2021 panto becomes coronavirus casualty

Organisers of Llangollen Pantomime have confirmed that the 2121 production, like so many other local events, has fallen victim to the coronavirus pandemic.

On their Facebook page yesterday they posted: "Good morning all, I hope this post finds everyone well in these strange times.

"This is a brief update following a committee meeting held earlier this week, where the inevitable decision has been taken to postpone the 2021 pantomime.

"This is obviously very disappointing and we have tried to wait as long as possible to see if there was any chance we could do something, but in these uncertain times that isn't going to be possible.

"We are looking to see if we could perhaps do some other type of event in the new year and we'll provide more details on that in the next month or so.

"Here's to Cinderella in January 2022 and looking forward to seeing everyone soon. Take care all."

Meanwhile, the Llangollen Group of Anglican Churches is planning a special project to record the various ways the pandemic has affected Llangollen.

Also taking to its Facebook page yesterday it said: "An invitation to share your lockdown stories.

"The past few months have brought about mixed feelings: of grief and loss; thanksgiving for the courage and generosity of so many; the resurgence of neighbourliness which has transformed communities.

"From next week, there will be a book in St Collen’s Church for you to record and share your own experience of lockdown.

"Church open: Tuesday-Saturday from 10am."

Llan to share in £500,000 lottery windfall

* Celebrating are, front, Eleri Jones, left, of Citizens Advice Denbighshire, and Sally Lloyd Davies, of SDCP, with, from left, Ticky Lowe, Leah Edwards, Denbighshire Councillor Melvyn Mile, Barry Pinel, Clwyd South AM Ken Skates, Welsh Government Economy Minister, Denbighshire Councillor Graham Timms, Maggie Smith, Roger Cragg, Michael McNamara, Margaret Sutherland and Heulwen Wright

Llangollen is to share in a £500,000 lottery bonanza won by a community charity to fight rural poverty in Denbighshire’s Dee Valley.

The money from the Big Lottery Fund will help extend the reach of Corwen-based South Denbighshire Community Partnership to local organisations in Llangollen and its surrounding area and will be spread over four years to autumn 2024.

It will be administered by SDCP through their Your Place Or Ours project and is their second major lottery grant, following the award of £350,000 30 months ago to work with older and vulnerable people in the Edeyrnion area around Corwen.

A launch at Pentredwr Community Centre was attended by Clwyd South AM Ken Skates, the Welsh Government Economy Minister, who said: “This is a wonderful boost for the Llangollen area which has its share of rural poverty and the issues of isolation, particularly among the elderly and vulnerable.

“It is also good to see that South Denbighshire Community Partnership which has been doing a fantastic job in the Edeyrnion area around Corwen will now be able to extend their services to this end of the Dee Valley.”

In the last three years SDCP have built up a wide portfolio of services including meals-on-wheels, a lunch club, community transport, green energy generation, grocery and prescription delivery – even the delivery vehicles is electric.

They have also worked closely with Citizens Advice Denbighshire to help local people claim almost half a million pounds in benefits in the last six months, £347,000 since lockdown started in March.

SDCP Community Engagement Officer Sally Lloyd Davies said: “We are working with and co-ordinating existing groups and organisations in the Llangollen area which have a similar agenda to ours.

“It means they can make use of the expertise we have gained in recent years in improving the lives of the vulnerable, the isolated and those in poverty.

“There are some fantastic local groups across the Llangollen area and they’re doing great work and this grant boost will enable us to work together in the future.”

Ticky Lowe, Pentredwr Community Association Events and Funding Officer, said: “Being part of the SDCP project will bring huge benefits for our rural community - giving us much needed access to transport, the meals on wheels service and also offering advice to our residents on benefits and grants which they could be entitled to via links with Citizens Advice Denbighshire.

“The SDCP approach is to work with the community to identify our particular needs and offer help accordingly and I think this approach will be welcomed.”

