Trisha Shetty (Editor)

2009 in Wales

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This article is about the particular significance of the year 2009 to Wales and its people.

Contents

Incumbents

  • Prince of Wales – Charles
  • Princess of Wales – Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (does not use title)
  • First Minister
  • Rhodri Morgan (until 9 December)
  • Carwyn Jones
  • Secretary of State for Wales
  • Paul Murphy (until 5 June)
  • Peter Hain
  • Archbishop of Wales – Barry Morgan, Bishop of Llandaff
  • Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales
  • Dic Jones (outgoing)
  • Jim Parc Nest (incoming)

    • Events

  • 1 January
  • The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, broadcasts a New Year message on BBC television. He warns against losing sight of our "real treasure" and says: "Our hearts will be in a very bad way if they’re focused only on the state of our finances." [1]
  • Record numbers of swimmers participate in New Year's Day charity swims at Amroth, Saundersfoot and Abersoch.[2]
  • 2 January - Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson denies having criticised the failure to include all UK Paralympic gold medal-winners in the UK New Year Honours List.[3]
  • 9 January - The UK Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, visits south Wales as part of a 3-day tour of the regions [4].
  • 11 January - Eight rescuers are injured as four mountain rescue teams help bring two climbers to safety from the summit of Snowdon[5].
  • 15 January - Welsh Conservative Assembly Members issue an announcement saying that they give their unanimous support to Nick Bourne as leader of the Assembly group.[6]
  • 19 January - The Cardiff International Sports Stadium opens, replacing the old Cardiff Athletics Stadium
  • 22 January - After having been the only police force in the UK to record an increase in crime during 2007-2008, South Wales Police witnesses a 4% drop in crime in its area, according to the latest British Crime Survey [7].
  • 26 January - Corus announces the loss of up to 1,100 jobs at its plants in Wales and the mothballing of the Llanwern hot strip mill [8].
  • 2 February - After a 24-hour search, the Llanberis mountain rescue team recovers the bodies of two brothers from south-west England who went missing on Snowdon on 31 January [9].
  • 8 February - At the 51st Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, Best Pop Vocal Album goes to Duffy for Rockferry.
  • 11 February - Four people are killed in a mid-air collision between two light aircraft near Kenfig. They are two female air cadets from Rhondda, aged 13 and 14, and two RAF instructors.[10]
  • 18 February
  • Duffy wins the Best Female and British Breakthrough Act awards at the 2009 BRIT Awards; her album Rockferry wins Best Album.
  • The inquest opens into the Kenfig air crash of 11 February.[11]
  • 21 February - Rescuers have to abseil 500 feet (150 m) down a sheer rock face in the dark to rescue a team of three climbers stuck on Snowdon.[12]
  • 6 March - Boxer Joe Calzaghe wins a court action against his former manager Frank Warren, claiming £2 million in unpaid fees.[13]
  • 13 March - The Hoover Company ceases washing machine production at Merthyr Tydfil.
  • 1 June - ftrmetro Swansea bus rapid transit system begins operation.[14]
  • 21 July - The first race meeting is held at Ffos Las racecourse, the first new National Hunt racecourse to be built in the United Kingdom for 80 years.[15]
  • 22 July - Official opening of the new Cardiff City stadium, Wales' 2nd largest stadium, when Cardiff City F.C. drew against Glasgow's Celtic F.C.
  • 1 August - The National Eisteddfod of Wales opens at Bala.
  • 8 August - The first test of the Ashes 2009 series, seeing England against Australia in Cricket, begins at Cardiff's SWALEC Stadium.
  • 12 August - Wales begins the process of digital switchover with the turning off of parts of the analogue signal from the Kilvey Hill transmitter.
  • 29 September - On his 70th birthday, Rhodri Morgan announces that he will stand down as First Minister in December.
  • 22 October - The St David's Centre in Cardiff re-opens as one of the largest shopping centres in the United Kingdom after its multi-million pound extension and the reconstruction of the surrounding area.
  • November - Mererid Hopwood, the first woman to be nominated for the position of Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod, withdraws her name from consideration, leaving T. James Jones as the only candidate.
  • 12 November - Health & Social Services Minister Edwina Hart declines a request by Liberal Democrat Kirsty Williams to review how £1 billion has been spent on NHS services in Wales.
  • 13 November - The agreement A New Understanding is signed by representatives of the Welsh Assembly Government and the Welsh Local Government Association.[16]
  • 18 November - A report by the All Wales Convention finds that public opinion is narrowly in favour of increasing the powers of the Welsh Assembly.[17]
  • 21 November
  • Dannie Abse receives the Wilfred Owen Poetry Award.
  • Pride In Barry announces the planned placement of a Blue Plaque on 19 Porth Y Castell, Barry, in memory of boxer Jack Petersen.
  • 9 December - Carwyn Jones takes office as First Minister for Wales.[18]
  • 16 December - The Afan Lido leisure complex in Port Talbot is badly damaged by fire.[19]
  • 29 December - A crater approximately 10 feet (3.0 m) wide and 12 feet (3.7 m) deep appears in Brynmair Close, Aberaman, Rhondda Cynon Taf. Nearby residents are evacuated as the cause is investigated.
  • undated - Completion of The Tower, Meridian Quay, in the Maritime Quarter of Swansea, the tallest building in Wales, standing at 107 m (351 ft).

