Episode 1
Huw Stephens heads to Pontypridd to bring all the highlights and stories from the National Eisteddfod of Wales and to discover how this ancient festival is constantly evolving to remain a relevant cultural phenomenon.
The week-long festival kicks off with a new adaptation of iconic rock opera Nia Ben Aur, 50 years on from its debut at the 1974 Eisteddfod.
Huw catches up with the new Archdruid and award-winning poet Mererid Hopwood as she presides over all the big ceremonies of the Gorsedd of the Bards throughout the week.
Huw also brings a flavour of the diverse selection of performances, from brass bands and classy pop to classical and contemporary music. Huw catches up with Pendyrus Male Voice Choir, who are celebrating their centenary with a special performance at this year's festival. He also enjoys a stunning collaboration between classical harpist Catrin Finch and Irish fiddler Aoife Ní Bhriain as they perform together in one of the most hotly anticipated shows of the week! And he visits the Lle Celf – the largest temporary modern art exhibition in Europe.
Trailer
Recently Updated Shows
Ten Pound Poms
Ten Pound Poms follows a group of Brits as they leave dreary post-war Britain in 1956 to embark on a life-altering adventure on the other side of the world. For only a tenner, they have been promised a better house, better job prospects and a better quality of life by the sea in sun-soaked Australia. But life down under isn't exactly the idyllic dream the new arrivals have been promised. Struggling with their new identity as immigrants, we follow their triumphs and pitfalls as they adapt to a new life in a new country far from Britain and familiarity.
The Artful Dodger
Set in 1850s Australia, The Artful Dodger explores the adult double life of Charles Dickens' famous prince of thieves, Jack Dawkins aka The Artful Dodger, whose fast pickpocketing fingers have turned into the skilled hands of a surgeon. In the lively colony of Port Victory, Dodger's past returns to haunt him with the arrival of Fagin, luring him back into a world of crime. A greater threat - to Dodger's heart - is Lady Belle, the Governor's daughter, determined to become the colony's first female surgeon.