Heulwen Wright, Chair of the Friends of Pengwern Community Centre, has also welcomed the cash injection and the expertise SDCP bring and she said: “It’s really fortunate and exciting that SDCP are rolling out these services in Llangollen. It’s nothing but a positive for the town, the community and individual groups.

“SDCP’s support will also help our team at Pengwern deliver our services and projects more easily and assist the different local community groups to work together to bring benefits across the area.”

Denbighshire County Councillor for Llangollen Graham Timms said: “This grant funding will bring huge benefits to the many organisations that already exist in the Llangollen area.

“They have been offering help to our residents for many years but the extra expertise and experience of SDCP will be invaluable in supporting their work and this is a fantastic opportunity to expand the support offered to our communities.

“There are particular problems in an area that is largely rural, which leads to isolation for many, and in this current crisis it is clear that many more people locally will be in need of help and the demand for support will be much greater from all ages, many of whom have not needed help before.

“It's my wish that this new opportunity will help us all to rise to the challenge ahead and enable our communities to be much stronger together.”

His fellow Denbighshire Councillor, Melvyn Mile, added: “I’m delighted that SDCP have had this funding to extend their operations into Llangollen, Llantysilio and Pentredwr because there are many groups here who will benefit from their experience.

“That includes the Cittaslow Committee of Llangollen Town Council who are in contact with many local groups who would benefit from the kind of support SDCP have provided in Edeyrnion.”

SDCP Project Manager Margaret Sutherland said: “We will be in Llangollen two days a week working with local organisations, many previously unfunded, who have been doing amazing work with volunteers and we will share our expertise, knowledge and skills to help these groups become more resilient and sustainable for the longer term.

“We know Llangollen has similar needs to Edeyrnion in terms of meals on wheels, services for the vulnerable and community transport and one of the first steps will be to assist Citizens Advice Denbighshire to extend its service in Llangollen from half a day to two days.”

Llangollen will also soon have additional community transport based in the town complementing the existing services as well as a lunch club and new social groups and SDCP plan to build partnerships with existing groups in and around the town.

* For the latest information on SDCP go to https://www.facebook.com/sdcpartnership and for those in need of support contact SDCP on 01490 266004.

Llangollen Railway seeks person to chair its board

Llangollen Railway is looking for a person to become chair of its board.

According to an advert for the unpaid position on the Third Sector Jobs website, the person appointed will hold the board and management team to account for the railway’s mission and vision, providing “inclusive leadership to the board of trustees”.

They will also ensure that each trustee fulfils their duties and responsibilities for the effective governance of the railway, which is a registered charity.

The advert goes on to say that the search for a chair to “spearhead and exciting period of change and restructure, full of possibilities” follows an extensive governance review and the subsequent drafting of a five-year strategic plan.

The new chair will also be expected to act as an ambassador and the public face of the charity alongside the general manager Liz McGuinness, whilst ensuring the board operates well as a team and works closely with the entire management team to achieve agreed objectives.

The person appointed, says the advert, should be “engaged with, excited by and have a demonstrable record of experience of organisational management and governance and inevitably share an enthusiasm for heritage railways, their vision, mission and values.”

They must also be able to “communicate a compelling sense of purpose to others is essential as is experience and understanding of corporate governance issues.”

The person selected will serve a maximum term of three years, before being eligible for re-appointment for a further two terms of three years each.

Expressions of interest in the position have to be forwarded to the general manager by September 21 with interviews taking place the week commencing September 28.

* The advert can be found at: https://jobs.thirdsector.co.uk/job/455548/chairperson/

Ysgol Dinas Bran students celebrate GCSE success

Students at Ysgol Dinas Bran have been celebrating their GCSE examination results today.

As with A Levels a week ago, this year the school has not supplied the usual commentary listing its overall performance and outstanding successes. 

In a statement it says: "It has been fantastic to see students from the school celebrating their GCSE results. We wish them every success in the future."

