Bryn Griffiths, Welsh Poet
Encyclopedia
Brynllyn David Griffiths is a poet and writer, who has worked in Britain
and Australia
. His poems are often concerned with the ocean and the history of Wales.
, South Wales
, but lived much of his early life in the coastal countryside of West Wales before returning to St Thomas, near the Swansea waterfront.
His poems are often thematically concerned with the ocean and the history and landscapes of Wales, particularly the lower Swansea Valley
, devastated by the Industrial Revolution
, as exemplified in his first collection of verse, The Mask of Pity.
Bryn Griffiths went to sea at 17, "shipping out" as a merchant seaman for ten years from the Port of Swansea
, before study at Coleg Harlech
in North wales and a subsequent career in London
as journalist, broadcaster and television scriptwriter. During his years in London during the 1960s he founded the Welsh Writers' Guild', with Dedwydd Jones, John Tripp
, Robert Morgan
, Sally Roberts and many other Welsh poets and writers. The Guild was a cornerstone of the Anglo-Welsh literary renaissance which led to the foundation of the re-created Welsh academi.
Throughout the 1970s Bryn gave poetry readings and lectures in Britain
, North America
and Australia
before founding the first Arts and Working Life project for workers in Western Australia
. In 1985 he was appointed writer-in-residence to the Australian Merchant Navy and later went back to sea and served for many years as a working mariner before returning to Wales
. He remains today a life member of the Maritime Union of Australia
and writes poetry, memoirs and maritime history
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. His poems are often concerned with the ocean and the history of Wales.
Biography
Bryn Griffiths is a Welsh poet and writer. he was born in SwanseaSwansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, South Wales
South Wales
South Wales is an area of Wales bordered by England and the Bristol Channel to the east and south, and Mid Wales and West Wales to the north and west. The most densely populated region in the south-west of the United Kingdom, it is home to around 2.1 million people and includes the capital city of...
, but lived much of his early life in the coastal countryside of West Wales before returning to St Thomas, near the Swansea waterfront.
His poems are often thematically concerned with the ocean and the history and landscapes of Wales, particularly the lower Swansea Valley
Swansea Valley
The Swansea Valley , one of the South Wales Valleys is the name often given to the valley of the River Tawe area in South Wales, UK. It reaches southwest and south from the Brecon Beacons National Park down to the city of Swansea. Today, administration of the area is divided between the City and...
, devastated by the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, as exemplified in his first collection of verse, The Mask of Pity.
Bryn Griffiths went to sea at 17, "shipping out" as a merchant seaman for ten years from the Port of Swansea
Swansea docks
Swansea Docks is the collective name for several docks in Swansea, Wales. The Swansea docks are located immediately south east of Swansea city centre. In the mid-19th century the port was exporting 60% of the world's copper from factories situated in the Tawe valley...
, before study at Coleg Harlech
Coleg Harlech
Coleg Harlech is a further education college for mature students in Harlech, Gwynedd.It is Wales' only long-term, mature students education college and was established in 1927 by Thomas Jones , Cabinet Secretary to both David Lloyd George and Stanley Baldwin, to continue the work of Workers'...
in North wales and a subsequent career in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as journalist, broadcaster and television scriptwriter. During his years in London during the 1960s he founded the Welsh Writers' Guild', with Dedwydd Jones, John Tripp
John Tripp (poet)
John Tripp was an Anglo-Welsh poet and short-story writer.Born in Bargoed, Wales, he worked for the BBC as a journalist with the BBC, and later became a civil servant. He edited the literary magazine, Planet, and was a popular performance poet...
, Robert Morgan
Robert Morgan
Robert Knight Morgan was a United States Air Force colonel and pilot, from Asheville, North Carolina, and the commander of the B-17 Flying Fortress Memphis Belle during World War II.-Biography:...
, Sally Roberts and many other Welsh poets and writers. The Guild was a cornerstone of the Anglo-Welsh literary renaissance which led to the foundation of the re-created Welsh academi.
Throughout the 1970s Bryn gave poetry readings and lectures in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
before founding the first Arts and Working Life project for workers in Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. In 1985 he was appointed writer-in-residence to the Australian Merchant Navy and later went back to sea and served for many years as a working mariner before returning to Wales
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...
