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Paralympic legend Aled reveals the hurt of being “the only disabled kid” in school

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PARALYMPIC legend and world record holder Aled Davies has spoken movingly about how he didn’t want to be seen as disabled during his schooldays.

According to Aled, he felt different because he  was “the only disabled kid” at his school in Bridgend, south Wales and admits he didn’t wear a pair of shorts until he was 16, hiding his leg “at every opportunity”.

His open and candid conversation over a tasty curry dinner helped inspire a group taking part in a pioneering reality television programme, Tŷ Ffit, on S4C.

The group of five participants or clients meet up over a period of seven weekends in an idyllic house on the Anglesey coast.

They focus on improving their physical, mental and emotional well-being with the help of mentors – including Aled and Wales rugby legend Shane Williams –  and experienced experts guiding them every step of the way.

During the show that’s presented by Lisa Gwilym and broadcast at 9pm on Tuesday evenings they focus on improving the physical, mental and emotional well-being of the five clients.

Aled travelled to Anglesey to meet the group and brought his extensive collection of medals he has won at various competitions, one of them was the silver medal he won at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.

He said: “It’s not the colour I wanted to bring home unfortunately.

“I wanted to give the best possible performance on the world’s biggest stage, but I’ve been injured and it was hard. I show the medal to anyone but the people close to me know how difficult the journey has been since the Commonwealth Games The day will come when I look back with pride on the (2024) Games but not yet.”

Asked by participant Gwawr Job-Davies, from Old Colwyn, how he’ll get through the disappointment Aled said he remembers the 2012 London Paralympics.

“Those Games changed disability sport for ever. Walking out before 80,000 people was realising every dream I had had since a young child. It was a chance to show everyone what you could do despite a disability and hope children out there could see and say ‘I can do that’.”

Gwawr said later she had really enjoyed listening to Aled.

“He has so much confidence in himself it is just so inspiring,” she said.

But Aled said the confidence has not always been evident.

“I didn’t wear shorts until I was 16 years old, I always hid my legs. I didn’t do PE or sports because I knew I was different.

“When I was 14 or 15 my mother saw something in a newspaper a disability sports club where they did swimming. I’d never heard of anything like that.

“I remember walking into the swimming pool and saw so many people with disabilities and I thought all right, there are people like me and I’m lucky because there are people with worse disabilities than me.

“I won the Welsh Schools Championship and others were saying ‘I can’t believe I’ve been beaten by someone with just one leg’. Something changed then,” he said.

Aled was born with hemimelia, a condition where a limb is missing or partially formed, affecting the bones and soft tissue in his right leg.

He developed a passion for sport and in 2005 he dedicated himself to shot put and discus.

In 2012, Aled set a World Record in the F42 shot put, and at that year’s Paralympic Games, he claimed bronze in the shot put and gold in the discus.

The following year Aled took the World Championship gold in both the shot put and discus in Lyon. He won double gold in his home country at the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships in the shot put and discus. This followed his silver medal in the F42-44 discus from the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow where he represented Wales.

At the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games Aled not only took gold in the F42 shot but also broke the Paralympic record. His success continued in 2020 Games when he won another gold in the men’s F63 shot. Most recently, at the 2024 Paris Paralympics he added a silver medal in the T63 shot to his impressive collection.

Passing some of the medals he has won around the dining table Aled said there was a story behind each one.

“And so much hard work had gone into winning each one,” he said.

Aled is currently struggling with a nagging injury and faces further surgery in a determined attempt to resolve the issue. 

“Three weeks before the (2023) Commonwealth Games I was driving home and I felt a burning pain in my groin.

“It was diagnosed as Osteitis Pubis which comes from over training and is the most common career-ending injury in football and rugby. It was not something I wanted to hear,” he said.

Aled gritted his teeth at the Games in Birmingham and won gold. But following an extended period off the pain remained.

