Operatic's Into the Woods reveals a spectacular surprise

If you go down Into the Woods today - or rather the Town Hall later this week - you're sure of a big and very pleasant surprise.

Because you'll see a large and stunningly good cast from Llangollen Operatic Society staging a show the likes of which they've never done before.

It's Stephen Sondheim's hugely acclaimed 1986 piece entitled Into the Woods, which can only be described as a colourful, tuneful and rather frantic show-with-a-message. And it's about as far from the society's traditional offerings as you can get.

Characters from a host of Brothers Grimm fairytales, such as Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel team up in a crazy kaleidoscope of scenes which sees them thrashing about in the woods to find objects such as a snow white cow and a blood red cape.  

Whether they do find them I daren't say but what they do discover is a lot of things about themselves and life generally.

All this is stylishly conveyed by a largely young and extremely talented cast who have spent months honing their performances to perfection.

Like Ethan Roberts as Jack, Jessica Fidler as Rapunzel, Rose Burgon as Cinderella and Steph Williams as the Witch, they can sing up a storm.

And they can also act - like Robin Crowley and Rachel Dobson as the Baker and his wife, Kevin Williams as the Wolf, Leri Roberts as Little Red Riding Hood, Graham Bannister-Kelly and Kelsey Thornton as, respectively, Cinderella's and Rapunzel's princes and Naomi Riley and Hannah Taylor as the Step-sisters.

But it's not just the young ones who make a big impression. Alongside them to add  a touch of seasoning are Operatic veterans Bill Cheshire (the Mysterious Man), Sue Cheshire (Granny), Justine Bradey (Cinderella's Mother), Sue O'Neill (Jack's Mother), Chris Williams (splendidly attired and authoritative Narrator), Louisa Jones (voice of Giant and Cinderella's Mother) and Jan Bellis (an unforgettably moo-ving Milky White the cow).    

Unless you're familiar with the piece you are unlikely to be on sing-along terms with the songs but around 30 of them are there to ease along the action and you may well find yourself humming a couple of the catchier ones as you leave. 

Make no mistake, this fairytale with attitude really works.

And that's due in no small part to the excellent production team of artistic director Chrissie Ashworth, joint producers Tracey Kempster-Jones and Caroline Anthonisz, musical director Elen Mair Roberts and choreographer Rob Stevens. 

With a five-performance run, you can catch the show at Llangollen Town Hall from this Wednesday-Saturday June 11 -14, with performances on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings as well as a matinee on Saturday afternoon.

* Tickets are available online at: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/llangollenoperaticsociety as well as local outlets in Llangollen: The Tourist Information Centre, The Oggie Shop, and Solitaire Jewellers.

Latest local roadworks notified by the county council

Latest local roadworks notified by Denbighshire County Council are:

A539

NEXT TO NUMBER 28 MILL STREET, LL20 8SA

MILL STREET

09/06/2025

09/06/2025

Gwaith Dwr / Water Works HAFREN DYFRDWY (DCC)

A539

Wrth / Nr Dee Cottage

MILL STREET

10/06/2025

10/06/2025

Amnewid Colofn / Replace Column DCC STREET LIGHTING

Wharf Hill / Castle Street

ABBEY ROAD

26/06/2025

13/07/2025

Eisteddfod  BIG PARKING LTD.

LLANGOLLEN

Stopio Mynd/Stop Go

A542

Verge

ABBEY ROAD

Until

13/06/2025

Gwaith Ar Wal Gynnal/ Retaining Wall Works DCC HIGHWAYS (PETE/SUNBEL

LLANGOLLEN

Drosi Bikes volunteer's success in countywide awards

* Mark Jones after winning his award at the DVSC ceremony.

Mark Jones of Llangollen's Drosi Bikes has landed the Best Newcomer accolade at this year’s Denbighshire Voluntary Service Council (DVSC) Volunteer Awards.

The award ceremony took place last Friday at the Naylor Leyland Centre in Ruthin, marking Volunteers Week 2025 and celebrating the enormous impact volunteers have across Denbighshire.

Mark joined Drosi Bikes in October 2024 and in just a short time has become an indispensable member of the workshop volunteer crew. 

Drosi says his dedication, energy and willingness to support others, whether repairing bikes, mentoring new volunteers, or helping members of the public, have all made a lasting impression.

* Volunteer Mark Jones busy in the Drosi Bikes workshop.

Mark’s role involves refurbishing donated bicycles that are then redistributed through local charities or sold at low cost to fund Drosi’s wider community work. 

He also supports day to day tasks in the workshop and plays a key role in building confidence and skills among other volunteers.

“Mark’s impact goes far beyond the bikes he works on,” said Becky, Drosi’s Volunteer Coordinator.

“His kindness and positivity help create a welcoming space for everyone who steps into the workshop. We’re delighted to see his contribution recognised with this award.”

Drosi Bikes is a community focused social enterprise based in Llangollen which looks to address the lack of diversity in the cycling community and to offer accessible solutions to climate change, through every day, affordable cycling. 

Mark, and all of Drosi’s volunteers, are at the heart of what they do. 

Anyone who is interested in getting involved or wants to find out more is encouraged to get in touch with the workshop.

Weather stays kind to successful Plas Newydd summer fete

* People enjoy all the fun of the fete.

Despite a couple of quick downpours around lunchtime and later in the afternoon, the weather generally stayed kind to the Llangollen Summer Fete at Plas Newydd today (Saturday).

Highlights included a full programme of entertainment, including performances from Llangollen Operatic Society, Llangollen Pantomime Group, Karen's dance troupe and Llangollen Silver Band. 

A variety of stalls offered goods ranging from jewellery to handicrafts and from teddy bears to tombola plus demonstrations of willow weaving, card printing and nature crafts. 