Denbighshire's education chief has congratulated Year 11 learners on their achievements this year's GCSEs. 

Councillor Huw Hilditch-Roberts, Denbighshire’s Cabinet Lead Member for Education, Children’s Services and Public Engagement, said: “What a year it has been for our GCSE pupils and staff. 

"They have dealt with a lot of uncertainty in very testing times.  The students have shown great resilience, maturity and courage in the way they have handled this very unique set of circumstances

“The pupils had completed the majority of their GCSE studies by the time the lockdown was introduced, but the pandemic became a real hurdle as the pupils worked towards reaching the finishing line and were unable to sit their final examinations.   

"We welcome the Welsh Government’s decision to base the results on the assessment of teachers. They are professional staff who know their pupils and are best placed to predict final grades. 

“ I wish to offer my sincerest congratulations to the GCSE class of year 2020 and commend each and every student for their efforts, commitment and dedication throughout their GCSE studies. 

"I would also like to pay tribute to the teachers, school support staff,  and parents/ guardians. They have been a real backbone to students over recent months, keeping a clear focus and positivity.

“Whatever the outcome and whichever paths they will be taking in the next step of their lives, I would like to wish them the very best of luck and every success on their future journey.

“Our focus from September will be on ensuring that the GCSE pupils moving on to A Level studies get the best possible start to their studies and to overcome any further hurdles and challenges the new term may bring.”

MP cuts ribbon on new Oak Street cocktail bar

* From left, Gyulaydan Ali, Silviu Pop and Simon 

Baynes MP outside Re-Fresh Cocktail Bar in Oak Street.

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes made a socially-distanced visit to cut the ribbon at the newly-opened Re-Fresh Cocktail Bar in Llangollen.

During lockdown, owners Gyulaydan Ali and Silviu Pop refurbished the premises in Oak Street to a high standard with striking décor and say they have been very pleased with the large number of people who have come into the bar since it opened last week.

Silviu Pop said: “We’re incredibly grateful to Simon for taking the time to support us and officially open Re-Fresh Cocktail Bar for us. 

"We’d like to say a big thank you to all the customers who have visited and supported us so far. We can’t wait to meet and serve and get to know plenty of people in Llangollen in the near future.”

Simon Baynes said: “I was very honoured and pleased to officially open the new cocktail bar.

"The owners have already proved themselves with their successful S&G Bistro and Sweet Daisy on Castle Street and it is exciting to see them launch this new venture which has got off to a very encouraging start. 

"Llangollen is recovering very well from the Covid lockdown and the launch of Re-Fresh shows what an attractive town it is for new businesses. I wish them every success for the future.”

August Citizens Advice column

Latest advice column from Citizens Advice Denbighshire is:

Q: Last month I signed up to Universal Credit for the first time, after I was made redundant. I am looking for a new job but I’m not sure if there’s anything more I need to do to ensure I keep getting Universal Credit?

A: When you apply for Universal Credit you’ll agree a Claimant Commitment with your work coach. A Claimant Commitment is a record of the responsibilities that you have accepted to receive Universal Credit payments. Your claimant commitment will be updated each time you see your work coach.

When you agree to your Claimant Commitment you will be put into one of four work-related activity groups (sometimes called “conditionality” groups). These set out the tasks you’re expected to complete in order to receive your full benefit payment. You can check which group you’re in by logging into your Universal Credit account online and checking your Claimant Commitment. If you’re not online, you will have been provided with a paper copy of your Claimant Commitment.

This will tell you which group you’re in and what tasks you'll have to do regularly to get Universal Credit. These tasks could include writing your CV, signing up for job alerts or applying for vacancies.

In order to show how you have completed the to-do list set out in your Claimant Commitment, you should keep a record of the tasks you’ve completed and how long they took in your Universal Credit online journal, or in a diary if you’re not online.

