2008 in Wales

Incumbents

Prince of Wales – Charles

Princess of Wales – Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (does not use title)

First Minister - Rhodri Morgan

Secretary of State for Wales

Peter Hain (to January 24)

Paul Murphy

Archbishop of Wales – Barry Morgan, Bishop of Llandaff

Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales

Selwyn Iolen (outgoing)

Dic Jones (incoming)

Events

18 January - Last working of Tower Colliery, the last deep mine in the South Wales Valleys (official closure: 25 January).

24 January - Peter Hain resigns from his government offices (including Secretary of State for Wales) after the Electoral Commission refers to the Metropolitan Police his failure to report donations amounting to £100,000.

25 January - Official closure of Tower Colliery in the Cynon Valley, the last deep coal mine to be worked in Wales.

11 February - At the 50th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, the Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording goes to Hansel and Gretel, starring Rebecca Evans.

18 February - Plans to publish Wales's first daily newspaper in the Welsh language, under the title Y Byd (The World), are abandoned because of inadequate finance.

March - Harpist Catrin Finch gives the broadcast première of Alun Hoddinott's Serenissima on BBC Radio 3, shortly before the composer's death.

1 March - St David's Day Cardiff sees record breaking numbers march in the annual St David's Day parade, from the National Museum of Wales for Y Senedd in Cardiff Bay.

7 March - The Queen visits Swansea to open its new leisure centre, a replacement for the building she opened in 1977.

16 April

Swansea's new bowls stadium hosts the World Indoor Singles and Mixed Pairs Championship for bowls.

First minister Rhodri Morgan officially opens Amazon.co.uk's 400,000 sq ft (37,000 m²) Fulfilment Centre in Jersey Marine.

1 May - All Wales local council elections.

31 May - Swansea Bay Film Festival begins.

12 June - Cardiff Castle opens a new interpretation centre [1] at a cost of £6 million.

13 June - While taking part in BBC Radio Cymru's weekly radio show, Dau o'r Bae, Alun Cairns apologises for referring to Italians as "greasy wops".

14 June - In the Queen's Birthday honours list, Russell T Davies is awarded the OBE and Joe Calzaghe the CBE.

28 June - At the Wales Book of the Year Awards, Heritage Minister Rhodri Glyn Thomas reads out the wrong name, and runner-up Tom Bullough arrives on stage only to find he has lost out to Dannie Abse. Bullough comments "The Book of the Year event was out-and-out the worst night of my life."[2]

18 July - Rhodri Glyn Thomas resigns from his position in the Welsh Assembly Government after having been reprimanded for smoking in a pub.[3]

July - North East Wales Institute of Higher Education, based at Wrexham, is renamed Glyndŵr University.

2 August - The National Eisteddfod of Wales opens in Cardiff.

11 August - A resurvey of Mynydd Graig Goch in the Moel Hebog group of Snowdonia summits determines its height to be 2,000ft 6in (609.75m) rather than the 1998ft (609m) previously recorded, qualifying it as a mountain.

12 September - The Tower, Meridian Quay, is topped out, becoming the tallest building in Swansea and the tallest residential building in Wales.

5 October - Delyth Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Drefelin, replaces Kevin Brennan as Lords Minister for the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

20 November - AM and Heritage Minister Alun Ffred Jones makes history by using the Welsh language for the first time as a representative of the UK government at a European Union meeting in Brussels.[4]

14 December - Trinity College, Carmarthen, announces negotiations with University of Wales, Lampeter, with a view to a merger.

19 December - A haul of 22 million counterfeit cigarettes, the biggest such seizure ever in Wales, is recovered by Cardiff customs officers in a container from Dubai.[5]

31 December - In the New Year Honours 2009, Michael Sheen is awarded the OBE and Owain Arwel Hughes the CBE. Cyclists Nicole Cooke and Geraint Thomas receive the MBE.

Arts and literature

Gillian Clarke succeeds Gwyn Thomas as National Poet of Wales.