Junior members of the fete committee arranged attractions for teenagers including a football stall, nature crafts and kindling making and for the younger children there was a treasure hunt.

Proving popular were the children's rides as well as a circus workshop by Circo Art that people of all ages could join in throughout the afternoon.

This year, for the first time, the fete featured a wellbeing area aiming to provide advice, guidance and services to help people with their  physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. Among contributors were Cambrian Hearing, Nature for Health, Llangollen Food Share and a tai chi session led by Mike Gleed.

Local businesses provided a long list of prizes for the raffle. 

All money raised on the day will go to local and community causes as well as the funding of future fetes.

There was also a wider variety of food and drinks, from GeeGee's bar, The Parks Pims Stall and wine from Pip Gayle.

* Llangollen Silver Band play early in the afternoon.

* A wood carving demo.

* Compere Charlie Jones invites the deputy mayor Damon Richards-Gwilliam to open the fete.

* A fine display of soft toys.

* The angling club's hook-a-duck game.

* The volunteer team who helped to ensure things ran smoothly.

* Keeping plates spinning at the circus skills workshop.

* The Ysgol Bryn Collen stall kept busy.

 * The fire engine was a popular attraction.

* Llangollen Operatic gave a musical taste of their forthcoming show, Into the Woods.

* Llangollen Panto Group perform a song from this year's show Beauty and the Beast. 

* North Wales Police had one of their cars on show.

* Karen's dancers go through their paces.

* A classic Standard car is admired outside Plas Newydd.

* A wine tasting session run by Pip Gale.

* Charlie interviews Bronagh of Ysgol Y Gwernant who designed the winning fete flyer.

Garden railway festival steams in with another success

* Crowds gather to enjoy the garden railway festival.

Hundreds of enthusiasts from across the UK came flocking to Llangollen Pavilion today (Saturday) to enjoy one of the UK’s most successful garden railway festivals.

The Llangollen Garden Railway Festival is one of the UK’s biggest model garden railway events and all proceeds from the event will go to support Llangollen International Eisteddfod.   

Around 80 of the UK’s leading exhibitors and traders were represented at the day-long festival which featured a huge selection of outstanding layouts of the larger scale in railway modelling, catered for all tastes and showed garden railways from different periods and countries.

The event was once again organised by Llangollen-based garden model railway enthusiast Keith Potts who said: “Our garden railway festival is one of the most popular in the UK.  We’ve been running it since 2021 and were delighted to return to the Pavilion for the 2025 event.  

"Garden railways continue to be extremely popular and this festival has drawn in thousands of enthusiasts and in doing so helped raise money for local charities.  

"Not only did we see some amazing model railways in action, but there were also plenty of opportunities to meet fellow enthusiasts and learn about different railway models and layouts."

He added: "Three of the major exhibitors, Pentre, Railways of the World and Indian Hill, all arranged for us to receive large contributions, which was a magnificent gesture. It was a great day for garden railways and the Eisteddfod." 

* Happy organiser Keith Potts, right.

Llanfest

* Tomorrow (Sunday) the Pavilion's summer of live music kicks off with the return of the legendary Llanfest taking centre stage in the Pavilion, from 2pm to 10.30pm. 

This one-day music festival will feature seven of the best up-and-coming bands from North Wales and the North West of England, offering a diverse line-up from rock anthems to indie tunes and club classics.

Early bird tickets are available in advance for £15 from Llangollen.net using the discount code LLANFEST25; tickets will be £20 at the door.

Fringe takes on the running of town's Christmas Festival

* Last year's Christmas Festival kicked off as usual with a grand parade through the town centre.

Llangollen Fringe Festival has announced that it is taking on the running of the town's Christmas Festival from this year.

In a statement last night the Fringe said: "After many years of wonderful service, Chem and John Palmer are hanging up their Santa boots and stepping into a well-earned retirement. 

"Their dedication has been truly appreciated, and we know they’ll be missed. Unfortunately, no one has come forward to take the reindeer reins — so the Fringe Directors have unanimously agreed to step in.

"We want to be clear: this isn’t a takeover. It’s about supporting the continued running of a much-loved event, providing it with the logistical help it needs to thrive. We're all committed to keeping the Christmas Festival alive and well — a free, inclusive celebration for the whole town.

"We're proud to help keep this festive tradition going strong and ensure it continues giving back to our fantastic community."

The festival, which has gone through a series of organisational changes over the past couple of decades, has delighted many thousands of people over the years and raised large amounts of money for good local causes and, latterly, also for the Welsh Air Ambulance service.

It is usually held on the last Saturday in November and attracts large crowds.

The Fringe, on this year from July 11-20, is run entirely by volunteers, dedicating their time for the love of the arts, music, entertainment and all things in between.  

It was born in July 1997, in an impromptu tent on an out-of-town playing field. 

From then through to its present central location in the Town Hall, via a converted weavers' shed, the Fringe has increased its reputation with every year.

Over the years it has provided affordable events for individuals and families from all over the world. 

It has always punched well above its weight with names such as Damian Hurst, Cerys Mattews, Carol Ann Duffey, The Beat, Charlotte Church, The Blockheads, Sir Andrew Motion.

It also provides access to World Music, Folk, Dance, Comedy, Workshops, Informed Walks, has themed Train Journeys and Canal Trips.

Cable fault means power outage and traffic lights on Regent Street

 

A damaged underground electricity cable leading to a power outage along a short section of Regent Street in Llangollen earlier today has led to SP Energy Networks setting up temporary traffic lights while they make emergency repairs.

This has led to some congestion this afternoon and evening.

It is understood that although the outage originally affected both sides of the road this morning, power was later restored to the Dory Gallery side of the street.