Some claimants, mainly those who have applied for Universal Credit for the first time since the outbreak of COVID-19, may not have a Claimant Commitment yet. Those who claimed before the outbreak, will have had their Claimant Commitment suspended during the outbreak and had no work-related requirements imposed.

From 1 July The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has said it will be calling all claimants to help them to prepare for work, so people should expect to be contacted to set up the Claimant Commitment. They do not need to contact the Department for Work and Pensions in the meantime.

The DWP has said that they will take a common-sense approach to work-related requirements and that those who are shielding, have childcare responsibilities because of COVID restrictions, etc. will have their Claimant Commitment tailored to reflect their circumstances.

Llan-based soccer hero is diagnosed with cancer

Former Wrexham, Everton and Wales goalkeeper Dai Davies, who lives in Llangollen, has been diagnosed with cancer of the pancreas.

Aged 72, he is being treated at the Nightingale House Hospice in Wrexham.

For the full story, see the Leader story at: https://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/18655713.former-wrexham-wales-keeper-dai-davies-diagnosed-cancer-pancreas/

Cancelled walking festival organisers come up with two alternatives

Organisers of the annual Llangollen Walking Festival have come up with two local  alternatives to this year's event which had to be cancelled due to the coronaviris pandemic.

Festival spokesperson Mike Smart said: "As you know, way back in April we - like so many other events - were sadly forced to cancel our Llangollen Walking Festival 2020. 

"Such a shame, everything was in place, bookings were almost full and, the weather was so perfect for walking.

"But we have good news for our walking friends who don’t live within easy reach of Llangollen but are keen for a North Wales 'fix’.

"We, together with our colleagues at Secret Hills Walking Holiday have two opportunities for you to join us in Llangollen, with accommodation, later this year."

Details of these events are: 

* 18th September 2020, 2 nights and 2.5 days walking CLICK FOR DETAILS

* 18th October 2020, 5 nights and 5.5 days walking CLICK FOR DETAILS

Mike added: "Again with Secret Hills Walking Holidays we have a weekend of walking on the beautiful Malvern Hills, Worcestershire."

Details are: 

* 11th September 2020, 2 nights and 2.5 days walking staying at the 4 STAR

luxury Abbey Hotel. CLICK FOR DETAILS

"We have all our fingers and toes crossed that 2021 will see us back to normal and we very much look forward to walking and talking with you again in Llangollen," Mike said.

MP impressed with wharf's adaptions to leave lockdown

* From left, site manager Jane Hart, Simon Baynes MP, Neal and Irene Dufton, directors of Llangollen Wharf.

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes made a socially-distanced visit to Llangollen Wharf to meet with staff and learn more about how their boat trips on the Llangollen Canal have adapted to new social distancing guidelines.

The wharf, which is a major tourist attraction and part of the World Heritage Site, has offered trips around the area since 1884 and continues the tradition of horse-drawn boat trips as well as motorised boat trips today.

They have seen strong demand since re-opening and have adjusted well to new social distancing requirements, all of which is helping to make up for the loss of income during lockdown.

Mr Baynes met directors Neal and Irene Dufton, site manager Jane Hart and staff members including Cadan Edwards, Pip Bolton and Ash Hart as well as one of the horses, Tobias.

Neal Dufton said: “We’re incredibly proud to welcome visitors back to Llangollen Wharf following our safe re-opening. 

"And we’re very grateful to the many visitors who have come to our newly re-opened tea rooms, which are almost back to pre-lockdown levels with additional takeaway business. 

"There’s also strong demand for our motorised self-drive canal boats and for the horse-drawn boats, so please feel free to come and enjoy our beautiful scenery with a perfect day out for all the family.”

Simon Baynes said: “Llangollen Wharf is a big generator of income for Llangollen not only in terms of the boat trips and tea room but also the benefits of the many canal boats which moor at the wharf and then visit the town. 

"It’s a major local employer, providing work for 41 people locally, and acts as an important source of tourist information for its visitors. 

