Llangollen lads cycling to Thailand have interview with BBC news website

The three Llangollen area lads - known as the Westheads - whose progress llanblogger has been following as they cycle to Thailand have hit the Welsh national headlines.

As they head deeper in Eastern Europe an interview with them has appeared on the BBC's Cymru Fyw online news site.

* For the full story, go to: Llangollen boys cycling to Bangkok - BBC Cymru Fyw

Here is a translation of the article from the Welsh in which it appears:

Three boys from the North East are currently on an unforgettable adventure, cycling from Llangollen to Thailand.

Dyfan Hughes and Louis Dennis are from Llangollen, with James Thomas coming from the Wrexham area. The journey to southeast Asia will take over a year, stopping in a number of countries along the way.

The tour began in Llangollen on 2 August, and the boys are now in eastern Bulgaria, not far from the border with Turkey.

Speaking to Cymru Fyw from the city of Sliven in Bulgaria, Dyfan explained why they are making this trip. "We have a friend called Harrison who lives in Thailand, and he recently lost his father, and we cycled to him. Harrison lived in Cefn near Llangollen and we became good friends with him." All three will be raising money for the Heart Foundation by doing this challenge.

Cycling from north Wales to the south-east of England the three camped, making the most of the fine weather.

"We crossed into the Netherlands, and then went through Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Romania, and now we are in Bulgaria."

The plan is to cycle to Turkey in the next few days, and travel along the north of the country into Georgia.

"We're going to stay in Georgia for five months, hoping to work there. The reason we stay so long in Georgia is because it's too cold to cycle through Kazakhstan all winter.

"The hope is to work at the ski resorts, but we'll have to choose any job that's available to tell the truth. "We're trying to get a visa to enter China, but if we can't, we'll have to fly down to India." '

Everything is fine' so far. Things are going smoothly on the journey so far, and they're starting to get used to the challenge of the roads.

"So far everything is going fine. Of course, a large number of punctures, but we're able to patch those up very quickly now."

The boys weren't used to cycling before embarking on this challenge, as Dyfan explained: "All three of us were quite fit, but now we're growing!" In fact, the boys only bought their bikes at the beginning of the summer of this year.

As well as being avid supporters of the Wrexham football team, all three also play for Llangollen, so at least they're used to using their legs! The boys have a huge following on social media, with 48,000 following on Instagram (west.heads) and 98,500 following them on TikTok (@westheads).

The layout of all three is quite similar every day, following the map from west to east.

"We start cycling around 10 every morning... We're not very good at picking up to be honest. We had breakfast in the first shop we saw, and had lunch around 2 or 3 in the afternoon.

"We decide every morning where we want to go, with the intention of finding somewhere to sleep for the night by 6 at night."

Are Dyfan's parents, James and Louis, worried about them travelling so far alone?

"They used to worry a lot at first, but now they're a lot happier," says Dyfan. He went on to say that the three are constantly texting back home so that the family can find out how the trip is going.

The boys plan to arrive in Thailand in October 2026, with the hope that they will have raised a significant amount for a worthy cause. 

Collen Players to present evening of comedy, music and merriment

The Collen Players are promising a sparkling night of laughter, melody, and good old-fashioned entertainment for their next show at St Collen's Community Hall on Friday October 31.

Topping the evening's bill, which starts at 6.30pm, will be Colin Bourdiec, the ukulele maestro who pays a jolly tribute to the great George Formby.

The Chairman of Charm delights with “I’ve Never Seen a Straight Banana” and Phil “Razzle-Dazzle” Robinson tickles the crowd with “My Old Man’s a Dustman.” 

Miss Sue Stokes, billed as our Silver Songbird, will enchant with “After the Ball Is Over.”

Jayne and Clayton — the Melodious Magicians of Melody and Mirth - will provide some stupendous backing throughout the night, with Jayne weaving wonder upon the keys and Clayton conjuring cadence on the drums, this dynamic duo deliver rhythm, rapture and rollicking rejoicing.

And from the parlour to the promenade, presenting those blushing belles of banter and bloomers will be Cissie and Ada presenting a riotous rendering of corsets, cackles and common-sense, recalling the glorious gossip of yesteryear.

Deborah and Jayne - the Mistresses of Melody and Mischief - have their uproarious rendition of “I Want to Sing in Opera,” these tuneful temptresses taking to the stage with trills, thrills, and theatrical tomfoolery.

The evening is all in aid of our Roof Restoration Appeal.