    • Awards

  • Glyndŵr Award - Llŷr Williams
  • National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - withheld
  • National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - Ceri Wyn Jones
  • National Eisteddfod of Wales: Drama Medal - Dyfed Edwards
  • National Eisteddfod of Wales: Fine Art Medal - Elfyn Lewis
  • National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - Siân Melangell Dafydd
  • Gwobr Goffa Daniel Owen - Fflur Dafydd
  • Wales Book of the Year:
  • English language: Deborah Kay Davies - Grace, Tamar and Laszlo the Beautiful
  • Welsh language: William Owen Roberts - Petrograd
  • Kyffin Art Prize: Louisa Theunissen [20]
  • Cân i Gymru: Elfed Morgan Morris - "Gofidiau"
  • BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition:
  • Main Prize - Ekaterina Scherbachenko
  • Song Prize - Jan Martinik

    • Welsh language

  • Robat Gruffudd - A Gymri Di Gymru?
  • Lloyd Jones - Y Dŵr

    • English language

  • Emyr Humphreys - The Woman at the Window
  • Siân James - Return to Hendre Ddu
  • Nigel Owens - Half Time
  • Malcolm Pryce - From Aberystwyth with Love
  • John Powell Ward - The Last Green Year

    • Classical

  • Catrin Finch - Goldberg Variations (transcribed for harp)
  • Rhydian - O Fortuna

    • Albums

  • Derwyddon Dr Gonzo - Stonk!
  • Only Men Aloud! - Band of Brothers

    • Singles

  • Vanessa Jenkins and Bryn West - "Barry Islands in the Stream" featuring Sir Tom Jones and Robin Gibb

    • Theatre

  • May - National Theatre Wales established

    • Film

  • Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, starring Michael Sheen

    • Welsh-language TV

  • Caerdydd
  • S4C launches a new bilingual rugby website

    • English-language TV

  • Doctor Who - David Tennant films his final scenes as The Doctor in Cardiff.
  • Gavin & Stacey - series 3

    • Sport

  • January - Simon Lawson of Cardiff wins the 28th annual Richard Burton 10 km run [21] in a time of 31 minutes.
  • 21 March - Wales are narrowly defeated by Ireland to finish third overall in the 2009 Six Nations Championship (rugby union).
  • June - The first race meeting is held at the newly constructed Ffos Las racecourse.
  • 12 December - Ryan Giggs wins the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award for 2009.
  • 28 December - Blackwood-reared Dream Alliance wins the Welsh Grand National.

    • Births

  • 11 January - Dexter Lloyd Henson, son of Charlotte Church and Gavin Henson

    • Deaths

  • 9 January - T. Llew Jones, writer, 93
  • 10 January - Eluned Phillips, writer, 94
  • 13 January - Dai Llewellyn, socialite, 62
  • 22 January - Vic Crowe, footballer, 76
  • 9 February
  • Gareth Alban Davies, academic, 82
  • Reg Davies, footballer, 79
  • 10 February - Gerwyn Williams, rugby player, 84
  • 14 February - Bernard Albert Ashley, entrepreneur, 82
  • 19 February - Ian L. Jenkins, former Surgeon General of the British Armed Forces, 64
  • 26 February - Jackie Bowen, Wales international rugby league player, 93
  • 2 March - Gerard Morgan-Grenville, environmentalist, 77
  • 4 March - Wynne Roberts, hypnotist, 66
  • 12 March - Huw Thomas, broadcaster, lawyer and politician, 81
  • 22 March - Emyr Price, historian, 64
  • 23 March - Geoff Holmes, cricketer, 50
  • 12 April - John Maddox, biologist, 83
  • 22 April - Cliff Curvis, British and Commonwealth boxing champion, 81
  • May - Ralph Morgan, rugby league player, 88?
  • 14 May - Ken Hollyman, footballer, 86
  • 16 May - Einion Evans, poet, 82
  • 31 May - Brian Edrich, former Glamorgan cricket coach, 86
  • 5 June - Haydn Tanner, Wales international rugby union player, 92
  • 19 June - Major Sean Birchall, soldier, 33
  • 6 July - Bleddyn Williams, rugby player, 86
  • 11 July - Geraint Owen, actor and politician, 43
  • 27 July - Aeronwy Thomas, writer and daughter of Dylan Thomas, 66
  • 18 August - Dic Jones, poet and archdruid, 75
  • 28 August - Noel Jones, Anglican bishop, 76
  • 6 September - David Glyndwr Tudor Williams, barrister and academic, 78
  • 9 September - Stanley Cornwell Lewis, artist, 103
  • 7 October - Helen Watts, operatic contralto, 81
  • 10 October - Sir Bryan Hopkin, economist, 94
  • 11 October - Patrick Hannan, radio and TV journalist, 68
  • 17 October - Douglas Blackwell, actor, 85
  • 20 October - Hubert Rees, actor
  • 12 November - Orig Williams, wrestler and TV presenter, 78
  • 16 December - T. G. H. James, Egyptologist, 86
  • 30 December - Maldwyn Evans, bowls champion, 72

    • References

    2009 in Wales Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA


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