Iolo Williams
Encyclopedia
Iolo Tudur Williams is a Welsh
nature observer and television presenter, best known for his BBC
and S4C
nature
shows.
, Powys
, but his family moved to Pembrokeshire
, before returning to Powys when he was aged five to live in Llanwddyn near Lake Vyrnwy
. Educated at Llanfyllin High School, after gaining two A levels in Biology
and French, he almost joined the British Army
but instead went to college in London
, graduating with a degree in ecology
.
and then in the timber
trade, before joining the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
in 1985, staying for 14 years working in the field and as a regional co-ordinator. This led to his making regular appearances in the media, making a name for himself as a leading expert on Welsh bird life.
In 1997 he made "Visions of Snowdonia
" with BBC Wales
, which followed the lives of six people living and working on the slopes of the country's highest mountain
. After making a second series, in 1999 Williams decided to leave the RSPB and pursue a full-time career in the media. He presently makes his main appearances on BBC Wales, and with wider Welsh focused programs on S4C
in his first language of Welsh made by independent TV company Telesgop.
Known for frequently wearing shorts
for his work, he has, as a result, become a Welsh cult gay icon
. In 2007, Williams was awarded an honorary fellowship of the University of Bangor.
Williams and his wife built a timber-framed
home
, fully insulated, double-glazed with energy-saving lightbulbs throughout. They have a wildlife garden, and grow their own vegetables. They compost
all their food waste, and recycle everything else, whilst always eating organic
and local produce. As a result of this, in a World Wide Fund for Nature
survey of carbon footprint
s of ecology personalities, Williams and his family were found to have a very low rating of 1.81, compared to a Welsh average of 3.0.
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...
nature observer and television presenter, best known for his BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
nature
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general...
shows.
Biography
The son of a headmaster school teacher, Williams was born in Builth WellsBuilth Wells
Builth Wells is a town in the county of Powys, within the historic boundaries of Brecknockshire, mid Wales, lying at the confluence of the River Wye and the River Irfon, in the Welsh of the Wye Valley. It has a population of 2,352....
, Powys
Powys
Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...
, but his family moved to Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire is a county in the south west of Wales. It borders Carmarthenshire to the east and Ceredigion to the north east. The county town is Haverfordwest where Pembrokeshire County Council is headquartered....
, before returning to Powys when he was aged five to live in Llanwddyn near Lake Vyrnwy
Lake Vyrnwy
Lake Vyrnwy Nature Reserve and Estate is an area of land in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales, surrounding the Victorian reservoir of Lake Vyrnwy. Its stone-built dam, built in the 1880s, was the first of its kind in the world. The Nature Reserve and the area around it are jointly managed by the Royal...
. Educated at Llanfyllin High School, after gaining two A levels in Biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
and French, he almost joined the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
but instead went to college 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...
, graduating with a degree in ecology
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
.
Career
After graduation, he worked on a farmFarm
A farm is an area of land, or, for aquaculture, lake, river or sea, including various structures, devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food , fibres and, increasingly, fuel. It is the basic production facility in food production. Farms may be owned and operated by a single...
and then in the timber
Timber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
trade, before joining the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Bird Notes and News was first published in April 1903.The title changed to 'Bird Notes' in 1947. In the 1950s, there were four copies per year . Each volume covered two years, spread over three calendar years...
in 1985, staying for 14 years working in the field and as a regional co-ordinator. This led to his making regular appearances in the media, making a name for himself as a leading expert on Welsh bird life.
In 1997 he made "Visions of Snowdonia
Snowdonia
Snowdonia is a region in north Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three National Parks in Wales, in 1951.-Name and extent:...
" with BBC Wales
BBC Wales
BBC 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...
, which followed the lives of six people living and working on the slopes of the country's highest mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
. After making a second series, in 1999 Williams decided to leave the RSPB and pursue a full-time career in the media. He presently makes his main appearances on BBC Wales, and with wider Welsh focused programs on S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
in his first language of Welsh made by independent TV company Telesgop.
Known for frequently wearing shorts
Shorts
Shorts are a bifurcated garment worn by both men and women over their pelvic area, circling the waist, and covering the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to or even below the knee, but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" because they are a shortened...
for his work, he has, as a result, become a Welsh cult gay icon
Gay icon
A gay icon is a public figure who is embraced by many within :lesbian, :gay, :bisexual and :transgender communities...
. In 2007, Williams was awarded an honorary fellowship of the University of Bangor.
Personal life
Williams and his wife Ceri live near the town of Newtown. The couple have two sons (Dewi and Tomos); and two rescue dogs, Ianto and Gwen, who have both appeared in some of his television series.Williams and his wife built a timber-framed
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
home
House
A house is a building or structure that has the ability to be occupied for dwelling by human beings or other creatures. The term house includes many kinds of different dwellings ranging from rudimentary huts of nomadic tribes to free standing individual structures...
, fully insulated, double-glazed with energy-saving lightbulbs throughout. They have a wildlife garden, and grow their own vegetables. They compost
Compost
Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment. Compost is a key ingredient in organic farming. At its most essential, the process of composting requires simply piling up waste outdoors and waiting for the materials to break down from anywhere...
all their food waste, and recycle everything else, whilst always eating organic
Organic food
Organic foods are foods that are produced using methods that do not involve modern synthetic inputs such as synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers, do not contain genetically modified organisms, and are not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents, or chemical food additives.For the...
and local produce. As a result of this, in a World Wide Fund for Nature
World Wide Fund for Nature
The World Wide Fund for Nature is an international non-governmental organization working on issues regarding the conservation, research and restoration of the environment, formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in Canada and the United States...
survey of carbon footprint
Carbon footprint
A carbon footprint has historically been defined as "the total set of greenhouse gas emissions caused by an organization, event, product or person.". However, calculating a carbon footprint which conforms to this definition is often impracticable due to the large amount of data required, which is...
s of ecology personalities, Williams and his family were found to have a very low rating of 1.81, compared to a Welsh average of 3.0.
Television
- Bro (S4C)
- Iolo yn Rwsia (S4C)
- Gwyllt (S4CS4CS4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
) - Natur Anghyfreithlon (S4C)
- Crwydro (S4C)
- Canals of Wales (BBC)
- Wild Wales (BBC)
- Wild Winter (BBC)
- Iolo's Special Reserves (BBC)
- Iolo's Natural History of Wales (BBC)
- Iolo's Welsh Safari 2005 (BBC)
- Iolo ac Indiaid America 2010 (S4C)
- Springwatch 2010 (BBC)
Works
- Blwyddyn Iolo, Gwasg Gwynedd, 2003 *Crwydro, Hughes a'i Fab, 2004
- Wild about the Wild Gwasg Gomer, 2005
- Cwm Glo Cwm Gwyrdd 2008