* For an evening of toe-tapping tunes, hearty laughs, and a night that’ll have you whistling all the way home book at:

https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on?q=hammerbeams%20and%20harmonies

Trading standards seize over 600 counterfeit items

 * Some of the fake Labubu items seized.

Following several visits across the county, Denbighshire’s Trading Standards team has successfully seized over 600 counterfeit goods from the shelves of local traders.

More than five visits that took place throughout the county and officers seized a number of items bearing the Labubu, Coca Cola and Disney trademarks amongst other well-known brands.

These counterfeit goods are often the result of social media trends that lead to the demand of the product outweighing the manufacture’s ability to supply them and are usually cheaper to buy than the genuine product.

Upon further investigation, it was clear that the seized items posed a major risk for young children as they included small detachable parts that were easily broken.

Denbighshire County Council’s trading standards team say they will continue their crackdown of counterfeit goods across the county and help educate local traders on the dangers of selling these illegal goods.

Councillor Alan James, Lead Member for Local Development and Planning said:

“Having come across a number of social media posts advertising the sale of Labubu dolls within stores across the county, our trading standards team wrote to all the traders concerned with general advice about counterfeit goods, specifically the Labubu brand.

“Due to the recent increase in demand of these Labubu dolls, our officers were concerned about possible rise in counterfeit products that were being presented as the genuine article when being sold in the county.

“The seizure of these illegal goods is a great result for the team and highlights the important work that our officers do in ensuring the safety of our residents when it comes to buying these goods that they believe to be a genuine product.

“It is important to remember that many of these products are only available on ‘official’ sites, and potential buyers should refrain from purchasing these items if they doubt that they are a genuine product."

* Businesses can get in touch with Denbighshire’s Trading Standards Team for advice on counterfeit products on Denbighshire' website.

New jobs and training hub launched in Llangollen with £500,000 grant

* South Denbighshire Community Partnership celebrating at Llangollen after clinching £500,000 in Lottery Funding, From left, are Gwion Tomos Jones, SDCP, Liz Grieve, Denbighshire County Council, Julian Sampson, SDCP Chair, Sally Lloyd Davies, SDCP Project Manager, and Ken Skates, Senedd Member for Clwyd South. Picture by Mandy Jones Photography.

A £500,000 lottery grant will fund a new community hub in Llangollen to help people in the Dee Valley find work, skills and training.

Social enterprise South Denbighshire Community Partnership (SDCP) will take over the town library one day a week to launch a new Development and Learning Hub in partnership with Working Denbighshire, the county council’s employment and skills arm.

The project aims to give local people easier access to job opportunities, course and support – and make sure rural communities aren’t left behind.

The plan was unveiled by SDCP Project Manager Sally Lloyd Davies at events in Llangollen and Corwen to celebrate the award of the Big Lottery Fund grant from the People and Places fund to expand its services for the next four years.

As well as managing two community centres, Canolfan Ni in Corwen and Pengwern Community Hub in Llangollen, SDCP provides a raft of services designed to “improve the health and wellbeing” of mainly older and vulnerable people in the area.

According to Sally Davies, the new funding was a “huge vote of confidence” in the work of SDCP.

She said: “It tells us that people wanted us to carry on the work we have been doing since 2010 and to continue to expand the services we offer in the Dee Valley.

“The new Development and Learning Hub will increase access to employment and training in a collaboration with Working Denbighshire to take advantage of their specialist and targeted services.

“There is a real need for this service in the Dee Valley and basing it in Llangollen will enable us to more easily link in with organisations like Coleg Cambria to provide a long-term solution to the challenge of providing upskilling and employment opportunities in the Dee Valley.

“In our work in the community we have found that the Welsh language, local heritage and culture are massively popular and we are also listening and reacting to that and seeking to expand our services.

“We have a really good working relationship with Denbighshire Council and are looking to develop services by using Llangollen library as a hub on the days when the library is closed and that alongside our base at Pengwern Community Hub gives us a strong presence in the town.

“We can back that up with our transport services to help people from Corwen and Edeyrnion travel to Llangollen.

“That is helped by the renewed funding for our transport programme and now with this grant we have the staff, the centres and the contacts to help and support the people of our communities.

“People want to work with us at SDCP because they know we can get the people in – not just Denbighshire Council but many other providers and working with them brings huge benefits to our area.”

The award has been welcomed by Clwyd South Senedd Member Ken Skates, the Welsh Government’s Minister for North Wales, Llyr Gruffydd, Plaid Cymru’s local Regional Member of the Senedd, and by Liz Grieve, Head of Housing and Community Service at Denbighshire County Council.

Ken Skates said: “SDCP has done phenomenal work in securing this significant grant by putting together such a strong and compelling bid and we are already seeing the benefits of it in this community.

