1960 in Wales
Encyclopedia
This article is about the particular significance of the year 1960 to Wales
and its people
.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and its people
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
.
Incumbents
- Prince of WalesPrince of WalesPrince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
- Charles, Prince of WalesCharles, Prince of WalesPrince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay... - Princess of WalesPrincess of WalesPrincess of Wales is a British courtesy title held by the wife of The Prince of Wales since the first "English" Prince of Wales in 1283.Although there have been considerably more than ten male heirs to the throne, there have been only ten Princesses of Wales. The majority of Princes of Wales...
- vacant - Archbishop of WalesArchbishop of WalesThe post of Archbishop of Wales was created in 1920 when the Church in Wales was separated from the Church of England , and disestablished...
- Edwin MorrisAlfred Edwin MorrisAlfred Edwin Morris was the Bishop of Monmouth and Archbishop of Wales in the middle of the 20th century. After World War I service with the RAMC he went up to St John’s College, Oxford. Ordained in 1924 he became Professor of Hebrew and Theology at St David's College, Lampeter, holding the... - ArchdruidArchdruidThe Archdruid is the title used by the presiding official of the Gorsedd.The Archdruid presides over the most important ceremonies at the National Eisteddfod of Wales including the Crowning of the Bard, The Award of the Prose Medal and Chairing of the Bard. From 1932 only former winners of the...
of the National Eisteddfod of WalesNational Eisteddfod of WalesThe National Eisteddfod of Wales is the most important of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales.- Organisation :...
- TrefinEdgar PhillipsEdgar Phillips , known by the bardic name "Trefin", was a Welsh poet and served as Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales from 1960 until his death....
Events
- 5 January - Closure of the Swansea and Mumbles Railway (which by this date is operated by double-deck electric tramTramA tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
s). - 12 April - Nine miners are killed in a mining accidentMining accidentA mining accident is an accident that occurs during the process of mining minerals.Thousands of miners die from mining accidents each year, especially in the processes of coal mining and hard rock mining...
at Tower CollieryTower CollieryTower Colliery is the oldest continuously working deep-coal mine in the United Kingdom, and possibly the world, and the last mine of its kind to remain in the South Wales Valleys...
, Hirwaun. - 28 June - Forty-five miners are killed in an accident at Six Bells CollierySix Bells CollierySix Bells Colliery was a coal mine located near Aberbeeg, Monmouthshire, South Wales.-Sinking:The colliery was originally opened as Arael Griffin on the site of an earlier balance shaft which had been sunk in 1863 by Thomas Phillips Price at Hafod Van. In 1892 John Lancaster and Co. began sinking...
, Monmouthshire. - 25 October - Five people are killed when two barges carrying oil and petrol strike the Severn Railway BridgeSevern Railway BridgeThe Severn Railway Bridge was a crossing across the River Severn between Sharpness and Lydney, Gloucestershire. It was badly damaged in an accident involving river barges in 1960 and demolished in 1970.-Construction:...
in fog and part of the bridge collapses on top of them. - EssoEssoEsso is an international trade name for ExxonMobil and its related companies. Pronounced , it is derived from the initials of the pre-1911 Standard Oil, and as such became the focus of much litigation and regulatory restriction in the United States. In 1972, it was largely replaced in the U.S. by...
opens the first oil refinery at Milford HavenMilford HavenMilford Haven is a town and community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is situated on the north side of the Milford Haven Waterway, a natural harbour used as a port since the Middle Ages. The town was founded in 1790 on the north side of the Waterway, from which it takes its name...
. - Poet and peace campaigner Waldo WilliamsWaldo WilliamsWaldo Williams was one of the leading Welsh language poets of the twentieth century. He was also a notable pacifist, anti-war campaigner, and Welsh nationalist.-Life:...
is imprisoned for six weeks for non-payment of income tax.
Arts and literature
- Sian PhillipsSiân PhillipsJane Elizabeth Ailwên "Siân" Phillips, CBE, is a Welsh actress.-Early life:Phillips was born in Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen, Neath Port Talbot, Wales, the daughter of Sally , a teacher, and David Phillips, a steelworker-turned-policeman...
marries Peter O'ToolePeter O'ToolePeter Seamus Lorcan O'Toole is an Irish actor of stage and screen. O'Toole achieved stardom in 1962 playing T. E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia, and then went on to become a highly-honoured film and stage actor. He has been nominated for eight Academy Awards, and holds the record for most...
