Pobol y Cwm

Pobol y Cwm
Created by John Hefin
Theme music composer Endaf Emlyn[1]
Country of origin Wales
Production
Running time 19 minutes exclusive of commercial breaks
Release
Original network S4C (1982—)
BBC Wales (1974–82)
Original release 16 October 1974 – present
External links
Website www.bbc.co.uk/wales/pobolycwm/

Pobol y Cwm (People of the Valley; Welsh pronunciation: [ˌpɔbɔl ə ˈkʊm]) is a Welsh-language television soap opera which has been produced by the BBC since October 1974.[2] The longest-running television soap opera produced by the BBC, Pobol y Cwm was originally transmitted on BBC Wales television and later transferred to the Welsh-language station S4C when it opened in November 1982.[2]

Apart from Rugby specials, Pobol y Cwm is consistently the most watched programme of the week on S4C,[3] and in 1994 was briefly shown across the whole of the United Kingdom on BBC2 with English subtitles.[4] Five episodes are produced each week, normally broadcast at 20.00 every weeknight, with a weekly omnibus (subtitled in English) shown early on Sunday evenings.

From September 2014, following a budget cut of £1m to the programme, the Sunday omnibus ceased broadcasting, and it was announced that the show would be taking two one-week sabbaticals every year. From January 2015, the Wednesday episode was dropped. However, after receiving additional funding later in the year, the Wednesday episode was restored on 16 December 2015 – seeing Pobol y Cwm once again airing five nights a week. In May 2017, the Sunday omnibus resumed its broadcast on S4C.[5]

Setting

The setting for the show is the fictional village of Cwmderi, located in the real Gwendraeth Valley – an area lying between Carmarthen and Llanelli in south-west Wales, however unlike other soaps from the United Kingdom, little effort is made to create an authentic reflection of the intended locality – only a few of the characters speak with a Carmarthenshire accent.[6] Whilst much of the show's early activity took place at a nursing home, storylines are currently centred on the village pub, Y Deri,[7] and its adjacent small businesses and houses. Other frequent settings for storylines include the comprehensive school, Ysgol y Mynach, and a local farm, Penrhewl. There are two other imaginary villages close to Cwmderi, named Llanarthur and Cwrt Mynach.

Since 2012, the programme has been filmed at Roath Lock in Cardiff Bay, other than a few on-location shoots around Cardiff. The exterior outdoor high street of Cwmderi was recreated from scratch, while many interiors are shot inside the Roath Lock studios.

Cast and characters

Notes

  1. ↑ "Pobol y Cwm: 40 facts to mark 40 years of the soap on its 40th birthday". WalesOnline. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  2. 1 2 Davies, John; Jenkins, Nigel; Menna, Baines; Lynch, Peredur I., eds. (2008). The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. p. 688. ISBN 978-0-7083-1953-6.
  3. ↑ S4C viewing figures
  4. ↑ Welsh BBC adds to drama output, The Independent, 9 February 1993
  5. ↑ Jones, Chloe. "Brill news if you're a Pobol y Cwm fan". Retrieved 2015-10-27.
  6. ↑ "Pobol y Cwm returns to Gwendraeth roots". South Wales Guardian. 1 March 2010.
  7. ↑ Outdoor filming for the pub used to take place at The Sportsman's Rest in Peterston-super-Ely.
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