1950 in Wales

← 1949 1948 1947 1946 1945 1950 in Wales → 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955
Centuries:	18th 19th 20th 21st
Decades:	1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s
See also:	List of years in Wales Timeline of Welsh history 1950 in The United Kingdom Scotland Elsewhere

This article is about the particular significance of the year 1950 to Wales and its people.

Incumbents

For United Kingdom incumbents, see 1950 in the United Kingdom § Incumbents.

• Archbishop of Wales – John Morgan, Bishop of Llandaff
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales
  • Wil Ifan (outgoing)
  • Cynan (incoming)

Events

• 23 February – 1950 United Kingdom general election: For the first time ever, the Labour Party contests all Parliamentary seats in Wales. Following the election, Wales has 27 Labour MPs, 4 Liberals, 3 Conservatives and one National Liberal/Conservative.
  • The University of Wales seat is abolished at the dissolution, W. J. Gruffydd having been the last holder.
  • Roderic Bowen is re-elected for Cardiganshire, with the largest Liberal majority in the country.
  • David Ormsby-Gore, the future Lord Harlech, becomes MP for Oswestry.
  • Lynn Ungoed-Thomas, following the abolition of his Llandaff and Barry constituency, is elected MP for Leicester North East.
  • Roy Jenkins, whose Southwark seat has been abolished, is elected for Birmingham Stechford.
  • Elwyn Jones becomes MP for West Ham South.
  • Following the election, Ness Edwards becomes Postmaster-General. During his time in the office, he introduces the greetings telegram.
  • Abertillery's Labour MP, George Daggar, dies on 14 October, to be replaced by Llywelyn Williams.
• 12 March – Llandow air disaster: 80 of the 83 people on board an Avro Tudor V aircraft are killed when it crashes on approach to Llandow in Glamorgan, making it the world's worst air disaster at this time.[1]
• 30 March – William Havard is elected Bishop of St David's.[2]
• 1 June – The Welsh Air Service, the world's first scheduled helicopter service, begins operating between Cardiff, Wrexham and Liverpool.[3]
• 27 August – Six people are killed in a rail collision at Penmaenmawr railway station.[4]
• 9 September – In Swansea, following heavy rain, three houses collapse, killing seven people.[5]
• Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones opens in Amlwch on Anglesey as Britain's first purpose-built comprehensive school.
• Maes Hyfryd and Bryn Teg housing estates at Beaumaris, designed by Colwyn Foulkes, are built.[6]
• Glanllyn is acquired as a permanent site for meetings of Urdd Gobaith Cymru.
• In the Honours lists
  • Physicist Ezer Griffiths is awarded the O.B.E.
  • Agriculturist Thomas James Jenkin is awarded the C.B.E.
  • Industrialist Herbert Henry Merrett is knighted.
• Margaret Haig Thomas, Viscountess Rhondda, becomes President of University College, Cardiff.

Arts and literature

• 21 February – Dylan Thomas arrives in the United States, his first visit to America.[7]
• The first Welsh Drama Festival is held.
• American photojournalist W. Eugene Smith visits the UK to take photographs of working-class life; three of those published are of the South Wales valleys.[8]

Awards

• National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in Caerphilly) (first "all-Welsh" Eisteddfod)
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair – Gwilym Tilsley
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown – Euros Bowen
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal – withheld

New books

English language

• Sir Leonard Twiston Davies – Welsh furniture: an introduction
• Kathleen Freeman – Greek City States
• Llywelyn Wyn Griffith – The Welsh
• Elisabeth Inglis-Jones – Peacocks in Paradise[9]
• Thomas Jones (T. J.) – Welsh Broth
• Richard Llewellyn – A Few Flowers for Shiner[10]
• V. E. Nash-Williams – The Early Christian Monuments of Wales[11]
• Harold Henry Rowley – The Growth of the Old Testament
• Bertrand Russell – Unpopular Essays
• Raymond Williams – Reading and Criticism

Welsh language

• Ambrose Bebb – Machlud yr Oesoedd Canol[12]
• Aneirin Talfan Davies – Blodeugerdd o englynion
• Edward Morgan Humphreys – Gwŷr enwog gynt[13]
• Edgar Phillips – Caniadau Trefîn[14]
• Arthur Wade-Evans – Coll Prydain
• David Pryse Williams – Canmlwyddiant Libanus ... braslun o'r hanes[15]
• William Crwys Williams – Pedair Pennod[16]

Music

• Harry Parr Davies – Dear Miss Phoebe (musical)[17]
• Arwel Hughes – Dewi Sant (Saint David) (oratorio)
• Grace Williams – Three Traditional Ballads[18]
• W. S. Gwynn Williams – Breuddwyd Glyndwr

Film

• Glyn Houston makes his film debut in The Blue Lamp, which also stars Meredith Edwards and guest stars Tessie O'Shea.
• Ray Milland stars in Copper Canyon and A Woman of Distinction.