“It’s a perfect example of how community funding can reach into every part of the UK and bring about beneficial change in how people interact with each other and offer them a range of services and opportunities that are life-enhancing.

“What they are doing is not just benefiting the physical health of the people of the Dee Valley but also benefits them mentally and spiritually.”

Llyr Gruffydd attended the event in Corwen and said: “It was great to join SDCP and local residents to celebrate this huge vote of confidence in the power of community enterprise.

“When the public and private sectors withdraw services it’s often the local community that steps in to fill the void. SDCP has not only done that, but it has also gone further in empowering local people and communities to do even more.

“This is the start of a new and exciting chapter for communities across south Denbighshire, and I look forward to supporting SDCP and its great work for years to come.”

Liz Grieve added: “One of the reasons SDCP is so successful is that they do what it says on the tin and it’s all about South Denbighshire, its communities and partnership working.

“SDCP are great at maximising what they can get for their communities and they work with everyone and support everyone in a way that makes this part of the county thrive.

“From our point of view it’s a great partnership and SDCP have done a great job in getting this funding and will do a great job in carrying out their work.”

Llangollen residents Beryl Pugh Jones and Anne Davies attended the Llangollen launch event and Beryl said: “SDCP provide an excellent service, especially for those of us who couldn’t get out because there was no transport.

“But now they have given us a new lease of life with their transport and shopping services and their staff are marvellous, considerate, passionate and kind.

“It’s really good they have got this new funding because there’s something for everyone, no-one is left out.”

Anne added: “SDCP have started to develop services and now with the new funding they can do even more and they’re full of ideas – their community transport is a godsend.

“It’s really exciting for Llangollen and because we’re close to Wrexham its important that we’re not forgotten by Denbighshire and SDCP gives us a voice in the county because there are huge needs here as well.”

SDCP, founded in 2010 with a remit to combat rural poverty, has helped local people claim millions in unpaid benefits, forged strong partnerships with Denbighshire County Council, the Citizens Advice service and banking services, introduced community transport schemes along the Dee Valley, run a meals on wheels service and lunch clubs and even pioneered hydro-electric power schemes.

The events in Corwen and Llangollen showcased some of the services currently being provided by SDCP and its partners including health and social care, financial advice and support, transport, including bus and electric car services and hire, and health and fitness activities, story-telling, craft work and art classes.

* For more about South Denbighshire Community Partnership and about their work in the community go to www.canolfan-ni.org or https://www.facebook.com/SouthDenbighshireCommunityPartnership or call 01490 266004.

Mother tells her own story to Leader for Baby Loss Awareness week

 

* Last night Castell Dinas Bran was specially lit up for an hour to mark the end of Baby Loss Awareness Week by Orb Sound and Lighting.

For Baby Loss Awareness Week (October 9-15), a brave Llangollen mother has shared her story with Leaderlive to raise vital awareness for others.

* To see the full story, go to: Llangollen mother determined to raise baby loss awareness | The Leader

Council plans to be build car park near cemetery, says story

A story in North Wales Live says a council is planning to build a car park at a cemetery in Llangollen after residents complained about traffic issues. 

It adds that Andrew Ford of Denbighshire County Council has applied to the council’s planning department, seeking approval for the proposals on Vicarage Road.

* For the full story, go to: New car park for Denbighshire cemetery after complaints from residents | North Wales Live

Details given of former town clerk Ian Parry's funeral

* Ian Parry and his wife Cerys.

Details of the funeral of Llangollen's former town clerk, Ian Parry, have been given by his family.

Ian passed away peacefully on October 2.

His funeral will take place at St Collen's Church in Llangollen at 1.30pm on Wednesday October 29, followed by a wake at the nearby Hand Hotel. Meanwhile, there will be a service of committal for the family at Wrexham Crematorium

Ian grew up in around the Cefn Mawr and Acrefair area and started in local government from almost day one of his working life, taking a job with Wrexham Council.

After a period in local government London he and his family moved back to Wrexham in 1997 and, for a short time, Manchester before he was appointed as Llangollen's town clerk.   

Outside work, Ian took on voluntary roles with the town's Christmas and food festivals.

After being diagnosed with prostate cancer back in 2010 he recognised the need for a local group where people could come together for advice and companionship, and with the late Mike Law set up the Llangollen Prostate Support Group. This is still running today, currently has a membership of 40 and would love to welcome more to it.

Ian is survived by his wife Cerys and his two sons, Ross and Ryan, along with his grandchildren Jay, Aaron and Sophie.