Cyril Gwynn (1897-1988), also known as The Bard of Gower, was “a tall, sunburnt, unsmiling farmer”.

Gareth Gwynn (1983-Present) is none of these things.

Gareth did not spend the First World War in the Navy, has never been shipwrecked and never tried to emigrate to Australia, but when he was unexpectedly invited to speak about Cyril and his poetry at a festival, he became determined to find something they have in common.

In the 1920s Cyril’s comic poems, composed while ploughing fields and performed in the corners of local pubs, became the talk of the Gower Peninsula. His stories about doctors, vets, fellow farmers and feckless outsiders secured him a small but dedicated following in this rural community, just beyond Swansea.

Gareth never met Cyril, but has tracked down a book of his poems and a handful of newspaper cuttings for a comedy show about fighting, farming and moving to London when your agricultural ancestors thought tarmac was a bit much.

This is a work-in-progress from Gareth, but Cyril’s bits are over 80 years old so it’s safe to say that stuff is run-in. All-in-all it probably balances out quite nicely.

ABOUT GARETH GWYNN

Gwynn (1983 ed.) has written for The News Quiz, Have I Got News For You and Armstrong And Miller. He co-wrote the sitcoms Ankle Tag (“well crafted, well acted, with the requisite level of nuttiness” - The Observer) and Tourist Trap (“deserves to reach as wide an audience as possible” - Evening Standard) as well as an Audible special for The Goodies. He featured on The Now Show numerous times and is the co-presenter of I'm So Not Over It (nominated for an Independent Podcast Award, two Golden Lobes Awards and a Celtic Media Award). He presented the BBC Radio 4 shows Gareth Gwynn Hasn’t Fin- (“hilarious” – The Guardian) and The Greatest Ever Faker, in which he spent time with a real-life convicted fraudster who was absolutely lovely. But then, that's how they do it, isn't it?