. - Ricky ValanceRicky ValanceRicky Valance is a Welsh singer. He is best known for the number one single, "Tell Laura I Love Her", which sold over a million copies in 1960.-Life and career:...
is the first male Welsh singer to hit number one in the charts, with his cover version of Tell Laura I Love HerTell Laura I Love Her"Tell Laura I Love Her," a teenage tragedy song written by Jeff Barry and Ben Raleigh, was an American Top Ten popular music hit for singer Ray Peterson in 1960 on RCA Victor Records, reaching #7 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart...
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Awards
- National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in CardiffCardiffCardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
)
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - withheld
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - W. J. GruffyddW. J. Gruffydd (Elerydd)William John Gruffydd , better known by his bardic name of Elerydd, was a Welsh Baptist minister and poet who served as Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales between 1984 and 1987....
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - Rhiannon Davies Jones
New books
- Thomas Glynne Davies - Haf Creulon
- Menna GallieMenna GallieMenna Patricia Humphreys Gallie was a Welsh novelist and translator.She was born in Ystradgynlais. She married the philosopher W. B...
- Man's Desiring - Dic JonesDic JonesDic Jones , was a Welsh language poet and the Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales.He was born Richard Lewis Jones at Tre'r-ddôl in Ceredigion. The son of a farmer, Jones himself farmed on at Fferm yr Hendre at Blaenannerch in Aberporth...
- Agor Grwn - Kate Roberts - Y Lôn Wen
- Bernice RubensBernice RubensBernice Rubens was a Booker Prize-winning Welsh novelist.-Background:She was of Russian Jewish descent and born in Cardiff, Wales where she attended Cardiff High School. She came from a very musical family, both her brothers becoming well-known classical musicians. She was married to Rudi...
- Set on Edge - Raymond WilliamsRaymond WilliamsRaymond Henry Williams was a Welsh academic, novelist and critic. He was an influential figure within the New Left and in wider culture. His writings on politics, culture, the mass media and literature are a significant contribution to the Marxist critique of culture and the arts...
- Border Country
Music
- Alun HoddinottAlun HoddinottAlun Hoddinott CBE , was a Welsh composer of classical music, one of the first to receive international recognition.-Life and works:...
- Concerto no. 2 - Arwel HughesArwel HughesArwel Hughes OBE , was a Welsh orchestral conductor and composer.Hughes was born in Rhosllannerchrugog near Wrexham and was educated at Ruabon Grammar School and at the Royal College of Music, where he studied with Ralph Vaughan Williams and C. H. Kitson...
- Serch yw’r Doctor (opera)
Film
- Glynis JohnsGlynis JohnsGlynis Johns is a South African-born Welsh stage and film actress, dancer, pianist and singer . With a career spanning seven decades, Johns is often cited as the "complete actress", who happens to be a trained pianist and singer...
stars in The SundownersThe SundownersThe Sundowners is a 1960 film that tells the story of an Australian outback family torn between the father's desires to continue his nomadic sheep-herding ways and the wife's and son's desire to settle down in one place...
. - Rachel RobertsRachel Roberts (British actress)Rachel Roberts was a Welsh actress noted for her fervour and passion; Roberts is best remembered for her forthright screen performances in two key films of the 1960s, Saturday Night and Sunday Morning and This Sporting Life, in both of which she played the older mistress of the central male...
stars in Saturday Night and Sunday MorningSaturday Night and Sunday Morning (film)Saturday Night and Sunday Morning is a 1960 British film. It is an adaptation of the 1958 novel of the same name by Alan Sillitoe. Sillitoe wrote the screenplay adaptation and the film was directed by Karel Reisz.-Synopsis:...
, becoming the first Welsh actress to win a BAFTABritish Academy of Film and Television ArtsThe British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
for Best British Actress. - Keith BaxterKeith Baxter (actor)Keith Baxter is a Welsh theatre, film and television actor.- Early years & RADA :Born in Newport, Wales in 1933. Baxter was educated at Newport High School and Barry Grammar School, Baxter studied at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, during which period he shared a flat with classmate Alan...
appears alongside Orson WellesOrson WellesGeorge Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
in Chimes at MidnightChimes at MidnightChimes at Midnight, also known as Falstaff and Campanadas a medianoche , is a 1965 film directed by and starring Orson Welles. Focused on William Shakespeare's recurring character Sir John Falstaff, the film stars Welles himself as Falstaff, Keith Baxter plays Prince Hal , and John Gielgud plays...
.
