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BBC Radio 4 - 92 to 94 FM and 198 Long Wave

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OPEN COUNTRY

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	PROGRAMME INFO

	Saturday 6.10-6.35am Repeated Thursday 1.30-2.00pm


	From Shetland to the Scilly Isles, Open Country travels the UK in search of the stories, the people and the wildlife that make our countryside such a vibrant place. Each week we visit a new area to hear how local people are growing the crops, protecting the environment, maintaining the traditions and cooking the food that makes their corner of rural Britain unique. Email: [email protected] Postal address: Open Country, BBC Radio 4, Birmingham, B5 7QQ.


	LISTEN AGAIN


	Listen to Open Country for 25 June 2005


	PRESENTERS

	HELEN MARK and RICHARD URIDGE



	More about Helen Mark




	More about Richard Uridge


	PROGRAMME DETAILS

	Saturday 25 June 2005
Nant Gwrtheyrn Located on the Llyn Peninsula, Nant Gwrtheyrn is a picturesque quarry village with two rows of traditional quarry worker houses, a "plas" (a mansion) and a chapel which today has been transformed into an information centre. Standing majestically behind the village is the Eifl Mountain and in front of it the sea stretches out towards Angelsey. The village has been the home of the Welsh Language and Heritage Centre since 1978, but Nant Gwrtheyrn's history goes back at least two thousand years. People have settled in the area surrounding Nant Gwrtheyrn since the Iron Age. Tre'r Ceiri nearby, one of Wales' most impressive Iron Age hill forts, is testimony to this. It is amidst this beautiful location that Richard Uridge faces his fears. Not of spiders or things that go bump in the night but the Welsh Language. The sight of a mere road sign can bring him out in a sweat, but after a visit to a Welsh language class, his fears are well and truly laid to rest. Was it the expert tuition from teacher Eleri? The encouragement and enthusiasm of his class mates? The beautiful surroundings steeped in Welsh quarrying history? Or was it perhaps just the sheer magic of the place? As Richard walks through the landscape with local historian Gwilym Jones it is clear to see that the legacy of the area's industrial past lives on. Orange rusted quarry works are dotted across the coast line like an avant garde sculpture garden blending with the landscape that nature, in such a short time, has healed. The sea stretches out before them and on a clear day, the shores of Ireland can be seen and brimming with wildlife it is not unusual to spot the rare chough, wild mountain goats or a seal in the sea near by. Maggie Evans shares her memories of community life in the quarry village itself as she and Richard weave amongst the cottages that are now very unique accommodation for the National Language Centre. Maggie recalls party's up at the Plas with magic lanterns, the sounds of the quarry blasts echoing around the valley and the sad days that the workers left, one by one and the hippies moved in and then moved on, earning the Nant the title of 'The Ghost Village'. Just a mile away in the neighbouring village of Llithfaen, from his former doctor's surgery, which is no more than a tin hut, Dr Carl Clowes recall's his first site of the village in the late 60's. With sheep roaming in and out of the roofless buildings it's hard to imagine how anyone would take on the task of bringing the Nant back to life. But with a vision and a little help from friends, Dr Clowes did and thanks to his and his friends dedicated efforts, Nant Gwrtheyrn is the inspirational beauty spot that lives on today. History of Nant Gwrtheyrn The Welsh Language and Heritage Centre Welsh history Books on the area: My Whole World - Penmaenmawr By Anne Forrest. Published by Old Bakehouse Publications of Abertillery ISBN: 1874538190. This Valley Was Ours by Eileen M Webb Publisher: Gwasg Ty Ar y Graig ISBN: 0946502005 Email Open Country: [email protected] The BBC is not responsible for external web sites

	RELATED LINKS BBC Holiday Category BBC Country file