1968 in Wales
Encyclopedia
This article is about the particular significance of the year 1968 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 - Secretary of State for WalesSecretary of State for WalesThe Secretary of State for Wales is the head of the Wales Office within the British cabinet. He or she is responsible for ensuring Welsh interests are taken into account by the government, representing the government within Wales and overseeing the passing of legislation which is only for Wales...
- George Thomas - 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...
- Glyn SimonGlyn SimonWilliam Glyn Hughes Simon was the Anglican Archbishop of Wales from 1968 to 1971.Simon was born in Swansea, where his father was curate at St Gabriel's church. He was baptised by David Lewis Prosser, later to become the third Archbishop of Wales....
Events
- The Welsh OfficeWelsh OfficeThe Welsh Office was a department in the Government of the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Wales. It was established in April 1965 to execute government policy in Wales, and was headed by the Secretary of State for Wales, a post which had been created in October 1964...
acquires responsibility for historic monuments, and for the waterWaterWater is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
supply in Wales. - In the referendum on the Sunday opening of public houses, the counties of Anglesey, Caernarfon, Cardigan, Carmarthen and Merioneth vote to stay "dry".
- The Gittins Report recommends that all primary school children in Wales should have the opportunity to learn the Welsh languageWelsh languageWelsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
. - The first bilingual (Welsh/English) postage stampPostage stampA postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
is issued. - Hugh CudlippHugh CudlippHubert "Hugh" Kinsman Cudlipp, Baron Cudlipp, OBE , was a Welsh journalist and newspaper editor noted for his work on the Daily Mirror in the 1950s and 60s.- Life and career :...
becomes Chairman of the International Publishing Corporation. - 17 December - Official opening of first phase of the Royal MintRoyal MintThe Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK...
's new LlantrisantLlantrisantLlantrisant is a town in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf in Wales, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying on the River Ely and the Afon Clun. The town's name translates as The Parish of the Three Saints. The three saints in question are St Illtyd, St Gwynno and St...
plant.
Arts and literature
- Welsh National OperaWelsh National OperaWelsh National Opera is an opera company founded in Cardiff, Wales in 1943. The WNO tours Wales, the United Kingdom and the rest of the world extensively. Annually, it gives more than 120 performances of eight main stage operas to a combined audience of around 150,000 people...
acquires a professional chorus. - Cefn Cwrt Farm, LlangrannogLlangrannogLlangrannog is a small, coastal village and seaside resort in Ceredigion, Wales, seven miles south of New Quay. According to the United Kingdom Census 2001, the population of Llangrannog was then 796 people...
, is purchased for use by the Urdd Gobaith CymruUrdd Gobaith Cymrudde|200px|thumb|The Urdd logoUrdd Gobaith Cymru, literally, the Welsh League of Hope, but normally translated as the Welsh League of Youth, or merely referred to as the Urdd, is a Welsh-medium youth movement with over 1,500 branches and over 50,000 members...
. - The Drama Tent is introduced to the EisteddfodNational Eisteddfod of WalesThe National Eisteddfod of Wales is the most important of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales.- Organisation :...
field. - Cwmni Theatr Cymru is formed in Bangor.
- Rachel ThomasRachel ThomasRachel Thomas OBE , was a Welsh character actress, well known to film and television audiences.Born in the village of Alltwen, near Pontardawe, Wales, she appeared in such classic films as The Proud Valley with Paul Robeson, Blue Scar and Tiger Bay...
is awarded the OBEOrder of the British EmpireThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
for services to Wales. - Teenager Mary HopkinMary HopkinMary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
rises to stardom after her appearance on Opportunity Knocks. - In His Own WriteIn His Own WriteIn His Own Write is a book from 1964 by John Lennon. The book consists of short stories and line drawings, often surreal and always nonsensical. It is notable in that it was the first solo Beatle project in any form...
, by John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, makes its stage debut at the National Theatre in a version co-authored by and directed by Victor SpinettiVictor SpinettiVictor Spinetti is a Welsh comic actor.-Early life:Spinetti was born in Cwm, Ebbw Vale, Wales of Welsh and Italian heritage from a grandfather who was said to have walked from Italy to Wales to work as a coal miner...
.
Awards
- National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in BarryBarry, WalesBarry is a town and community in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales. Located along the northern coast of the Bristol Channel less than south-southwest of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, Barry is a seaside resort, with attractions including several beaches and the Barry Island Pleasure Park...