“The treatment before the Paralympics were injections into a joint between the pelvic bones but after Paris I had surgery which unfortunately wasn’t successful and hopefully further surgery will sort it for good,” he said.

Aled added he has targeted next year’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and is determined to do well and win Gold for Wales.

“Many people are asking me about my future but I haven’t finished yet. There’s still a lot of energy and I’ve got a fire in my belly to come back and achieve one hundred per cent fitness and compete at the 2026 Commonwealth Games. I’ve unfinished business in the city. I competed in the same games in 2014 and didn’t win gold,” he said.

Aled is Dylan Edwards’ mentor in the series. Originally from Bontnewydd near Caernarfon but now living in Cardiff the 38-year-old Video Games Analyst was impressed by the way Aled had overcome the challenges in his life.

“I thought to myself if he can do this then so can I.

“One of the things that came across clearly was the way Aled turned the negatives into a positive,” he said.

Series producer Siwan Haf said Aled was an inspiration for all the group.

She said: “He spoke candidly about his disappointment winning only a silver medal at the Paris Paralympics and spoke openly about his condition and how he has battled to overcome life’s difficulties and make the best of his life. He is a true inspiration.”

Siwan believes a programme like Tŷ Ffit has not been shown before.

“Tŷ Ffit is more than a television programme but is about changing people’s lives for the better.

“During the programme they are extremely open about their own mental health and we are very grateful to them for that. It has been transformational for all five of them and we hope viewers will continue to watch the programme and follow their journey.

“We’re also hopeful that the viewers will pick up some hints and tips about diet and exercise which they can adopt into their own lives.” 

Tŷ Ffit is broadcast on S4C every Tuesday at 9pm. It is also available for streaming on S4C Clic, BBC iPlayer and other platforms. English subtitles are available. You can also follow the exclusive Tŷ Ffit plan on the website: www.s4c.cymru/tyffit

Entertainment

Welsh crime thriller filmed in Pembroke Dock set for BBC debut

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A NEW Welsh crime thriller, The One That Got Away—previously shown on S4C as Cleddau—is set to premiere on BBC One Wales and BBC Four later this month.

The gripping six-part series, featuring an all-Welsh cast, will debut on BBC One Wales at 9:10pm on Tuesday, February 25. A double-bill of the first two episodes will air on BBC Four on St David’s Day, March 1, with all episodes available on BBC iPlayer.

The series stars Elen Rhys (The Mallorca Files, Craith/Hidden) as DI Ffion Lloyd, who is forced to team up with her former lover, DS Rick Sheldon, played by Richard Harrington (Y Gwyll/Hinterland), to investigate the murder of a nurse in a Welsh seaside town.

Written by Catherine Tregenna (Law & Order UK, Lewis, DCI Banks) and directed by Sion Ifan (Y Goleudy), the drama explores the unresolved past between the two detectives while a disturbing murder case unfolds. The killing shakes the small community, raising doubts about a historic conviction and suggesting the terrifying possibility of a copycat at large.

Actor Elen Rhys, who returned to Wales to film the series, said: “Coming home to Wales to film was a joy—immersing myself in everything Welsh. The talented, close-knit crew worked together so well, making it a truly lovely and extraordinary experience. I felt so lucky.”

The series promises a gripping mix of psychological depth, crime investigation, and the emotional entanglements of its lead characters, set against the atmospheric backdrop of Pembrokeshire.

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Entertainment

A trivial comedy for serious people at The Torch Theatre

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NATIONAL THEATRE LIVE 2025 brings The Importance of Being Earnest like never before, directed by Max Webster (Donmar’s MacbethLife of Pi), to the Torch Theatre screen on Saturday 22 February. Three-time Olivier Award-winner Sharon D Clarke is joined by Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who, Sex Education) in this joyful reimagining of Oscar Wilde’s most celebrated comedy.

