Opera star passes through Llan on his 200-mile walk

A Welsh opera star will be passing through Llangollen during his sponsored 200-mile walk down the country which aims to raise £250,000.  

Now in its third year, Walk On is a celebrity challenge in aid of the Wales Air Ambulance.

This year it is being spearheaded by international opera star Rhys Meirion, (pictured right) who is official ambassador for the air ambulance and will be trekking from Colwyn Bay to Cardiff.

Rhys and his supporters are due to walk over Llangollen bridge at around 1pm this Sunday.

He said: “It has been an honour and a privilege for me to accept the invitation to become an ambassador for the Wales Air Ambulance.

“From the moment I accepted I have been considering ways in which I would be able to contribute to their huge effort in raising the money needed to ensure that this invaluable service is available to the people of Wales.

“The plan this year is a 200-mile coast-to-coast walk to link Colwyn Bay to Cardiff  travelling via the magnificent border counties."

The project was launched with a gala concert at Venue Cymru yesterday (Friday) and the walk started at Eirias Park, Colwyn Bay at 8.30am this morning (Saturday).

Due to be completed over eight days, the route goes through rural Conwy to Llansannan, over to the Vale of Clwyd, through Ruthin, Llangollen, Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, Welshpool, Newtown, Llanidloes, Builth Wells, Brecon, Merthyr, Aberfan and on to Cardiff.

The walk will have eight overnight stops at some of Wales’ most iconic hotels and there will be entertainment and fundraising activities at each evening stop.

Along the way Rhys will be joined on certain sections by some of Wales’s top musical acts, sports personalities and celebrities and some international stars too.

They include former rugby player Robin McBryde, comedian and chat show host Tudor Owen, and professional soprano Sioned Terry.