Portmeirion, the Welsh village with a riviera touch, turns 100

Portmeirion, famous as the little village offering a vision of the Italian riviera while sitting on a stunning part of the Welsh coastline, celebrates its centenary this Easter.

The creation of architect Sir Clough Williams-Ellis, designed and constructed by him between 1925 and 1975, Portmeirion is far more than an Italianate copy.

An eclectic mix of styles, architectural illusions and re-purposed structural gems collected from an array of grand buildings that faced decline and demolition in other locations, it also served as the backdrop to 1960s cult TV show The Prisoner.

"I wanted to prove that you could develop even a very beautiful place without defiling it: in fact, if you did it well enough, you could even add to what nature had given you," Sir Clough told the BBC in an interview in the 1970s.

However, it is the ongoing popularity with the wider public that keeps Portmeirion running, with about 250,000 people visiting the village in Gwynedd, north Wales, every year.

Portmeirion finance director Ian Roberts said: "We need to make sure we generate enough revenue for the upkeep of all these buildings, which is not cheap."

The village employs about 200 staff, which can rise to more 270 in summer.

The 61 bedrooms of the Portmeirion Hotel and Castell Deudraeth Hotel, and 13 holiday lets, are crucial to the business.

They need constant investment.

"We need to maintain our standards, and improve the standards," Roberts said.

"Possibly what was suitable in Clough's time is certainly not suitable now."

Portmeirion has become popular for weddings.

"We have quite a few local people and maybe people who have been coming here as children, with their families, so it's something special for them because they have been coming here for many years," sales manager Delyth Wyre said.

"I've got a couple getting married this August and they live in Canada. He's Scottish and she's Irish.

"They knew of Portmeirion and they used to come when we had Festival No 6, the music festival, here."

The festival, which took it's name from the The Prisoner, has not been held since 2018.

But Portmeirion has a series of concerts planned for summer as part of the centenary celebrations.

Bryn Terfel, Squeeze, Jools Holland and Welsh band Bwncath are all set to play.

They follow Richard Gere, Sir Sean Connery and Liam Neeson, who have all visited, stayed or acted in Portmeirion.

But Portmeirion is rooted in the Welsh-speaking community.

Portmeirion's location manager, Meurig Jones, said 90% of staff lived less than 20 miles away and all meetings were held in Welsh.

He added: "We're very proud of where we are. It's this location that makes Portmeirion what it is."