This hilarious story of identity, impersonation and romance, filmed live from the National Theatre in London, will appeal to everyone who likes Holby City, Notting Hill, Mamma Mia and Macbeth – what a combination and what appeal! Fans of Oscar Wilde’s witty, expressive writings and plays, as well as fans of classic literature will enjoy this night of comedy, with satire thrown in.

Being sensible can be excessively boring. At least Jack thinks so. While assuming the role of dutiful guardian in the country, he lets loose in town under a false identity. Meanwhile, his friend Algy takes on a similar facade. Unfortunately, living a double life has its drawbacks, especially when it comes to love. Hoping to impress two eligible ladies, the gentlemen find themselves caught in a web of lies they must carefully navigate.

Described as a ‘flawless piece of comic theatre’ by Broadway World and ‘A sparkling new production … that’s fiercely faithful to Wilde’s wickedly subversive spirit’ by the Daily Mail, The Importance of Being Earnest has received rave reviews and five and four stars.

The Importance of Being Earnest will be screened at the Torch Theatre on Saturday 22 February at 7pm. Tickets for the screening are priced at £15. Concessions: £13 and Under 26: £8.50. Visit the website for further details on www.torchtheatre.co.uk or phone the Box Office on (01646) 695267.

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Entertainment

History of Welsh music videos charted in new website

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WELSH-LANGUAGE television has played a more important part than commercial record labels in the development of Welsh music videos over the past 50 years, say researchers.

As the 24-hour MTV channel made its entrance on to the global stage in the early 1980s, it was the arrival of S4C which helped shape music video making in Wales at the time.

The finding is included in a new website documenting the development of Welsh music videos over a period of more than fifty years, which launches on Welsh Language Music Day (Friday 7 February).

The fideos.cymru website stems from a unique research project led by two lecturers at Aberystwyth University’s Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies, Dr Greg Bevan and Dr Kate Woodward.

They say the project has highlighted significant differences between the dynamics driving the production of Welsh-language and Anglo-American music videos.

Dr Greg Bevan said: “There is no doubt that the music video has had a fascinating history since the format really took off in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The political, industrial and social landscape of Wales was very different at that time and these contexts are reflected in the videos that were being created.

“One of the main differences that has emerged as part of our research is that Anglo-American videos are produced with the primary aim of selling and promoting mainstream songs as part of a wider marketing drive by the big record companies. That commercial imperative has been less evident in Wales. Here, the need to promote cultural arts in a minority language has been a crucial factor, alongside other anti-establishment, subcultural influences.”

As part of the project, the researchers interviewed some of Wales’s leading artists and producers about their experience of making music videos, including Dafydd Iwan, Cerys Hafana, Geraint Jarman, Eddie Ladd, Rhys Mwyn, and Dafydd Rhys.

Dr Kate Woodward told The Pembrokeshire Herald: “We wanted to speak directly to the people who have been involved in making Welsh music videos over the years and share their insights with a wider audience through the website. What we found was that the television industry in Wales – and S4C in particular – was mainly responsible for driving music video production by providing not only a platform for broadcasting content but also the necessary funding, in contrast to the Anglo-American trend where record labels were the main drivers.

“The iconic series Fideo 9 on S4C played a key role in the development of the Welsh music video, producing around four new videos every week when they were on air between 1988 and 1991. Bandit was on air between 2004 and 2011, and Lŵp has been offering a cross-platform stage for Welsh music since 2019. We are also now in a new era where artists are increasingly likely to create their own videos independently and promote them on various social media streams.”

Music Video Fund

In addition to launching the website, it was also announced today that a small fund is available for applications to support the production of two new Welsh music videos.

As Dr Woodward explained: “We are keen for our research project to contribute to the ongoing development of the Welsh music video by supporting current content creation as well as examining and analysing the scene’s historical development.”

The closing date for applications to the music video fund is 16:00 on Friday 28 February 2025 and further details are available online: https://fideos.cymru.

Image: Dr Kate Woodward and Dr Greg Bevan from the Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies at Aberystwyth University.

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