English-language television
- 1 January - Broadcast of the first weekly episode of an eight-part serialization by BBC WalesBBC WalesBBC Cymru Wales is a division of the British Broadcasting Corporation for Wales. Based at Broadcasting House in the Llandaff area of Cardiff, it directly employs over 1200 people, and produces a broad range of television, radio and online services in both the Welsh and English languages.Outside...
of How Green Was My ValleyHow Green Was My ValleyHow Green Was My Valley is a 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, telling the story through narration of the main character, of his Welsh family and the mining community in which they live. The author had claimed to have based the book on his own knowledge of the Gilfach Goch area, but this was proven... - Johnny MorrisJohnny MorrisErnest John "Johnny" Morris OBE ) was a Welsh television presenter. He is best known for narrating the imported, Canadian-produced Tales of the Riverbank series of stories about Hammy the Hamster, Roderick the Rat, GP the Guinea Pig, and their assorted animal friends along a riverbank and...
narrates the imported children's TV series Tales of the RiverbankTales of the RiverbankTales of the Riverbank, sometimes called Hammy Hamster, is a Canadian children's television show starring Hammy Hamster and other animals....
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Sport
- BoxingBoxingBoxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
- Dick RichardsonDick RichardsonFor the Welsh boxer see Dick Richardson Dick Richardson is an English former cricketer, who played in one Test for England in 1957. His county cricket career was spent entirely with Worcestershire.The cricket writer, Colin Bateman, noted "Richardson's Test career was brief but historic...
wins the European Heavyweight title. Brian Curvis wins the British and Commonwealth welterweight titles. - Summer Olympics1960 Summer OlympicsThe 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held from August 25 to September 11, 1960 in Rome, Italy...
- David BroomeDavid BroomeDavid McPherson Broome CBE is a retired Welsh show jumping champion.Broome was born in Wales, attended Monmouth School and still maintains his stables at Mount Ballan Manor, Crick, near Chepstow in Monmouthshire...
wins a bronze medal on Sunsalve in the individual show jumping event. - TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
- Mike Davies wins the British hard court title. - BBC Wales Sports Personality of the YearBBC Wales Sports Personality of the YearThe BBC Cymru Wales Sports Personality of the Year is a televised sporting competition, broadcast on BBC Two every year; and the most prestigious annual sport award in Wales. It was first awarded in 1954, and is currently organised by BBC Cymru Wales...
- Brian CurvisBrian CurvisBrian Nancurvis , who fought under the name Brian Curvis as a professional, was a boxer from Swansea, Wales who was active from 1959 to 1966. He fought as a Welterweight, becoming British welterweight champion in 1960. He retired as undefeated champion and is the only welterweight to have won two...
Births
- 30 January - Peter BlackPeter Black (Welsh politician)Peter Black is a Welsh Liberal Democrat politician, and Member of the Welsh Assembly for the South Wales West Region.-Background:...
AM, politician - 6 February - Jeremy BowenJeremy BowenJeremy Francis John Bowen is a Welsh journalist and television presenter. He was the BBC's Middle East correspondent based in Jerusalem between 1995 and 2000, and has been its Middle East Editor since 2005.-Background:...
, journalist and television presenter - 3 May - Geraint Davies, politician
- 29 June - Helen Mary JonesHelen Mary JonesHelen Mary Jones is a Plaid Cymru politician, who was a member of the National Assembly for Wales from 1999 to 2011.-Background:...
, politician (in Colchester) - 18 September - Ian LucasIan LucasIan Colin Lucas is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Wrexham since 2001...
, politician - date unknown
- Ricky EvansRicky EvansRicky Evans is a former Welsh rugby union player.Born in Aberporth Cardigan in West Wales in 1960, Ricky Evans played most of his club rugby for Llanelli RFC playing in the victorious side which beat the touring Wallabies who were then World Champions...
, rugby union player - Lesley GriffithsLesley GriffithsLesley Griffiths AM is a Welsh Labour politician. She worked as a secretary to John Marek and the constituency assistant to Ian Lucas, successive Members of Parliament for Wrexham, and was elected to the National Assembly for Wales from the Wrexham constituency in 2007...
, politician - Gareth JonesGareth Jones (conductor)Gareth Jones is a Welsh orchestral and choral conductor.He was born in South Wales and attended Glan Afan Comprehensive School, where he excelled at the piano...
, orchestral and choral conductor - Malcolm PryceMalcolm PryceFor the footballer, see Malcolm Price.Malcolm Pryce is a British author, mostly known for his noir detective novels.Born in Shrewsbury, England, Pryce moved at the age of nine to Aberystwyth, where he later attended Penglais Comprehensive School before leaving to do some travelling. After working...