"I’ve been so impressed to see and hear about how they’ve managed to safely re-open and I look forward to seeing them continue to bounce back.”

Welcome for exams announcement

The six education portfolio holders representing the 6 North Wales Local Authorities, their Chief Officers, the Regional School Improvement Consortium GwE and secondary head teachers warmly welcome the announcement by the Education Minister in Wales  that A level, AS, GCSE, Skills Challenge Certificate and Welsh Baccalaureate grades in Wales will now be awarded on the basis of Centre Assessment Grades. We feel this is in the best interest of our young people who have been anxious and unsure of their future.

We look forward to hearing more about the ‘independent review of events following the cancellation of this year’s exams’ announced by the Education Minister and hope that we will be given the opportunity to feed appropriately into the process.

It allows schools to now concentrate on the critical job of preparing to re-open safely in September. 

Isherwood calls for urgent action on A Level 'fiasco'

North Wales Member of the Welsh Parliament  Mark Isherwood is calling on the Education Minister to urgently address the A level downgrading fiasco which has resulted in hundreds of students missing out on University Places.

Students across Wales have accused the Welsh Government of "abandoning them" after 42% of grades were lowered by the exams watchdog.

Since the results came out on Thursday morning, Mr Isherwood has received  numerous emails from affected students, parents, Head teachers and Teachers in North Wales expressing upset and concern about the downgraded ‘A’ and ‘AS’ Level results.

He wrote to the Education Minister, Kirsty Williams MS, the next day (Friday), calling on her to give the matter her urgent attention and to put students out of their misery by confirming her intended course of action.

Mr Isherwood said: “The whole situation is absolutely appalling and demands urgent attention.

“The Senedd’s Children, Young People and Education Committee has been recalled and will now meet tomorrow (Tuesday), but every day of waiting is a day of torture for the affected students who desperately need answers now.

“I have received emails from students who have missed out on places to some of the UK’s top universities, including Oxford and Durham, because of this fiasco. Their future plans have been completely turned upside down by this fiasco.

“The process used to determine final grades is clearly flawed and it appears that it is students from disadvantaged schools who have been affected the most.  

“One student who contacted me attended a Wrexham sixth form that does not have a high A/A* record when looking at historical data, however they were given Centre Assessment Grades of A*A*A*AA and held an offer for the University of Oxford,  yet the standardisation process awarded them ABBBB. As the student stated “How can they justify downgrading me from A* to B?”

“This student is not alone, I have received many emails of similar cases, and the fear is we will see more cases of downgrading when the GCSE results are published this Thursday.

“This is not a matter that can wait, the well-being and the future success of our young people is at stake and the Education Minister must take action now to ensure that every student in Wales is treated fairly.”

Town councillors embrace the green agenda

* Town councillors Sheena Grindley and 

Austin Cheminais give some attention to one of the planters.

A group of local councillors have been helping to make the town centre look a little more colourful

Because of lockdown Derwen College students, who usually take care of the planters and troughs in and around Castle Street, couldn’t to do their usual summer planting.

Town councillor Austin Cheminais, who is also the town crier, explained: "We noticed a few weeks ago that they were looking pretty neglected and needed some attention.

"Derwen College were able to supply some plants but as it is not fully operative couldn’t plant them.

"Myself and my wife Jane along with my fellow town councillors Sheena Grindley and our newly co-opted member John Palmer took on the task and were out over a couple of days.

"Hopefully, the planting should provide an attractive display well into next year."

He added: "It’s been a very pleasant couple of days chatting and catching up with friends and local residents some of whom we’ve not seen since lockdown started way back in March.

"Both residents and tourists alike were pleased to see the planters and troughs getting some attention."

Llangollen actor helps make broadcasting history

* Dyfed Thomas as Eurwyn.

