBES BONETTA, GODDAUGHTER OF QUEEN VICTORIA. THE PAINTING WENT ON DISPLAY AT THE QUEEN’S FORMER SUMMER RESIDENCE, OSBORNE HOUSE ON THE ISLE OF WIGHT

As she progressed in high school, it became apparent that her father was counting on her to ‘do something sensible’, so she put her art to one side and returned to the UK to study for a BA in computer studies, going on to work in business development and digital marketing. For her creative outlet, she turned to music, and it was during this time that she met and married her husband, Peter, through their church, where she sang and he played the guitar. Peter is a software developer, but Uzor also describes him as ‘a creative in music’ and music clearly plays an important part in their home life. Their two eldest children, Nathan, 11, and Rinnah, seven, both sing and play piano; Nathan is also a drummer.

Uzor’s mother died in 2016, which was a life-changing moment for her. It prompted her to return to her real passion: painting. She enrolled at Kensington and Chelsea College (now Morley College), where she was the winner of the 2021 Higher Education Award. She doesn’t regret her years in the corporate sector at all; in fact, she attributes much of the way she approaches a project to the discipline required in her former working life. ‘It taught me to respect deadlines,’ she explains.

‘ELEANOR XINIWE – UNPARALLELED BEAUTY’, 2021

SELF-PORTRAIT, 2022

‘PRINCE ALEMAYEHU OF ETHIOPIA – LONGING FOR HOME’, 2021

She is clearly exceptionally capable and organised. As we speak, she keeps her three-month-old baby, Gabriel, occupied on her lap throughout our conversation. ‘My studio was previously in central London, but since Gabriel, I have painted at home,’ she says. The wall behind her is covered in pink and green sticky notes – not randomly stuck on a board, but arranged in a regular grid – on which she has written exactly what she is going to do and when. Knowing my own approach to lists – to write them endlessly and then ignore them – I ask her whether she follows these instructions. ‘Absolutely,’ she says. ‘I would be lost without them. At the moment, I try to work mostly at night, when the children are asleep, and do my best to keep family time on Saturdays.’

When I ask about her artistic influences, she cites Toulouse Lautrec ‘because he both paints and draws’, as does she. I can see the same sense of balance in her work, the subject often sitting off-centre against a complementary background. She also admires Gauguin for colour and Cézanne for construction; and her contemporary art heroes include Kerry James Marshall, Barbara Walker and Yinka Shonibare, all of whom she admires for the importance of history to their work.

What she doesn’t mention, but what strikes me as I am talking to this articulate, confident yet unassuming artist, is how many qualities she seems to share with her subject. Both have three young children whose importance to them ranks more highly than anything else. ‘I sense with her the joy of motherhood,’ Uzor says. Yet both women appear to juggle family life and high-achieving professional roles with a skill that belies this complexity. Uzor dismisses it simply as ‘passion – if you believe in it enough, you will make it work’.

THE FINISHED PORTRAIT OF THE PRINCESS OF WALES, IN WHICH UZOR SOUGHT TO CAPTURE THE PRINCESS' DIGNITY, ELEGANCE AND GRACE

This article was originally published in the July 2024 issue of Tatler, on sale 30 May

By Harriet Johnston

By Ben Jureidini

Gwent town shares success stories as it hosts delegates from European embassies

A Gwent town hosted foreign delegates from various European embassies and showed off some of the best of what it has to offer.

Local MP David Davies guided senior diplomats through a series of Chepstow success stories during the visit on Friday, May 24.

The tour began with a presentation from the Monmouthshire Ukrainian Group in Chepstow (MUGiC).

Kateryna Khodzhhaieva, the secretary of MUGiC, explained the group's launch and the challenges faced by Ukrainians due to the ongoing war in their homeland.

She emphasised the support provided to Ukrainian settlers in Monmouthshire and expressed gratitude for the warm welcome from the local community.

Mr Davies said: “It was fantastic to welcome senior foreign diplomats and highlight some of the positive things happening in Chepstow.

“The delegation spoke highly of the Ukrainian ladies, who left a lasting impression.”

They also visited the Welsh Luxury Hamper Co, on Welsh Street, where Abi Chamberlain shared her journey of building a successful business after leaving university due to a learning disability.

