About | Am Yr Ŵyl
An annual weekend of music, book readings and poetry inspires much talking and drinking late into the night, a beacon of chaos in an over-organised world of festivals. Tracey Thorn in The New Statesman
The Laugharne Weekend is an annual literary and arts festival in West Wales. The festival is held in the spring in the town of Laugharne.
Dylan Thomas, Laugharne's most famous inhabitant, described it as a timeless, mild, beguiling island of a town.
The festival is deliberately small-scale. The size of the town - which itself is very small - ensures that the festival will not grow beyond certain bounds. Its location means that festival visitors and townspeople rub shoulders with the artists and performers.
According to the festival's co-founders, Richard Thomas and the Cardiff writer John Williams, The point is that it's a festival that involves the locality.
The festival directors have also said: I'd sooner start another festival than let it grow too big.
The Laugharne Weekend concentrates on literature, music and comedy, bringing talent from all over the world but always maintaining a particular kinship with writers and musicians from Wales or who have a connection with Wales.
Previous headline performers have included Patti Smith, Ray Davies of the Kinks, Mick Jones of The Clash, the actor Michael Sheen, the writer Caitlin Moran, the poet John Cooper Clarke, the comedians Harry Hill and Alexei Sayle, the painter Peter Blake etc.
All events take place in Laugharne's clubs, churches and halls, tiny and intimate venues which entail the close proximity of audience and performers.The principal venues used are the Millennium Hall, the Congregational Church and the Rugby Club.
Programme for 2019
Gŵyl flynyddol yng Ngorllewin Cymru i ddathlu llenyddiaeth a’r celfyddydau yw Penwythnos Talacharn. Cynhelir yr ŵyl yn y Gwanwyn yn nhref Talacharn
Yng ngeiriau Dylan Thomas, preswylydd enwoca’r dref, mae Talacharn yn timeless, mild, beguiling island of a town.
O fwriad, gŵyl fach yw Penwythnos Talacharn. Gan mai tref fechan yw Talacharn mae’r ŵyl yn gweddu’n llwyr iddi ac yn ffitio’n berffaith o fewn ei ffiniau.
Yn sgil hynny, mae pawb - ymwelwyr yr ŵyl, trigolion y dre, yr artistiaid a’r perfformwyr - yn troi ymysg ei gilydd, ochr yn ochr, drwy’r penwythnos. Yn ôl y ddau a sefydlodd yr ŵyl, Richard Thomas a’r awdur o Gaerdydd, John Williams: Mae’n ŵyl sy’n dod yn rhan o’r gymuned leol – dyna’r pwynt.
Bydde’n well gen i ddechrau gŵyl arall na gadael iddi dyfu’n rhy fawr
Llenyddiaeth, cerddoriaeth a chomedi yw canolbwynt Penwythnos Talacharn. Er ein bod ni’n denu cyfranwyr ac artistiaid o bedwar ban byd, mae gan yr ŵyl berthynas arbennig gyda sgwenwyr a cherddorion o Gymru ac artistiaid sydd â chysylltiad â Chymru Ymysg prif berfformwyr
gwyliau blaenorol bu Patti Smith, Ray Davies o’r Kinks, Mick Jones o’r Clash, yr actor Michael Sheen, yr awdur Caitlin Moran, y bardd John Cooper Clarke, y comediwyr Harry Hill ac Alexi Sayle a’r artist Peter Blake.
Mae holl ddigwyddiadau’r penwythnos yn digwydd yng nghlybiau, eglwysi a neuaddau Talacharn - canolfannau bychain ac agos-atoch sy’n creu naws arbennig rhwng y gynulleidfa a’r perfformwyr. Prif ganolfannau’r Penwythnos yw Neuadd y Mileniwm, yr Eglwys Gynulleidfaol a’r Clwb Rygbi.
Cyfarwyddwr cerddoriaeth Penwythnos Talacharn yw Richard James (gynt o’r band, Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci).