Award-winning stand-up known for his one-liners and crowd work will perform in Milford Haven on Tuesday, May 5

COMEDIAN Mark Simmons will bring his latest stand-up show to Pembrokeshire next month when he appears at the Torch Theatre in Milford Haven.

Simmons, who has appeared on Mock The Week, BT Sport and ITV, is due to take to the stage on Tuesday, May 5, with his new tour, Jest to Impress.

The comic has built a strong following for his rapid-fire one-liners and quick-witted improvisation, and the new show promises more of the sharply crafted material that has helped make him a popular live act across the UK and beyond.

His debut tour was a major success, selling out more than 200 dates over two years across the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand.

Now back on the road in 2026, Simmons is performing a brand-new set packed with fresh one-liners, alongside his trademark off-the-cuff jokes based on random audience suggestions.

He has also found further success with his podcast, Jokes with Mark Simmons, in which he talks to fellow comedians including Gary Delaney, Sarah Millican, Milton Jones and Penn & Teller about jokes they wrote but, for one reason or another, could never quite make work.

Simmons has picked up a number of accolades in recent years. He won the Victoria Wood Panel Prize at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2023, was named Best Act at the UK Comics’ Comic Awards in 2022, and was runner-up in Dave’s Top 10 Jokes of the Fringe in the same year.

The Evening Standard has described him as a “master of the crisp, clean, one-line zinger”.

The show is suitable for audiences aged 14 and over.

Mark Simmons – Jest to Impress can be seen on the Torch Theatre stage on Tuesday 5 May at 8pm. For more information contact the Torch Theatre’s Box Office on 01646 695267, visit the website www.torchtheatre.co.uk.

Steffan Rhodri and Mark Lewis Jones lead major Welsh production as cameras roll in the famous seaside town

TENBY is preparing for a spell in the television spotlight after filming got under way on a major new BBC crime drama set in the heart of the resort town.

Old Town Murders, a new six-part series for BBC One, BBC iPlayer and BBC Cymru Wales, stars Steffan Rhodri and Mark Lewis Jones as two detectives drawn together by personal loss and a string of suspicious deaths in a seemingly idyllic seaside community. The production is being made by Quay Street Productions and is being filmed in Tenby, Cardiff and along the South Wales coastline.

For Pembrokeshire, the announcement is more than just another television commission. It places one of Wales’ best-known coastal towns at the centre of a prime-time BBC drama and offers the kind of exposure that local tourism figures, businesses and residents will immediately recognise.

Tenby’s harbour, narrow streets and postcard setting have long made it one of the country’s most recognisable destinations. Now they are set to become the backdrop to murder, mystery and dark humour for audiences across the UK and beyond.

The series pairs two of Wales’ most recognisable acting talents. Rhodri remains best known to many viewers as Dave Coaches from Gavin and Stacey, while Mark Lewis Jones has built a formidable screen career through roles in productions including The Crown, Keeping Faith and Baby Reindeer.

In Old Town Murders they play DS Sion Dearden and DI Glyn Walsh, two detectives who find themselves thrown together while investigating a series of unusual killings in a close-knit seaside town.

Among the cases promised in the series are the mysterious death of a university professor, the poisoning of a head teacher during a wild swim, and a fatal mix-up linked to a triathlon.

The tone, however, is not being pitched as relentlessly bleak. Instead, the show is being described as witty, twisty and full of warmth, with friendship, second chances and reinvention forming the emotional core of the story.

That may prove to be one of the drama’s biggest strengths. Crime series have become one of television’s most dependable genres, but Old Town Murders appears to be aiming for something slightly different — a coastal whodunnit with a strong Welsh identity, recognisable locations and a central partnership built as much on character as on corpses.

The creative team behind it is also distinctly Welsh. The series has been created and written by Matthew Barry, whose recent credits include Men Up and The Guest. Barry has said he wrote the roles specifically for Rhodri and Lewis Jones after working with them before, suggesting the chemistry between the two leads will be central to the series’ success.

Supporting cast members include James Bamford, Bethan Mary-James, Catherine Ayers and Julie Graham, adding further weight to a production that is already shaping up as one of the BBC’s most notable new Welsh commissions.

There is also an economic angle. The production has support from Creative Wales, meaning the series is not only showcasing West Wales on screen but contributing to the wider Welsh creative economy through jobs and production spend.

No transmission date has yet been announced, but with filming now under way, excitement is likely to build as more residents spot cameras, cast and crew around the town.

For local people, that is part of the appeal. This is not a drama merely inspired by the Welsh coast. It is being made in Wales, by Welsh talent, with Tenby right at the centre of it.

For Pembrokeshire audiences, that alone makes Old Town Murders one to watch.

A MUCH-LOVED theatrical tradition returned to Folly Farm on Friday and Saturday, October 24 and 25, 2025, as That’ll Be the Day celebrated its ruby anniversary in memorable style, raising £5,469 for The Paul Sartori Foundation.

The charity performances were filled with celebration and significance. Saturday night marked the 40th performance of the show at Folly Farm’s Follies Theatre, staged in the 40th year of That’ll Be the Day itself — a remarkable double milestone that was warmly received by the audience.

The anniversary weekend captured everything people have come to love about the production, from its crowd-pleasing musical numbers and toe-tapping hits to its trademark comedy sketches and strong sense of community.

There was also an emotional note to the occasion, as the weekend was billed as Trevor’s final on-stage performance with the show. Or was it? Although retirement had been suggested, Phil Thompson has since confirmed that Trevor will be back this year — to the delight of fans.

As one chapter closes, another begins, and excitement is already building for the future. That’ll Be the Day will return in 2026, with performances confirmed for October 30 and 31. Tickets are now on sale.

Audiences can expect new voices, a refreshed format, and the same talent and showmanship that Pembrokeshire audiences know and love.

Supporters keen to see the next chapter of this musical extravaganza can buy tickets through the Paul Sartori website, by calling the events team on 01437 763223, or in person at Dale’s Music in Tenby or Rock ‘n’ Rolla in Narberth.

If the ruby anniversary weekend proved anything, it is that That’ll Be the Day continues to shine, shimmy and entertain — all while helping to support hospice-at-home care in Pembrokeshire.

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