St Collen's features in Songs of Praise TV show tomorrow

 

* A member of the film crew outside the church.

Scenes shot at St Collen's Church for a BBC programme will hit the screen tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon.

A film crew were recently at the church to shoot sequences for the BBC's Songs of Praise programme centred around the regular Hymns & Pimms musical sessions which vicar Father Lee Taylor began hosting during the 2020 lockdown.

Members of the congregation were shown singing a number of favourite hymns ending with the well-known Calon Lan in the original Welsh.

Later it was time for glasses of Pimms to be served outside in the church grounds. 

The sequence will be shown on Songs of Praise tomorrow at 1.15pm in an episode entitled "Sacred Walks on the Wales Coast Path."

Llangollen Round Challenge raises record sum for Cancer Research UK

* From left: Nadine Isaacs from Cancer Research UK, challenge organiser Judy Smith, Simon Baynes MP and organisers Jason Morley and Sandra Woodhall. 

Cancer Research UK has received its largest single North Wales donation of the year so far after collecting  a cheque for £100,723 from organisers of this year's record-breaking Llangollen Round Challenge.

The total means the fourth challenge, held over the last weekend in May, raised a record amount for the charity.

The often gruelling 35-mile run/walk through the beautiful yet tough terrain of the hills surrounding the town saw a record 500-plus participants who either walked or ran around it.

The event, which operates thanks to a small army of volunteer helpers, can be completed in either one or two days and also saw another record set for the route being completed in the fastest time.

Since being launched in 2012 by members of the Llangollen Ramblers group and based roughly on the Alpine Walk Tour of Mont Blanc, the amount raised for Cancer Research UK by the challenge has climbed steadily from £33,000 to the latest total which will be further boosted by government returns on charity donations.

The 2022 challenge attracted over 500 entries from across the UK and abroad and saw 238 walkers or runners finishing it in a single day with another 189 completing it in two. 

A fresh record was set when the first person back at the event's Llangollen Leisure Centre base was certified to have covered the whole 35 miles in just seven hours.

The fastest woman completed it in just seven hours and 34 minutes. 

The two oldest people to complete the course were aged 90 and 87.

As usual 80 volunteers manned checkpoints along the route where those taking part were served with water supplied free by local businesses and cakes presented by home bakers in the area.

More helpers were back at base checking in participants and handing out their times.   

Nadine Isaacs, relationship manager (North Wales) at Cancer Research UK, said: "Forty years ago the cancer survival rate was one in four. Today it is two in four but Cancer Research UK's mission is to reduce this further to three in four.

"Without the support we receive from fundraisers such as you we could not continue with our research."  

Helping challenge organisers hand over the big cheque to Nadine in Riverside Park this morning (Friday) was Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes who congratulated them on what he called their "fantastic achievement".

BBC star calls in at Llangollen Railway

* Gethin Jones takes a selfie with railcar driver Dewi Davies.

Visitors to Llangollen Railway had the chance to do so some celeb spotting earlier this week.

On Tuesday the heritage attraction welcomed the production company STV Studios which had chosen it as one of the locations in the Dee Valley for a future episode of Celebrity Antiques Roadtrip. 

The popular programme, which attracted nearly 14 million viewers in 2019 from across the BBC and other Freeview channels, sees two teams of antiques experts and celebrity guests visit various antique shops on a mission to buy items to then sell at auction. 

Each team also stops off to film a sequence about a local industry, person or event which is historically unique and significant to the area they are visiting. 

Llangollen Railway says it was delighted to be chosen at the historic location and be given the chance to explain the role it has played in the past, present and future of the Dee Valley.

One of the visiting celebrities was former Blue Peter presenter Gethin Jones who now regularly fronts the BBC magazine show Morning Live. 

He took a selfie of himself with driver Dewi Davies in the cab of the diesel railcar in use on passenger train services.

The railway says it will keep people posted about when the finished episode will be broadcast. 

Story of A Level success at Ysgol Dinas Bran

* Above and below: Students celebrate their A Level successes.

There were scenes of joy and relief at Ysgol DinasBrân today as A Level students celebrated their exam results.

