A New Poet Laureate for Wales

The Guardian reports that Ifor ap Glyn has been appointed Wales's fourth poet laureate. Glyn follows in the footsteps of Gillian Clarke, who held the prestigious position for the last eight years. British poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy had this to say about Glyn's appointment: "After the fantastic work by Gillian Clarke as national poet, it is exciting to see the role pass to a Welsh-language poet who I am sure will help to celebrate the Welsh language, which is among the greatest treasures of these islands." From the beginning:

Ifor ap Glyn has been named the fourth national poet of Wales, charged with promoting Welsh poetry and taking it to a global stage.

Glyn, who was born in 1961 to a Welsh-speaking family in London, and now lives in Caernarfon, has published five collections of poetry in Welsh. He won the crown at the National Eisteddfod in 1999 and again in 2013 with Terfysg (Perturbation) – a sequence of poems, written in a free verse informed by the internal rhyme and rhythm of cynghanedd, which explores his reaction to the drop in Welsh speakers recorded by the 2011 census.

From 2008 until 2009, Glyn was Bardd Plant Cymru (the Welsh-language children’s laureate) and is a founder member of the award-winning television company Cwmni Da, working as a director, producer and presenter.

Speaking to the Guardian before the announcement, Glyn said he was still “in the process of working out” what the position entails.

“It’s a twofold job,” he explained. “At one level you’re a figurehead, a poster boy, an ambassador for Welsh literary culture. On another level there’s an expectation you’ll respond to the occasional commission – that you’ll celebrate Welsh success and reflect on Welsh failure.”

He said that while each poet brings their own interpretation to the role “one of the first things I’ll do is to write a paean to [outgoing post-holder] Gillian Clarke, thanking her for her eight years as national poet”.

Continue at The Guardian.