Awards

Glyndŵr Award - Tudur Dylan Jones

National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - Hilma Lloyd Edwards

National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - Hywel Griffiths

National Eisteddfod of Wales: Drama Medal -

National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - Mererid Hopwood

Wales Book of the Year:

English language: Dannie Abse - The Presence

Welsh language: Gareth Miles - Y Proffwyd a'l Ddwy Jesebel

Dylan Thomas Award: Nam Le

Cân i Gymru: Aled Myrddin - "Atgofion"

New books

The Academi - Encyclopaedia of Wales / Gwyddoniadur Cymru

Geraint Talfan Davies - At Arm's Length: Recollections and Reflections on the Arts, Media and a Young Democracy

Rhys Evans - Gwynfor Evans: a Portrait of a Patriot

Ray Gravell - Grav in his Own Words

Simon Jenkins - Wales: Churches, Houses, Castles

Peter Lord - Winifred Coombe Tennant: a Life through Art (National Library of Wales)

Iolo Morganwg and the Romantic Tradition in Wales: The Correspondence of Iolo Morganwg, Vols 1, 2 & 3 (ed. Geraint H. Jenkins, Ffion Mair Jones & David Ceri Jones)

Ian Skidmore - Kyffin: a Figure in a Welsh Landscape

Dai Smith - Raymond Williams: a Warrior's Tale

Louie Myfanwy Thomas (d. 1968) writing as Jane Ann Jones - Pererinion

Rowan Williams - Dostoevsky: Language, Faith and Fiction

Drama

Aled Jones Williams - Iesu!

Classical

Alun Hoddinott - Music for String Quartet

Karl Jenkins - Stabat Mater

Albums

The Automatic - This Is a Fix

Duffy - Rockferry

The Gentle Good - While You Slept I Went Out Walking

Katherine Jenkins - Sacred Arias

Kids in Glass Houses - Smart Casual

Bryn Terfel - First Love: Songs from the British Isles

Singles

Feeder - Miss You

Film

Jonathan Pryce appears in Leatherheads.

Michael Sheen plays David Frost in Frost/Nixon

Catherine Zeta-Jones stars in Death Defying Acts

Freebird is filmed and set in Wales.

Flick, starring Faye Dunaway, is filmed in Wales.

Welsh-language TV

Natur Cymru (with Iolo Williams)

Noson Chis a Meinir

English-language TV

Teen Tribes (with Rhod Gilbert) (BBC2)

The Wright Taste

Sport

BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year - Shane Williams

BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year - Eleanor Simmonds

Cycling

March - Geraint Thomas is a member of the gold medal-winning team in the UCI Track Cycling World Championships - Men's Team Pursuit.

September - Nicole Cooke wins the UCI Road World Championships - Women's Road Race.

Darts

Mark Webster wins the 2008 BDO World Darts Championship.

Football

9 March - Cardiff City F.C. defeat Middlesbrough F.C. to reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup for the first time since 1927.

6 April - Cardiff City F.C. defeat Barnsley F.C. to reach the final of the FA Cup for the first time since 1927.

17 May - Cardiff City F.C. are defeated by Portsmouth F.C. in the final of the FA Cup

16 August - Opening round of the Welsh Cup 2008-09

Rugby union

2 February - Wales defeat World Cup finalists England in their first match of the 2008 Six Nations Championship.

8 March - Wales defeat Ireland to clinch the Triple Crown.

15 March - Wales defeat France to win the Grand Slam for the second time in five years.

12 April - Ospreys defeat Leicester Tigers and lift the EDF Energy Cup trophy.

2008 Summer Olympics

10 August - Cyclist Nicole Cooke wins the gold medal in the Women's road race.

16 August - In rowing, Tom James wins a gold medal as one of the British team's victorious coxless four.

18 August - Cyclist Geraint Thomas wins gold as a member of the GB Team Pursuit team.

21 August - David Davies of Barry wins the silver medal in the Men's marathon 10 kilometre swim.

Deaths

1 January - Aled Rhys Wiliam, writer, 81

4 February - Peter Thomas, Baron Thomas of Gwydir, politician, 87

8 March - Patrick Gibbs, RAF Wing Commander, author and film critic, 92

12 March - Alun Hoddinott, composer, 78

18 March - Philip Jones Griffiths, photojournalist, 72

24 March - Neil Aspinall, Beatles' friend and assistant, 65

17 April - Gwyneth Dunwoody, politician, 77

25 April - Humphrey Lyttelton, jazz musician and former Port Talbot steelworker, 86

1 May - Mark Kendall, footballer, 49

12 June - Derek Tapscott, footballer, 75

16 June - Gareth Jones, rugby player, 28

22 June - Ron Stitfall, footballer, 82

30 June - Anthony Crockett, Bishop of Bangor, 62

14 July - George Noakes, former Archbishop of Wales, 83

12 August - Michael Baxandall, art historian, 74

18 August - Bob Humphrys, TV sports presenter, 56

20 August - Leo Abse, politician, 91

10 September - Vernon Handley, conductor, 77

7 October - Leslie Hardman, rabbi, 95

22 October - George Edwards, footballer, 87

27 October - Colin Gale, footballer, 76

12 November - Richard Rhys, 9th Baron Dynevor, 73

7 December - John Ellis Williams, novelist, 84