Sports

• Boxing
  • 13 September – Eddie Thomas beats Cliff Curvis at St Helens to become British welterweight champion.[19]
• Football
  • 27 October – Wales international Trevor Ford becomes the most expensive footballer in British history after joining Sunderland for £30,000.[20]
• Rugby union – Wales win their fourth Grand Slam.
• Bowls – The Welsh Ladies Indoor Bowling Association is founded.[21]

Births

• 23 January – John Greaves, Welsh bass player and songwriter
• 7 February – Dai Havard MP, politician
• 16 February (in Nairobi) – Peter Hain MP, politician
• 11 March – Terry Cooper, footballer
• 18 March – Lorraine Barrett AM, politician
• 27 March – Terry Yorath, footballer and football manager
• 3 May – Mary Hopkin, singer[22]
• 5 May (in Saint Kitts) – Pat Thomas, boxer
• 24 May – Geoff Ellis, cricketer
• 26 May – Myron Wyn Evans, chemist (died 2019)[23]
• 2 June – Jonathan Evans MEP, businessman and politician[24]
• 14 June – Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury[25]
• 25 August (in Dublin) – Brian Gibbons AM, politician
• 8 September – Martyn Woodroffe, swimmer[26]
• 10 September – Tich Gwilym, guitarist (d. 2005)
• 11 October – Robert Pugh, actor
• 16 November – Chris O'Brien, rugby league player
• 28 November – Meic Povey, screenwriter, playwright and actor (d. 2017) [27]
• 8 December – Stephen Richards, judge
• 10 December – John Parsons, footballer

Deaths

• 23 January – Jack Rhapps, dual-code international rugby player, 73
• 13 February – Rees Howells, missionary and founder of the Bible College at Swansea, 70[28]
• 28 February – David Lewis Prosser, Archbishop of Wales, 81[29]
• 9 March – Timothy Evans, wrongly executed for murder, 35[30]
• 15 March – Sir Wilfrid Lewis, judge[31]
• 12 April – Joe Rees, rugby union player, 56
• 29 April – Wallace Watts, Wales international rugby union player, 80
• 15 May – David Edwardes Davies, Bishop of Bangor, 70[32]
• 21 June – General Sir Henry ap Rhys Pryce, officer in the Indian Army, 75[33]
• 23 June – Joseph Harry, minister and poet, 86[34]
• 29 June – H. A. Gwynne, author and newspaper editor, 84[35]
• 2 July – Henry Haydn Jones MP, politician, 86[36]
• 5 July – John Hughes, footballer, 73
• 30 August – Morgan Morgan-Owen, footballer, 73[37]
• 30 August – Ralph Hancock, landscape gardener, 57
• 19 September – David Jones, archdeacon of Carmarthen, 75[38]
• 14 October – George Daggar MP, politician, 71[39]
• 28 October – Alis Mallt Williams, novelist, 83[40]
• 21 November – Hugh Emyr Davies, poet, 72[41]

