News

‘Cinderella’ daughter wins share of £7m estate

Published

11 years ago

May 23, 2014

A CINDERELLA farmer’s daughter who says she was left at home ‘with a muck fork’ whilst her teenage sisters went dancing has triumphed in her fight for a fair share of her elderly parents’ £7 million estate.

Eirian Davies, aged 45, was repeatedly assured by her parents, Tegwyn and Mary Davies, now in their 70s, that she would ultimately step into their shoes and take over the family’s ‘golden egg’ – thriving Henllan Farm, Whitland, and its herd of pedigree Holstein cows.

And three Appeal Court judges on Wednesday ruled that a stake in the thriving 182-acre farm was no more than her due for the years of low-paid toil she put in.

The family war had culminated in a “physical altercation” in the milking parlour, during which milk was thrown over Miss Davies by her mother, and she and her father ended up entangled on the floor where she bit her father’s leg.

Miss Davies had testified that she missed out on going to Young Farmers’ Club dances with her two sisters as a teenager because she had to stay at home to deal with her farming chores.

“They always told me that the farm would be left to me. Even on my birthday, when the other girls were having things, they would say – ‘you will have the damn lot one day, it will all be yours’,” she said.

Her father would regularly warn her “not to kill the goose that lays the golden egg” if she complained about her meagre wages, she added.

Until she reached the age of 21, Miss Davies was paid nothing at all for her work on the farm and, after that, there was a period when she was paid just £15-a-day for milking the cows, although sometimes she received more.

She claimed she could have ‘made a better life elsewhere’, but her 75-year-old father and mother, 76, insisted she had earned a fair income during her stints working on the farm, also being provided with free ‘bed and board’ and other benefits.

Describing her as ‘a self-employed herdswoman’, they argued she would have done no better financially had she worked away from the farm.

However, Lord Justice Floyd on Wednesday ruled that measuring Miss Davies’ contribution to the farm was not just ‘an exercise in forensic accounting’ and that her parents should be held to the promises they made to her.

The judge, sitting with Lords Justice Richards and Underhill, said Miss Davies had for years laboured under the impression that she was running the farm in partnership with her parents – however they had never signed the agreement.

In 2009, she was shown a draft will, which left the lion’s share of the farm to her. However, her parents later made changes to their bequests and proposed to place the farm in trust for the benefit of all three sisters equally.

Miss Davies had a ‘passionate interest in pedigree milking cows’ and, by 1989 when she turned 21, she was the only sister left at the farm, ‘her sisters having departed to follow other paths’, the judge said.

And, when she left the farm to work elsewhere for a while, her father begged her to return.

The milking parlour fracas in August 2012 was the final straw that broke the family asunder and her parents launched proceedings to evict Miss Davies from Henllan farmhouse, where she still lives.

However, at an earlier court hearing, Judge Milwyn Jarman QC ruled that Miss Davies had relied on her parents’ promises and thrown herself into working on the farm for low wages. She was thus entitled to a ‘beneficial interest’ in the business.

Dismissing the couple’s appeal against that ruling, Lord Justice Floyd said Miss Davies had received ‘less than full recompense’ for her contribution to the farm which could not be measured in purely financial terms.

The appeal judge concluded: “This is in many ways a tragic case.

“The bitterness between the parties was such that each had few, if any, good words to say about the other.

“The fact remained, however, that between them they had over the years built up, by hard work, great skill and passionate dedication a prodigious Holstein pedigree milking herd and a highly successful business.

“It is greatly to be hoped that they might now be able to resolve such remaining differences as they have in relation to Eirian’s entitlement without recourse to further costly and divisive litigation”.

Judge Milwyn Jarman told the earlier county court hearing that the bitter relations between Eirian Davies and her parents came to a head after she discovered their plans to split the farm equally between the three sisters.

“After one such argument with her father in February 2010, she went to the barn and put a rope from a beam around her neck,” said the judge, adding that, by good fortune, a farm worker saw what was happening and intervened.

Although there was evidence that her parents had “pinned their hopes” on Eirian over the years, they had become increasingly annoyed by her relationships with men following her divorce.