* The full cast of Rybish, from left, Mair Tomos Ifans (Val), 

Betsan Ceiriog (Bobbi), Dyfed Thomas (Eurwyn), 

Rhodri Trefor (Nigel), and Sion Pritchard (Clive).

An actor from the Llangollen area has made broadcasting history by becoming the first in the UK to complete a comedy drama series during the Covid-19 lockdown – by creating a bubble for the cast and crew in a closed down pub.

Production of the new sitcom Rybish (Rubbish), set in a recycling centre, was brought to a halt in March by the coronavirus crisis but undeterred Caernarfon-based Cwmni Da came up with a plan to carrying on filming.

Members of the crew self-isolated for a fortnight before resuming and they were tested regularly throughout the shoot.

They included Dyfed Thomas, a native of Rhos, who now lives just outside Llangollen.

When they were not working, the team were holed up in an empty pub, The Beuno, in Clynnog Fawr on the north coast of the Llŷn Peninsula.

The company built their own recycling centre on an old landfill site at Carmel, near Caernarfon.

They used fixed cameras which were remotely controlled to film the remaining episodes in the six-part series which will be screened on S4C in the coming months.

Director Sion Aaron said: “We’d filmed three episodes of Rybish before the health crisis.

“As we were filming the very first take of the fourth episode, we had a call from the office to tell us to drop tools due to the increasing risk of the spread of the coronavirus.

“When lockdown started to ease we were able to form a bubble, the cast of six, the writer and producer and myself, so we could live together after taking over the Beuno which closed years ago, and work together to film the remaining three episodes.

“Before the health crisis we had already decided to film the series in a unique way which meant the camera operators and sound recordists could work remotely anyway.

“We created a new role as we had, what we Christened our Covid Cop, on set at all times to ensure compliance with Covid-19 regulations.”

According to Sion, the sitcom revolved around daily life at a remote recycling centre in Gwynedd and follows the six members of staff as they go about the daily grind of their working lives and what they get up to.

He added: “ It’s brilliantly written and although the comedy is subtle it’s very funny.

“We built our own recycling centre after hiring skips from Gwynedd County Council who gave us fantastic support.

“Most of the action takes place in the workers’ cabin, the type of hut you see at every recycling centre.

“We wanted to film it in a similar style to Big Brother or 24 Hours in A&E, that type of fly-on-the-wall approach that would enhance the character-driven script. “We did that before lockdown so the final three episodes look exactly the same in style as the first three.

“It meant we could resume filming after lockdown, as maintaining a cast bubble to work separately to the crew wasn’t too difficult.

“The Beuno has been closed for years and last orders was called a long time ago but the fact that we stayed there meant we could work together and we really did get to know each other too which was a big bonus.

“I know some soap operas are also back filming but they are using camera techniques that make it look like the actors are far closer than they are. We didn’t want that.

“As most of the action in Rybish takes place in a workers’ cabin that just wouldn’t have worked. There wouldn’t be enough space, and it would've been harder for the cast to relax into their characters.

“We believe ours is the first scripted comedy series in the UK to be completed in this way, during the Coronavirus pandemic.”

Producer and BAFTA Cymru award winning writer Barry Jones, who penned Rybish, was delighted to get the filming wrapped.

He said: “The fact we built our own set in such a remote setting meant were isolated and didn’t have members of the public stopping by.

“It also helped that we did the filming in a unique way. We had the cameras in a fixed rig mostly above the actors. I wanted it in that style as if the viewer is getting a sneaky look at what is going on.

“We wanted Rybish to be character-based with the comedy coming because we get under the skin of the characters, so finding the right actors was very important, and a process that took a long time, but we're a hundred percent certain that we got the best cast possible in the end.

“It was a joy to see characters, that had been words on paper for so long, come alive in such a rounded way. We want the audience to associate with the characters so they can hopefully see elements of people the recognise in them, and we believe the cast took that to another level with their performances throughout the series.

