* Llanblogger's picture of Eddie Butler re-opening the Chain Bridge in May, 2015.
One of the ceremony’s organisers has been
recalling the day former Wales rugby union captain and legendary
broadcaster Eddie Butler, who has died at the age of 65, officially opened the Chain Bridge at Berwyn.
Mr Butler passed away in his sleep while
on a charity trek in Peru, aged 65, and tributes to him have been pouring
in from across the country.
On May 28, 2015 he opened up the world-famous bridge after it had been in
a state of chronic disrepair for 30 years.
One of those who invited him to perform the ceremony was Maggie Smith,
then chair of Llantysilio Community Council which had teamed up with Llangollen
Town Council to bring the historic footbridge across the River Dee back to
life.
* Eddie Butler was one of the first to walk across the newly-opened footbridge.
Remembering the occasion, she said: “I travelled with Eddie on the train
from Llangollen Station to Berwyn Station and then back to Llangollen on a
canal boat after the opening ceremony.
“He was lovely to chat to and was interested in the bridge refurbishment
and about Llangollen generally. He enjoyed both the train ride and the boat
trip.”
In his
speech, Mr Butler said it was good to be back in an “absolutely fabulous part
of our country”.
“It is
not the biggest bridge over the River Dee, and we know it’s not the strongest
bridge over the River Dee – but it has been rebuilt,” he said.
“I
visited here four years ago and there was just the notion that ‘just one day,
wouldn’t it be good if we could get this bridge rebuilt?’
“It is a
very special bridge, because it was built in the first place by a man with one
of the greatest names of all time – Exuperius Pickering.
“And when
your bridge is built by an Exuperius, you know you’ve got something special.”
After
opening the entrance to the bridge, Mr Butler was among the first across –
along with dignitaries including the Mayor of Llangollen Cllr Bob Lube and
Clwyd South representatives Ken Skates AM and Susan Elan-Jones MP.
The
project to bring the bridge back in to public use has been ongoing for about
five years, after the Llangollen and Llantysilio Community Councils bought it
from former owner, the late businesswoman Stephanie Booth, for just £1.
After
receiving £350,000 in grants, the councils were able to commence work on
rebuilding the bridge with Shemec Ltd – with about two-thirds of the rebuild
making use of original materials from the bridge.
After rising to prominence with club side Pontypool, Mr Butler played 16
times for Wales between 1980 and 1984, captaining the side on six occasions and
scoring two tries.
The number eight was called up to the British and Irish Lions squad that
toured New Zealand in 1983.
After retirement he became a respected rugby broadcaster.
He started his newspaper journalism career with
the Sunday Correspondent in 1988 before stints with Observer and the Guardian
and returned to BBC Wales in 1990 after being brought back in by new head of
sport Gareth Davies.
After McLaren's retirement, he became the BBC rugby lead commentator
where he formed a notable partnership with the likes of former England hooker
Brian Moore and ex-Wales fly-half Jonathan Davies.
In 2010, Mr Butler joined a host of former Wales captains who climbed
Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania to raise funds for Velindre Hospital, Cardiff's
specialist cancer treatment centre.
Butler presented history series on the BBC including Wales and the
History of the World, Hidden Histories, Welsh Towns at War in 2014 and two
series of Welsh Towns in 2015.
He was also an author after publishing three novels and two non-fiction
books.
Away from rugby and broadcasting, Butler campaigned for Welsh
independence in recent years.
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