A school spokesperson said that for all students this has been an extremely difficult year given the previous two years. 

For students in Year 13, the pressure has been "immense" with A -Levels being decided on external examinations of which students have had no prior experience.

Staff and students had worked tremendously hard. Results were "excellent" with early indications that nearly all have achieved their first choice place for university.

"We are extremely proud of the students and their achievements and would like to highlight some fantastic achievements," said the spokesperson.

* Zoe Adams achieved 4 A* grades and will now be studying Biomedical sciences at Oxford University.

* Luke Reardon 3A* and 1A and will now be taking a gap year before accepting his place to do Medicine in Cardiff University.

* Adam Wolsey 3A* and 1A will be taking a year out and looking to apply to University next year

* Jaimee Evans 3A* and will now be studying Chemistry in Imperial College London

* James Reardon A* and 2 A grades and will now be studying History and Politics in the University of Birmingham

* James Norman 4 A grades and will now be studying Media Studies and Creative Writing in Bangor University

* Sara Davies 3 A grades and will now be studying International Relations/Economic & Social History at University of Glasgow

* Carys Edwards 3 A grades will now be studying Physiotherapy in University of Central Lancashire

* Lowri Ellis 3 A grades will now be studying Geography at Bangor University.

Royal plan hailed as part of £50m vote of tourism confidence

* An artist's impression showing how the riverside elevation of the Royal Hotel. could look.

The £6.5 million plan to redevelop the iconic Royal Hotel in Llangollen has been held up an an example of a £50m vote of confidence  in the North Wales tourism and hospitality business.

It was quoted by North Wales Tourism chief executive Jim Jones as he launched the search for entries in this year's Go North Wales Awards to be staged at Venue Cymru in Llandudno on Thursday, November 24.  

The Oscars-style ceremony will be hosted by radio and TV presenter Sian Lloyd.

According to Mr Jones, times are still tough for the sector but there was “light at the end of the tunnel”.

People were tightening their belts because of inflation and the cost of living crisis so the number of staycation visitors was down.

While the start of the summer season had been “fairly busy”, bookings for August, September and October were unusually slow in contrast to last  year when it had been extremely busy.

On the plus-side there was optimism that the tourism and hospitality industry in North Wales would eventually return to and then exceed pre-pandemic levels when it was attracting record number of visitors and annually pumping £3.6 billion into the region’s economy.

Mr Jones said: “There are challenges at the moment so it’s great to have the opportunity to celebrate as well by staging the Go North Wales Awards which will showcase the best we have to offer.

“Importantly, it is also a chance to recognise all the work, the sacrifices and the investment that’s been put into the tourism sector.

“The reasons why North Wales is such an attractive destination for visitors are still there.

“We can therefore be optimistic that tourism and hospitality is well place to lead the region on the road to economic recovery.”

“There are lots of positive things happening so we do have reasons to be cheerful.

“My conservative estimate is that at least £50 million is being invested in the region by key tourism and hospitality operators.

“Zip World are launching have launched Underground Golf at Llechwedd in Blaenau Ffestiniog while another of our major success stories, Adventure Parc Snowdonia, in the Conwy Valley is investing £5 million to make it an all-year-round destination, particularly for business events, conferences and team-building courses.

“The Belmont and the Queen’s hotels in Llandudno have been bought up by a company called Everbrite and they’re investing in them.

“Meanwhile, £6.5 million plans to redevelop the iconic Royal Hotel in Llangollen have been given the go-ahead.

“When you add it all up, that’s a lot of investment and a really positive indicator for the future. It’s essentially a massive vote of confidence in North Wales.

“We always said it’d take two to three years to get back to where we were.

“For obvious reasons, we have been relying on the domestic market in recent times but now we have the international market that is just starting to open up

“It’s our job is to make sure that we’re out there promoting our investments and our assets that we have in North Wales and shouting form the rooftops.

“We are already re-establishing our links with the Asian market and our relationship with Japan is particularly strong and we’re building on the twinning of Conwy and Himeji castles a few years back.

“We have now forged similar links between Llandudno and the Swiss skiing resort of Champéry.