, novelist (in Shrewsbury)
- Ricky Evans
Deaths
- 2 January - Leila MeganeLeila MeganeLeila Megane was a Welsh mezzo-soprano opera singer.Born Margaret Jones in Bethesda, Wales, she married T. Osborne Roberts , a composer. She sang in Paris, Milan, Rome, New York, and London....
, opera singer - 13 January - Reginald Herbert, 15th Earl of PembrokeReginald Herbert, 15th Earl of PembrokeReginald Herbert, 15th Earl of Pembroke and 12th Earl of Montgomery was a British peer. He married Lady Beatrice Eleanor Paget Reginald Herbert, 15th Earl of Pembroke and 12th Earl of Montgomery (8 September 1880-13 January 1960) was a British peer. He married Lady Beatrice Eleanor Paget Reginald...
, 79 - 17 January - E. Llwyd Williams, minister and poet, 53
- 27 January - Joseph Jones, dual-code rugby international, 60
- 2 February - Joseph "Joe" Jones, rugby league player, 60
- 30 March - Edward EvanEdward Evans (politician)Edward Evans CBE was a teacher and Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. Noted for his work for and with deaf people and the blind, he entered the House of Commons in his 60s, and sat from 1945 to 1959....
, politician, 77 - 11 April - William Llewellyn MorganWilliam Llewellyn MorganWilliam Llewellyn Morgan was a Welsh international rugby union halfback who played club rugby for Cardiff. Morgan played international rugby for Wales and in 1908 was selected to join Arthur Harding's Anglo-Welsh tour of New Zealand and Australia.-Rugby career:One of the first clubs that Morgan...
, Wales international rugby union player , 76 - 7 May - Mai JonesMai JonesMai Jones , was a Welsh songwriter, entertainer and radio producer.She was born in Newport, the daughter of a railway stationmaster. Having won a scholarship to study music at the University of Wales, Cardiff, she went on to the Royal College of Music...
, songwriter, 61 - 23 May - John EdwardsJohn Edwards (Welsh politician)John Edwards was a British politician. He was a Coalition Liberal Member of Parliament from 1918 to 1922....
, politician), 77 - 27 June - Harry PollittHarry PollittHarry Pollitt was the head of the trade union department of the Communist Party of Great Britain and the General Secretary of the party for more than 20 years.- Early life :...
, politician, 69 - 6 July - Aneurin BevanAneurin BevanAneurin "Nye" Bevan was a British Labour Party politician who was the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1959 until his death in 1960. The son of a coal miner, Bevan was a lifelong champion of social justice and the rights of working people...
, politician, 62 - 9 July - John DykeJohn Dyke (rugby player)John Charles Meredith Dyke is a former international rugby union fullback. Dyke made his debut for Wales on 1 December 1906 versus South Africa and was selected for the 1908 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia...
, Wales international rugby union player, 76 - 24 August - Dai EdwardsDai EdwardsDavid "Dai" Edwards was an international rugby forward who played rugby union for Glynneath and rugby league with Rochdale Hornets...
, Wales dual-code rugby international, 64 - 25 August - Tommy Jones-DaviesTommy Jones-DaviesThomas 'Tommy' Ellis Jones-Davies was a Welsh physician and international rugby union centre.He played club rugby for Llanelli and London Welsh...
, Wales international rugby player, 54 - 27 September - George Morgan Trefgarne, 1st Baron TrefgarneGeorge Morgan Trefgarne, 1st Baron TrefgarneGeorge Morgan Trefgarne, 1st Baron Trefgarne , known as George Garro-Jones until 1947, was a British Liberal, then Labour Party politician, barrister, businessman and editor of the The Daily Dispatch....
, politician, 66 - 29 October- Horace WilliamsHorace WilliamsHorace F. Williams was a Welsh professional footballer. His clubs included New Brighton, Blackpool and Gillingham, for whom he made a total of over 70 Football League appearances.-External links:*, www.ihibs.co.uk...
, footballer - 20 December - Harry UzzellHarry UzzellHenry "Harry" Uzzell was a Welsh international rugby union player. He played club rugby predominantly for Newport and played county rugby for Gloucestershire. A fruiterer by trade he later became landlord of the Tredegar Arms in Bassaleg.Uzzell spent the majority of his rugby career with Newport...
, Wales international rugby union captain, 77