See also

• 1950 in Northern Ireland

References

1. Keith Eastlake; Henry Russell; Mike Sharpe (21 August 2013). World Disasters: Tragedies in the Modern Age. Routledge. p. 129. ISBN 978-1-136-74257-6.
2. John Morgan-Guy (1 April 2016). Religion and Society in the Diocese of St Davids 1485–2011. Routledge. p. 212. ISBN 978-1-317-06784-9.
3. Woodley, Charles (2006). The history of British European Airways. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Aviation. p. 109. ISBN 9781844151868.
4. Michael Foley (15 January 2014). Britain's Railway Disasters: Fatal Accidents from the 1830s to the Present Day. Wharncliffe. p. 195. ISBN 978-1-4738-3328-9.
5. Geoff Brookes (15 September 2015). Swansea in the 1950s: Ten Years that Changed a City. Amberley Publishing Limited. p. 11. ISBN 978-1-4456-3958-1.
6. The Twentieth Century Society (2017). "1950". 100 Houses 100 Years. London: Batsford. ISBN 978-1-84994-437-3.
7. Constantine FitzGibbon (1965). The Life of Dylan Thomas. J. M. Dent and Sons. p. 355.
8. University of Arizona. Center for Creative Photography; Amy Rule (1983). W. Eugene Smith papers. Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona. p. 18.
9. Margaret Ross Griffel (21 December 2012). Operas in English: A Dictionary. Scarecrow Press. p. 713. ISBN 978-0-8108-8325-3.
10. NA NA (5 March 2016). Writers Directory. Springer. p. 758. ISBN 978-1-349-03650-9.
11. Mark Redknap (1991). The Christian Celts: Treasures of Late Celtic Wales. National Museum Wales. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-7200-0354-3.
12. Dai Smith (1980). A People and a proletariat: essays in the history of Wales, 1780-1980. Pluto Press in association with Llafur, the Society for the Study of Welsh Labour History. p. 139. ISBN 978-0-86104-321-7.
13. Hugh Pryce (15 May 2011). J. E. Lloyd and the Creation of Welsh History: Renewing a Nation's Past. University of Wales Press. p. 266. ISBN 978-1-78316-297-0.
14. Glyn Jones; Tony Brown (1 December 2001). The Dragon Has Two Tongues: Essays on Anglo-Welsh Writers and Writing. University of Wales Press. p. 205. ISBN 978-1-4175-0857-0.
15. Benjamin George Owens. "Williams, David Pryse ('Brythonydd'; 1878-1952), minister (B), writer, and historian". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
16. J. Gwynn Williams (1985). The University College of North Wales: Foundations, 1884-1927. University of Wales Press. p. 480. ISBN 978-0-7083-0893-6.
17. Arthur Jackson (1979). The Best Musicals: From Show Boat to A Chorus Line : Broadway, Off-Broadway, London. Crown. p. 180. ISBN 978-0-517-53881-4.
18. Benjamin Britten (7 July 2011). Letters from a Life Volume 3 (1946-1951): The Selected Letters of Benjamin Britten. Faber & Faber. p. 469. ISBN 978-0-571-27993-7.
19. Mullan, Harry (4 June 1997). "Obituary: Eddie Thomas". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-01. Retrieved 22 March 2020.
20. Palmer, Neil (2016). Trevor Ford : the authorised biography. Stroud: Amberley. ISBN 9781445640891.
21. "About Us". Welsh Ladies Indoor Bowling Association website. Welsh Ladies Indoor Bowling Association. 2008. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
22. Norm N. Nite (1980). Rock on: The modern years: 1964 - present. Crowell. p. 230. ISBN 978-0-690-01196-8.
23. Evans, Myron W. (Myron Wyn) 1950- in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
24. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Limited. 1997. p. 521.
25. "About Rowan Williams". Archbishop of Canterbury. Archived from the original on 6 January 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
26. "Martyn Woodroffe". Welsh Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
27. "Meic Povey, playwright and scriptwriter – obituary". The Telegraph. 28 December 2017. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
28. Huw Walters (2001). "Howells, Rees (1879-1950), missionary and founder of the Bible College, Swansea". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
29. Thomas Iorwerth Ellis. "Prosser, David Lewis (1868-1950), archbishop". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
30. Gudjonsson, Gisli (2003). The psychology of interrogations and confessions : a handbook. Chichester, West Sussex, England Hoboken, N.J: Wiley. p. 168. ISBN 9780470857946.
31. Griffith Milwyn Griffiths. "Lewis, Wilfrid Hubert Poyer (1881-1950), judge". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
32. Frank Moore Colby (1950). The New International Year Book. Dodd, Mead and Company. p. 389.
33. "Obituary: Gen. Sir H. Ap Rhys Pryce". The Times. 27 June 1950. p. 8.
34. Evan David Jones (2001). "Harry, Joseph (1863-1950), schoolmaster and Independent minister". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
35. "Gwynne (family), of Kilvey, Swansea". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. 2001. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
36. Michael Stenton; Stephen Lees (1979). Who's who of British Members of Parliament: A Biographical Dictionary of the House of Commons. 1919-1945. Volume III. Harvester P. p. 189. ISBN 978-0-391-00768-0.
37. "Timothy Morgan Owen (1843–1924) 28". Retrieved 12 December 2018.
38. News in Brief The Times (London, England), Wednesday, Sep 20, 1950; pg. 3; Issue 51801
39. John Davies. "Daggar, George (1879-1950), trade unionist and Member of Parliament". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
40. Evan David Jones. "Williams, Alice Matilda Langland (1867-1950), otherwise Alys Mallt, but more generally known as Y Fonesig Mallt Williams author and celtophile". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
41. "Davies, Hugh Emyr (1878-1950), minister (Presb.) and poet". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 28 December 2021.