“All these things are helping us raise our profile internationally but we’ve got to do more and promote ourselves as the Adventure Capital of Europe.

“When you think about it, we have an incredible amount to offer visitors, right across North Wales.

“Hopefully, with support from the likes of Welsh Government, we can re-establish ourselves as a confident region and bring people into North Wales to come to stay and spend their money.

“That’s why events like the Go North Wales Awards are so incredibly important because it’s a chance to shout about the best of the best.

“We are hugely grateful of all our sponsors because quite simply the awards could not happen without their support.”

The window for submissions in 16 categories of the Go North Wales Awards is open until Monday, October 10, and more details can be found at www.gonorthwalestourismawards.website

Categories up for grabs are:

Go Hotel Award 2022

Go B&B / Inn Award 2022

Go Self Catering Award 2022

Go Holiday Park Award 2022

Go Caravan, Camping or Glamping Award 2022

Go Attraction Award 2022

Go Activity Award 2022

Go Best Event Award 2022

Go Food and Drink Award 2022

Go Tourism Supplier Award 2022

Go Skills Award 2022

Go Responsible and Sustainable Green Award 2022

Go Pet Friendly Award 2022

Go Young Person Award 2022

Go Best Newcomer Award 2022

Go North Wales Judges Award 2022

 

 

Latest Citizens Advice column

Latest column from Denbighshire Citizens Advice is:

Q: The cost of energy and food is so high now. With the kids home from school for the summer, I’m having to pay more for lunches and snacks. I’m worried about how I’ll put food on the table. I’m on a prepayment meter and I’m really scared we’re going to be left without any gas or electric if I can’t top up. What can I do? 

A: First of all, I’m really sorry to hear how tough things have been for you. You’re doing the right thing in reaching out for support and there are things you can get help with. 

As a prepayment meter customer, your energy supplier will be able to give you temporary credit if you can’t afford to top up your meter. They might add this to your meter automatically, but if they don’t, you can call them and ask them to do this. 

If you run out of temporary credit, speak to your supplier to explain your situation. They may give you extra temporary credit if you’re struggling with living costs. There are other reasons why they might give you extra credit too, including if you’re disabled, have a long-term health condition, or you have children under the age of 5. You’ll have to pay back anything extra you get, but you can agree how to do this in a way you can afford with your supplier. 

As you say, the cost of living is really high but there is help available. If you pay council tax and you’re in bands A-D, you should get a payment of £150 automatically. It could take until the end of September, but if you've not had it already you might need to make a claim. You can check how to do this on your council's website. 

You might also be able to get a fuel voucher, which you can use to add credit to your meter. Contact your local council about this. 

There’s more government support coming from October, including a £400 payment to help you with your energy bills. If you have a prepayment meter, you’ll be given vouchers in the first week of each month from October, via SMS text, email or post. Make sure your energy company has your up-to-date details. 

To help manage other costs, it’s also worth checking you’re getting all the benefits you’re entitled to. There are benefits calculators you can use online. On the Citizens Advice website, there’s advice on how to reduce living costs and information on other ways to increase your income. 

The school holidays can be a really tough time and we know the food shop isn’t stretching as far. Contact your local council to find out what extra support you can get over the holidays. If you can’t afford to buy food, your local Citizens Advice can help you get a referral for a food bank. 

We know this is an extremely worrying time and everyone’s situation is different. Don’t struggle alone. If you need further support, contact your local Citizens Advice or call the national advice line: 0800 144 8848.

Roadworks planned for Princess Street

Latest local roadworks alert from one.network is:

Princess Street, Denbighshire 19 August - 23 August   Roadworks, Delays unlikely   Traffic management: Some carriageway incursion   Description: Stop tap Renew 32mm Job in Footway (6mm Bitmac (Tarmac) )...   Works location: OUTSIDE 9 PRINCESS STREET...   Public facing description: one.network has automatically assigned a category of Unclassified works to this Works based on the information available. Please note: Works Descriptions are not published by Hafren Dyfrdwy.   Responsibility for works: Hafren Dyfrdwy   Current status: Advanced planning   Works reference: ZU0028102/000013142858