People should remember Thomas' words not his lifestyle, says Fisher

Charlie Fisher was one of the group of Swansea writers and artists known as the Kardomah Boys, named after the city centre cafe they frequented.

The 91-year-old, who now lives in Canada, was the guest speaker at the final event of the Swansea festival marking the 50th anniversary of Thomas's drink-binge death.

The Sunday evening festival event came a day after a reading at Westminster Abbey, with guests including Thomas' son and daughter, and Welsh Culture Minister Alun Pugh, which saw a wreath laid in the writer's memory.

Mr Fisher, a retired journalist, said he observes the way his friend is celebrated in the 21st Century with "incredulity".

Who else could write like that? - that's a gorgeous line, possibly the best in the English language Charlie Fisher

But the talent Thomas brought to bear in his poetry and short stories is too often overlooked in favour of lurid tales about his drinking, debts and marital infidelity, he said.

He told the BBC Wales: "When I see Dylan Thomas T-shirts being sold in Vancouver, for example, I just think that he has been caught up in an enormous cult of celebrity.

Poet's invented words

"They're all remembering Dylan. Dylan being drunk, Dylan being sick into the radio, Dylan failing to turn up, stories about Dylan - his visits from one house to another - Dylan the sponger, Dylan as an unreliable man, not paying back small debts and so on.

"But my appreciation for his verse, of course, deepens as the years go by. My memory of him grows sharper.

"Listen to this line: 'And the closer I move to death, the louder the sun blooms and the tusked, ramshackling sea exults.'

"Who else could write like that? That's a gorgeous line, possibly the best in the English language."

Mr Fisher said he first knew Thomas in class 4A at Swansea Grammar School, where they were among 350 pupils.

He said the boy who was become the best known Welsh writer of the 20th Century used to enjoy verbal games with other youngsters, taking a delight in the sound of nonsense words and phrases he had invented.

But it was soon apparent the young Thomas had an ability with the English language which was to set him apart from the others, he said.

He added: "There was no question of me competing with Dylan in poetry.

"I soon saw he was real poet and we were just making verses."