The judge said part of this concern was – not so much the men involved – but “any children that they had and how that may impact upon their duties to keep the business in the family”.

“Her mother referred to a string of men, to whom she referred as ‘wretches’, with kids behind them,” said the judge.

Family relations hit rock bottom in August 2012 during a “physical altercation” between Eirian and her parents in the milking parlour.

“Accounts differ about that altercation, but at some point milk was thrown over Eirian by her mother and she and her father ended up entangled on the floor where Eirian bit her father’s leg”, the judge said.

“Eirian received from her parents the next day a notice terminating her services, and two weeks later a notice to quit the farmhouse requiring vacant possession by October 31 2012”.

Despite the intense friction in the family, the judge said it was to their credit that Eirian and her parents had over the years “by hard work, great skill and passionate dedication built up a prodigious Holstein pedigree milking herd and a highly successful business”.

He described Eirian as having a “passionate interest in pedigree milking cows”, also referring to her evidence that she was consistently promised that the farm would one day be her’s.

“Eirian says that she first heard that ‘it will all be your’s one day’ when she was still at secondary school, for example when her mother took her sisters shopping and she was left at home, as she put it, ‘with a muck fork’.

“She says she regularly missed school and that her sisters were not interested in farming at all.

“She claims to have heard the same thing regularly thereafter from both parents, whenever she asked for money. She was told: “don’t kill the goose that lays the golden egg'”.

A “major factor” in the family’s difficult relationship was the “strong personalities of both mother and daughter”, he noted, as well as Eirian’s frustration at her role in the farming business not being formalised.

Charity

Over 1,100 festive bathers enjoy Tenby’s famous Boxing Day Swim

Published

18 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Tom Sinclair

A RECORD-BREAKING number of 1,150 festive bathers have had a splashing time in the Tenby Boxing Day Swim this morning.

The fancy dress theme of Superheroes – in tribute to the RNLI in its 200th anniversary year – saw Batman, The Incredibles, Wonderwoman and a whole crew of emergency services dashing into the chilly water of Tenby’s North Beach.

RNLI mascot Stormy Stan was there amongst the huge crowds to cheer the brave bathers on their way.
The swim will be one to remember forever for one duo of dippers as they got engaged following a surprise proposal on the sand.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu coach Philip Frith, 34, made one of his best-ever moves when he popped the question to his girlfriend, former professional dancer Victoria Tansey, 34, who is originally from Hakin.

Said swim chairman Sam Skyrme-Blackhall: “”Well, we said ‘come to the Tenby Boxing Day Swim and take the plunge’ but we weren’t expecting that! Congratulations to the happy couple”.
The swim has raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for charities and good causes in its 52-year history, and this yeae’s event will see Tenby RNLI as the main beneficiary.

Town mayor Dai Morgan said: ”It’s great to see so many people from here, and for such a good cause. I just love it down on the beach on Boxing Day. The swim is such a fantastic tradition.”
The mayor’s daughter, 18-year-old Erin Morgan, who is Tenby’s town crier, gave a special ‘cry’ to welcome the swim.

Swim chairman Sam supervised 10-year-old Sam Fecci as he fired the swim’s starting pistol – a duty usually carried out by his dad, Stuart, who was not well enough to attend.

Festive tunes and a lively commentary from DJ Steve Briers ramped up the atmosphere on the beach and swimmers emerged from the sea to be presented with commemorative medals and warm up with hot soup donated by the Giltar Hotel and served up by Tenby and District Lions.

‘Taking the plunge’ at a festive swim in Wales this morning meant more than just a dip in the sea for one happy couple.

As hundreds of Boxing Day bathers at the legendary event in Tenby dashed for the water, a magical moment was happening between Victoria Tansey and Philip Frith.
Philip, 34, went down on one knee on the sand and asked Victoria, 37, to marry him.

Fortunately, she said an ecstatic ‘yes’ to the carefully-planned proposal, which saw the couple’s special song Ocean Eyes y Billie Eilish sound out over the beach as the newly-engaged couple celebrated with a splash in the sea.