) - National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - Bryn WilliamsBryn WilliamsBryn Dwyfor Williams is a chef originally from Dinbych , North Wales. He is the head chef and sole proprietor of Odette's Restaurant, Primrose Hill, London...
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - Haydn LewisHaydn LewisHaydn Lewis is a professional Barbadian tennis player.Lewis reached his highest individual ranking on the ATP Tour on October 27, 2008, when he became World number 583...
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - Eigra Lewis Roberts
New books
- Ewart Alexander - Omri's Burning
- Irma Chilton - Cusanau
- Pennar DaviesPennar DaviesWilliam Thomas Pennar Davies was a Welsh clergyman and author.Born simply William Thomas Davies, in Mountain Ash , the son of a miner, he took the name "Pennar" "as a sign of his identification with the native culture of Wales"...
- Meibion Darogan - Islwyn Ffowc ElisIslwyn Ffowc ElisIslwyn Ffowc Elis was one of Wales's most popular Welsh-language writers.Born Islwyn Ffoulkes Ellis in Wrexham, Elis was educated at the University of Wales colleges of Bangor and Aberystwyth. During World War II he was a conscientious objector and he began writing poetry and prose, winning the...
- Y Blaned Dirion - Menna GallieMenna GallieMenna Patricia Humphreys Gallie was a Welsh novelist and translator.She was born in Ystradgynlais. She married the philosopher W. B...
- Travels with a Duchess - Glyn Jones - The Dragon Has Two Tongues
- Gwyn ThomasGwyn Thomas (novelist)Gwyn Thomas was a Welsh writer who has been called 'the true voice of the English-speaking valleys'.-Early life:...
- A Few Selected Exits - Emlyn WilliamsEmlyn WilliamsGeorge Emlyn Williams, CBE , known as Emlyn Williams, was a Welsh dramatist and actor.-Biography:He was born into a Welsh-speaking, working class family in Mostyn, Flintshire....
- Beyond Belief: A Chronicle of Murder and its Detection - Urien WiliamUrien WiliamUrien Wiliam , was a Welsh language novelist and dramatist.He was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, the son of Professor Stephen J. Williams, an academic at Swansea University...
- Dirgelwch y rocedi
Music
- "Delilah", "Help Yourself" and "Love Me Tonight" are hits for Tom JonesTom Jones (singer)Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
. - "Bend Me, Shape Me" and "High in the Sky" are hits for Amen CornerAmen Corner (band)Amen Corner were a successful Welsh rock group, formed in late 1966 in Cardiff, Wales.-Career:The band was named after The Amen Corner, a weekly disc spin at the Victoria Ballroom in Cardiff, Wales, where every Sunday night Dr...
. - BadfingerBadfingerBadfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
sign for the Beatles' Apple label.
Film
- Richard BurtonRichard BurtonRichard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...
and Donald HoustonDonald HoustonDonald Daniel Houston was a Welsh actor whose first two films – The Blue Lagoon with Jean Simmons, and A Run for Your Money with Sir Alec Guinness – were highly successful...
appear in Where Eagles DareWhere Eagles DareWhere Eagles Dare is a 1968 World War II action-adventure spy film starring Richard Burton, Clint Eastwood and Mary Ure. It was directed by Brian G. Hutton and shot on location in Upper Austria and Bavaria....
. - Anthony HopkinsAnthony HopkinsSir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...
makes his first big-screen impact in The Lion in WinterThe Lion in Winter (1968 film)The Lion in Winter is a 1968 historical drama made by Avco Embassy Pictures, based on the Broadway play by James Goldman. It was directed by Anthony Harvey and produced by Joseph E...
, appearing alongside Timothy DaltonTimothy DaltonTimothy Peter Dalton ) is a Welsh actor of film and television. He is known for portraying James Bond in The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill , as well as Rhett Butler in the television miniseries Scarlett , an original sequel to Gone with the Wind...
. - Hywel BennettHywel BennettHywel Thomas Bennett is a Welsh film and television actor. Bennett is best known for his recurring title role as James Shelley in the television sitcom Shelley from 1979 to 1984 and its sequel The Return of Shelley from 1988 to 1992....
stars in Twisted NerveTwisted NerveTwisted Nerve is a 1968 British psychological thriller film about a disturbed young man, Martin, who pretends, under the name of Georgie, to be mentally retarded in order to be near Susan, a girl he has become infatuated with, killing those who get in his way.-Plot:The film opens with Martin...