Voted the Best Luxury Hamper Company in Wales, Miss Chamberlain exports high-quality Welsh food and drink globally and serves as a young ambassador for The Princes Trust, striving to inspire other neuro-diverse entrepreneurs.

He added: “Abi is a shining example to us all and hopefully there will be a few embassies stocking up on her hampers after this visit!

“I also wanted to show what can be achieved by volunteers and the story of the Severn Princess inspires people everywhere.”

Notably, the ferry transported famous personalities such as Bob Dylan, The Beatles, and royalty.

Australia's largest coal-fired power plant Eraring in Lake Macquarie to stay open for two extra years

The Eraring Power Station in Lake Macquarie will remain open for an additional two years beyond its original 2025 closure date in a deal between Origin and the NSW state government. 

Under the agreement, the state government would not make up-front payments to Origin, but would cover losses of up to $225 million a year.

The power station will close in August 2027 allowing a "orderly exit from coal-fired power" to "ensure lights stay on for homes", according to the state government. 

Analysis from the Australian Energy Market Operator found without Eraring, the state would face energy reliability issues from 2025. 

The coal-fired power station is the largest in the country, supplying a quarter of NSW's power needs.

Environment Minister Penny Sharpe said that under the deal, Origin would also need to share profits with the state.

The company would have until March each year to decide if they will opt-in to the agreement for the following financial year.  

"If Origin opts in and Eraring generates a profit, it must share that profit — up to $40 million a year," she said.

"This ensures that the transition to renewables can be delivered without exposing the people of New South Wales to blackouts or to price spikes."

The government previously ruled out a state takeover of the plant. 

NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said the government was not "handing over a cheque" to Origin.

"This is a finely calibrated risk sharing arrangement," he said.

Ms Sharpe said the closure of Eraring would not impact on the state government's emissions reductions targets for 2030, but admitted they did need more renewable energy in the system to meet those targets.

Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the NSW government had done a "good job" balancing reliable energy supply and the renewable transition. 

"This is not a delay – some people expected all four units to be delayed by five years, that hasn't happened," he said. 

"Two units by two years I think strikes a reasonable balance."

Greens criticise extension, union welcomes local jobs

Marilyne Crestias, interim CEO at Clean Energy Investor Group, said she hoped the government did not set a precedent for other coal fired power stations.

"Delaying the closure of Eraring not only jeopardises our renewable energy goals but also undermines efforts to combat climate change and secure a sustainable energy future," she said.

Hunter Community Environment Centre researcher Paul Winn said some local residents were 'bitterly disappointed' by the decision. 

"The people of Lake Macquarie... have to suffer the pollution of this facility for another two years, the expectation was always that these facilities had a limited life," he said.

"I think the owners of Eraring, have been running it with the intention that it's going to close, so obviously the maintenance and so forth has been a poor over the last several years.

"That's leading to significant increase in pollution coming from the facility, which we're all going to have to suffer from for another two years, which is not great."

The NSW Greens have condemned the extension deal. 

Greens spokesperson for Energy and Treasury Abigail Boyd said the government was "dragging its feet" on the transition to clean energy. 

"We have two paths ahead of us — either we choose to keep pandering to the fossil fuel industry by keeping coal-fired power stations open longer than they need to be, or we urgently invest in publicly-owned renewables," she said. 

Tony Phillips, Origin's group manager of coal asset operations at Eraring said news of the extension had been welcomed inside the plant.

"I do want to say how proud I am of the people at site," he said.

"They've been going through a number of years of uncertainty now and their performance has been outstanding."

There have been concerns that the closure of Eraring would also mean job losses at local mines, some of which send all or half of their coal to Eraring.

Mr Phillips said discussions were ongoing with several suppliers, including its major supplier Centennial Coal.

"It is important that we can we can source competitively priced coal, because that helps with affordability for our customers," he said

The Mining and Energy Union said it was a "good decision" for workers at the power station and the community. 

"Our members have continually told me over the years that if that power station comes offline at this point in time that there is a threat that there could be blackouts in New South Wales," Northern District Mining President Robin Williams told ABC Radio Newcastle.

A component of the extension agreement is that Origin must maintain its current workforce and provide a plan to the state government for the transition of Eraring employees in the future.

The full detail of the agreement will be tabled in NSW parliament in the next sitting week.

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