As a former Royal Marine Philip – who is now a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu coach – has faced some scary situations in his life but the Boxing Day proposal was up there with the most nail-biting.
“I’ve been so nervous/special moment.

Victoria, originally from Hakin, Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire, worked as a professional dancer – appearing on the X Factor, Britain’s Got Talent and Pineapple Dance Studio: Survival of the Fittest -and before setting up her own entertainment agency.

Although now living in Guildford with Philip, she has always loved returning to her Pembrokeshire roots

“When we first met, Victoria couldn’t wait to show me all around Pembrokeshire and we have made the trip as often as work would allow us, to visit her family, go beach hopping and take in the breathtaking scenery,” said Philip.

“I absolutely love sea swimming, I believe that it is so worthwhile for your body and mind, however Victoria has never been one to enjoy the cold!

“So, on our first Christmas together as a couple, Victoria surprised me by taking me to Tenby for the Boxing Day Swim – it’s honestly one of my most fond memories from the start of our relationship!

“I wanted to return her the favour of surprising her by proposing to her at this year’s swim.”

Victoria’s mum and her childhood best friend , Sean Griffiths – who she set up Milford Haven’s Unison Dance Group with in 2004 –were on the beach to watch the proposal, with Sean bringing along the engagement ring in his pocket to fellow swimmers crowded round to congratulate Victoria and Philip, and swim chairman Sam Skyrme-Blackhall laughed: “Well, we said ‘come to the Tenby Boxing Day Swim and take the plunge’ but we weren’t expecting that! Congratulations to the happy couple”.

Charity

Letterston dog show raises over £750 for local charities

Published

2 days ago

December 25, 2024

Tom Sinclair

ON SUNDAY (Dec 22), Letterston Ring Craft successfully raised £755.55 for two Pembrokeshire-based charities during a fun dog show event. The funds were equally split between South Pembrokeshire Cat Rescue and Letterston Memorial Hall.

The event featured a variety of well-attended classes, including child handling and fancy dress, drawing participation from dog enthusiasts of all levels.

This fundraiser marked the first charitable event supporting South Pembrokeshire Cat Rescue. Founded and managed by Lizzy Austwick, the rescue organisation aids unwanted, feral, and sick cats across Pembrokeshire and responds to urgent cases in Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion. The rescue provides neutering support for stray and feral cats, directs owners to available resources, and specialises in helping stray cats with severe injuries, raising essential funds for their care.

For assistance, Lizzy can be contacted via the rescue’s Facebook page or at 07575 131443.

Letterston Ring Craft welcomes new members interested in training and showing their dogs, from local companion shows to prestigious events like Crufts. The club meets every other Sunday in Letterston, and further details can be found on their Facebook page.

Looking ahead, the next fun dog show is scheduled for early next year and will support Belle’s Story Charity. For more information or to get involved, contact Gentle Lowe at 07956 653401.

Charity

£3,800 donated to services across Withybush Hospital

Published

2 days ago

December 25, 2024

Tom Sinclair

THE CAMROSE VINTAGE WORKING DAY team has donated £3,800 to services across Withybush Hospital.

Their 37^th annual event raised a record breaking £25,000, which has now been distributed among 26 local charities.

They donated the funds to the Stroke Ward, Specialist Respiratory Team, Chemo Day Unit and Heads Up! Hair Loss Initiative at Withybush Hospital. Each service received £950.

The Heads Up! initiative provides a person-centred, holistic hair loss service for cancer patients. It brings together healthcare and haircare professionals from local communities to give patients the knowledge and products needed to manage their hair loss with dignity and choice.

Katie Hancock, Fundraising Officer, said: “Thank you to Andrew, the team and the supporters of the Camrose Vintage Working Day for your generosity once again. Your donation to each service is amazing and will make a big difference. We are hugely grateful for your wonderful support.

“The support of our local communities enables us to provide services over and above what the NHS can provide in the three counties of Hywel Dda and we are extremely grateful for every donation we receive.”

Pictured above: Andrew James, Chairman of Camrose Vintage Working Day with Withybush Hospital staff from the Stroke Ward, Specialist Respiratory Team, Chemo Day Unit, Heads Up! Hair Loss initiative.