. - Harry SecombeHarry SecombeSir Harry Donald Secombe CBE was a Welsh entertainer with a talent for comedy and a noted fine tenor singing voice. He is best known for playing Neddie Seagoon, the central character in the BBC radio comedy series The Goon Show...
appears in Oliver!Oliver!Oliver! is a British musical, with script, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens....
. - Timothy DaltonTimothy DaltonTimothy Peter Dalton ) is a Welsh actor of film and television. He is known for portraying James Bond in The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill , as well as Rhett Butler in the television miniseries Scarlett , an original sequel to Gone with the Wind...
turns down the role of James BondJames BondJames Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
, feeling that he is too young for the part.
Broadcasting
- HTV takes over the commercial television franchise from TWWTWWTWW may refer to:* Television Wales and the West, a commercial television contractor serving Wales and England from 1958-1968* TheWolfWeb, an internet message board for students at North Carolina State University...
. Wynford Vaughan-ThomasWynford Vaughan-ThomasLewis John Wynford Vaughan-Thomas CBE was a British newspaper journalist and radio and television broadcaster. In later life he took the name Vaughan-Thomas after his father....
, one of the founders of the new company, becomes Director of Programmes.
Sport
- 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...
- Martyn WoodroffeMartyn WoodroffeMartyn J. Woodroffe is a Welsh swimmer who won a Silver medal at the 1968 Olympic Games.Woodroffe represented Wales at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica, and 1970 British Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland, winning one silver and two bronze medals at the... - 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...
- Howard WinstoneHoward WinstoneHoward Winstone, MBE was a Welsh world champion boxer, born in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. As an amateur, Winstone won the Amateur Boxing Association bantamweight title in 1958, and a Commonwealth Games Gold Medal at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff-Boxing style:In his early...
wins the World Featherweight title. - CricketCricketCricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
- August 31: During a match between Glamorgan and Nottinghamshire at Swansea, Gary Sobers hits six sixes off one over bowled by Malcolm NashMalcolm NashMalcolm Nash, is a Welsh cricket coach and former first-class cricketer.- Glamorgan Cricketer :Born in Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, Nash was a left arm medium pace bowler who played largely for Glamorgan....
. - Football - Cardiff CityCardiff City F.C.Cardiff City Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club competes in the English football pyramid and is currently playing in the Football League Championship. Cardiff City is the best supported football club in Wales, averaging approximately 22,500 for...
reach the semi-finals of the European Cup Winners Cup, losing to HamburgHamburger SVHamburger Sport-Verein, usually referred to as HSV in Germany and Hamburg in international parlance, is a German multi-sport club based in Hamburg, its largest branch being its football department...
. - 1968 Summer Olympics1968 Summer OlympicsThe 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Mexico City, Mexico in October 1968. The 1968 Games were the first Olympic Games hosted by a developing country, and the first Games hosted by a Spanish-speaking country...
- Richard MeadeRichard MeadeRichard John Hannay Meade, OBE is a British equestrian expert and Olympic gold medal winning rider, tipped at one time to be the future husband of Princess Anne.In 1964, Meade won the Burghley Horse Trials on Barberry...
wins a gold medal as part of the British equestrian team in the Team Three-Day Event - 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...
takes a bronze in the Individual Show JumpingShow jumpingShow jumping, also known as "stadium jumping," "open jumping," or "jumpers," is a member of a family of English riding equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes commonly are seen at horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics...
Grand Prix. - Martyn Woodroffe is the only British swimmerSwimming at the 1968 Summer OlympicsAt the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, 29 events in swimming were contested. There was a total of 468 participants from 51 countries competing. The United States dominated the competition, winning 52 of 87 medals.-Medal table:-Men's events:...
to win a medal - a silver in the men's 200 m butterfly.
- Richard Meade
- Rugby unionRugby unionRugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
- Jeff YoungJeff Young (rugby player)Jeffrey "Jeff" Young was a Welsh rugby union player who gained 23 caps for Wales as a hooker between 1968 and 1973....
makes his international debut against Scotland.
Births
- 28 March - Jon Lee, musician (d. 2002)
- 28 May - Kylie MinogueKylie MinogueKylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
, actress and singer (in MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, of maternal Welsh origin) - 29 May - Jessica MordenJessica MordenJessica Elizabeth Morden is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Newport East since 2005.-Background:...