. He remains today a life member of the Maritime Union of Australia
Maritime Union of Australia
The Maritime Union of Australia covers waterside workers, seafarers, port workers, professional divers, and office workers associated with Australian ports. As of 2011 the union has about 13,000 members. It is an affiliate of the International Transport Workers' Federation and represents the...
and writes poetry, memoirs and maritime history
Poetry collections
- The Mask of Pity (Christopher Davies, Wales, 1966)
- The Stones Remember (JM Dent & Sons, London, 1967)
- Scars (JM Dent & Sons, London 1969)
- At the Airport (The Sceptre Press (Outposts), Farnham, 1970)
- The Survivors (JM Dent & Sons London, 1971)
- Starboard Green (Imble Publications, London, 1972)
- Beasthoods (The Turret Press, London, 1973)
- The Dark Convoys (Aquila Press, Solihull, 1974)
- Love Poems (Artlook Press, Perth, Australia, 1980)
- Sea Poems (Veritas Press, Perth, Australia, 1988)
- The Ocean’s Edge (The Dragon Press, Swansea, Wales, 1992)
- The Landsker (Alun Books, Port Talbot, Wales, 1994)
Poetry in anthologies
- Anglo-Welsh Verse (The London Welshman (anthology editor), 1964)
- Commonwealth Poets (Heinemann, London/Cardiff, 1965)
- Welsh Voices (Dent, London, 1967 (Editor))
- The Lilting House (Dent/Davies, London&Wales, 1969)
- Anglo-Welsh Poetry (Transatlantic Review (ed. BS Johnson), London/New York, Spring-Summer issue, 1972)
- Australian Voices (Penguin Australia, 1975)
- Blodeugerdd (Harlech Anthology, Coleg Harlech, 1976)
- Seven Poets (Artlook/Shell, Perth, Australia, 1977)
- Ghosts (Thomas Nelson (Australia), 1978)
- The Moving Skull (Hodder&Stoughton (Australia), Sydney, 1981)
- Out of This World (Heinemann, London, 1885)
- Poetry in Motion (Poetry in Motion Books (with Glen Phillips, Shane McCauley and Alan Alexander), Perth, 1986)
- Axed between the Ears (Heinemann, London, 1987)
- Margins (Fremantle Press, Fremantle, Australia, 1988)
- Celebrations (University on Western Australia Press, Perth, 1988)
- Wordhord (Fremantle Press, Fremantle, 1989)
- A Swansea Anthology (Seren)
- 20th century Anglo-Welsh Poetry (Seren)
- Poetry 1900–2000 (Library of Wales)
Plays
- The Sailor, a play for radio commissioned by BBC Third Programme in 1965
- The Undertaker, a play for radio commissioned by BBC (London) in 1967
- The Dream of Arthur, a play for radio commissioned by BBC Wales in 1970
- Cambrian Carnival, a series of short plays and sketches written for the Cambrian Theatre Company whilst resident dramatist during 1972.
- King Arthur's Egg, a play for children written whilst resident writer/dramatist with the C.A.T.S. association of Western Australia in 1975.
Radio Broadcasts
- Broadcast readings of poetry on radio for the BBC Third Programme and BBC Wales on numerous occasions during the 1960s, including a reading from first poetry collection, The Mask of Pity, with actors Kenneth Griffith and Norman Wynn reciting selected works and the author providing linking narrative.
- Three one-hour radio broadcasts of poetry, with additional narration, for the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) from Melbourne in 1968.
- Radio broadcasts of poetry on ABC Radio from Perth, Western Australia, during the 1970s.
Television broadcasts
- Elegy for Aberfan, a poem commissioned by TWW and read by the author on TWW and ITN networks on the first anniversary of the Aberfan disaster in October 1967.
- Elegy for Aberfan, broadcast on national television in Australia by the author during his lecture/recital tour of the country in 1968.
- Elegy for Aberfan, broadcast by BBCTV Wales in the programme In Memory of Aberfan on the 10th anniversary of the disaster.
Recordings
- First recording of The Stones Remember (Argo/Decca PLP 1189) with poet Bryan Walters in 1973.