“With regards to storylines, we wanted to keep them as realistic as possible. It would have been easy to write an over-the-top sitcom with crazy plots like workers at a recycling site finding a suitcase stuffed full of cash in a skip, but that isn’t what we wanted. 

“I’m not sure a comedy drama has been filmed in quite this way before. It’s very Welsh and I don’t just mean in linguistic terms. The comedy and situations have very Welsh connotations ."

He added: “It took me a long time to write and I spent days sat in huts at council recycling centres just listening to staff and observing what goes on and what they talk about. It gave me a real insight and lots of ideas."

It was an exciting time for Caernarfon actress Betsan Ceiriog, 22, who plays a character called Bobbi in Rybish, as it’s her debut TV role.

Betsan, who graduated from St David’s University Cardiff with a performing arts degree in July 2018, said: “I was thrilled to land the role. I had an audition and sent in a recording of myself. I already knew a couple of the Cwmni Da team so that helped.

“My character Bobbi is a university student who has graduated and is working at the recycling centre for the summer to get some money so she can travel.

“It was a fantastic learning experience especially as we were allowed to put in a bit of ad-libbing some and the plan now is to land more acting and TV parts and or musical theatre roles.”

Cwmni Da general manager David Parry Evans was christened the Covid Cop on set after taking on the role of ensuring coronavirus regulations were strictly complied with.

He said: “It was my job to ensure we had sufficient supplies of hand sanitizer and that everything was wiped kept clean and sanitised. If a camera operator needed to go into the cabin on set then I’d ensure it was deep cleaned afterwards.

“I had my two metre rod to ensure everyone moving around the set was two metres apart and wearing a face mask. I was obviously quite good at the job hence the Covid Cop nickname I was given."

llanblogger warns against bogus emails

Llanblogger is warning against “phishing” emails which used our name as an introduction to a local person whom they wished to scam.

Late last week the recipient of the emails, who doesn’t wish to be identified, received two of them from someone who claimed to be originally from France but was now living in the United States.

This person said they were struggling with cancer, had only a few months to live and had been unable to access a large cash sum left to them by a relative.

The sender told the recipient they would be glad to receive their response and informed them they had got their contact details from llanblogger’s web address.  

Attached to one of the emails was a picture of a clearly sick woman lying in a hospital bed.

The recipient said: “No doubt if I had responded to the emails they would have gone on to ask me for money ans possibly also steal my personal data.

“This is clearly a scam which was using the name of llanblogger to gain my confidence.”

Llanblogger editor Phil Robinson said: “I thank the local recipient for alerting me to this and would warn anyone else who receives email like this never to respond and to simply delete them.”

Legion leads VJ Day commemoration in town square

* British Legion standard bearers play a key role in the ceremony.

Llangollen Royal British Legion led this morning's commemoration of the 75th anniversary of VJ - Victory over Japan - Day in Centenary Square.

The special ceremony to commemorate the end of the Second World War in the Far East had to be curtailed due to the coronavirus situation and there was not be the usual march through town led by the Silver Band. 

The group from the branch including its standard bearers formed up at the war memorial to be joined by 15 of the Legion's riders.

The Service of Remembrance, led by the Vicar of Llangollen Father Lee Taylor, began shortly before 11am. 

Everyone taking part in the parade wore face coverings and were spaced out to meet social distancing requirements.

Although there was no march or band the traditional two minutes' silence was observed and pre-recorded versions of Last Post and Reveille were played before the laying of a poppy wreath took place along with the recitation of the moving Kohima Epitaph which includes the famous line "for your tomorrow we gave our today".

The ceremony ended with prayers and a blessing from Father Lee.

To coincide with the ceremony in the square the tenor bell - the heaviest of the eight bells at over 16cwt- in the tower at St Collen's Church was tolled 75 times at 11am.

* Father Lee Taylor leads the service.  

* British Legion branch chairman Phil Stroud

recites the Kohima Epitaph.

* Onlookers watch the ceremony in the square.