, politician - 22 July - Rhys IfansRhys IfansRhys Ifans is a Welsh actor and musician. He is known for his portrayal of characters such as Spike in Notting Hill and Jed Parry in Enduring Love and as a member of the Welsh rock groups Super Furry Animals and The Peth. Ifans also appeared as Xenophilius Lovegood in Harry Potter and the Deathly...
, actor - 13 June - David GrayDavid Gray (musician)David Gray is an English singer-songwriter. He released his first studio album in 1993 and received worldwide attention after the release of White Ladder six years later...
, musician - 26 June - Iwan RobertsIwan RobertsIwan Wyn Roberts is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a striker for a number of English league clubs. The most notable period of his club career was with Norwich City...
, footballer - 27 July - Carl Sergeant, politician
- 30 July - Sean MooreSean Moore (musician)Sean Anthony Moore is the writer, drummer/percussionist and sometime trumpet player of the Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers.-Early years:...
, musician - 19 August - Roger FreestoneRoger FreestoneRoger Freestone is a former Wales international Goalkeeper.-Club career:Born in Caerleon, near Newport, Monmouthshire, Freestone began his career at Newport County as a trainee before moving to Chelsea in 1987 for £95,000...
, footballer - 23 September - Adam PriceAdam PriceAdam Price is a politician in Wales, and former Plaid Cymru Member of Parliament for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr. He was elected to Parliament in the 2001 general election and re-elected in 2005 but stood down at the 2010 election...
, politician - 12 October - Mark DonovanMark DonovanMark Donovan is a Welsh character actor best known for grotesque roles in productions such as Shaun of the Dead, Black Books, In Bruges, and Murder Investigation Team. He also played a brief scene of Hamlet in an episode of the David Renwick comedy-drama, Love Soup...
, actor - 13 December - Steve Robinson, Featherweight boxer
- date unknown
- Rakie AyolaRakie AyolaRakie Ayola is a Welsh actress, best known for her role as Kyla Tyson in the BBC medical drama Holby City. She first rose to prominence in the lead role of the 1993 Jeanette Winterson screenplay Great Moments in Aviation...
, actress - Trevor Rees-Jones, bodyguard to Diana, Princess of WalesDiana, Princess of WalesDiana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
- Rakie Ayola
Deaths
- 13 January - William Williams (Crwys)William Williams (Crwys)William Williams , better known by his bardic name of "Crwys", was a Welsh poet in the Welsh language. He served as Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales from 1939 to 1947....
, poet - 6 February - James Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley
- 3 May - Ness EdwardsNess EdwardsOnesimus Edwards was a Welsh Labour Party politician.A trade unionist, Ness Edwards was imprisoned in 1917 as a conscientious objector to the conscription of the First World War. He was elected Member of Parliament for Caerphilly at a by-election in 1939 following the death of Labour MP and...
, politician - 16 July - William Evans (Wil Ifan)William Evans (Wil Ifan)William Evans , better known by his bardic name of Wil Ifan, was a Welsh poet who served as Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales from 1947 to 1950....
, poet - 24 August - Bailey Davies, Wales international rugby union player, 83
- 28 August - Arthur Henderson, Baron RowleyArthur Henderson, Baron RowleyArthur Henderson, Baron Rowley, PC was a British Labour Party politician.Arthur Henderson was the son of Arthur Henderson, who was Leader of the Labour Party between 1908-1910, 1914-17 and 1931-1932.-Parliament:...
, politician - 17 November - Carey MorrisCarey MorrisCarey Morris was a Welsh painter born in Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire. He was related to the Welsh poet Sir Lewis Morris.- Personal background :...
, artist - 20 November - David GrenfellDavid GrenfellDavid Rhys Grenfell PC, CBE, LlD was a British Member of Parliament. He represented the Gower constituency for the Labour Party from 1922 to 1959.-Early life:...
, politician - 14 December - David James JonesD. Gwenallt JonesGwenallt , poet, critic, and scholar, was one of the most important figures of 20th-century Welsh-language literature.-Early life:...
(Gwenallt), poet - date unknown
- Arthur HornerArthur Horner (politician)Arthur Lewis Horner was a Welsh trade union leader and communist politician. During his periods of office as President of the South Wales Miners Federation from 1936, and as General Secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers from 1946, he became one of the most prominent and influential...
, politician - Dafydd JonesDafydd JonesDafydd Jones is a retired Welsh rugby union footballer, who played in the back row for the Llanelli Scarlets in the Magners League. He has also played for Wales...
(Isfoel), poet
- Arthur Horner