The magical
Italianate village of Portmeirion is to be the star of a new tv series on ITV
Cymru
Wales.
The Village meets
some of the men and women who help to run what is one of Wales’ premier
visitor attractions.
From the chef and the gardener to the painter and decorator each of them tells
what it takes to keep such a landmark destination in tiptop condition.
Cameras have been given unique access to show a year in the
life of the iconic community near
Porthmadog in
Gwynedd. They capture the beauty of four glorious seasons and the life
cycle of the men and women who are the guardians of the village that has
been called ‘an illusion; a playful contradiction’. Portmeirion looks
like an ancient Italian village. But it was created between 1925 and 1973 by
the visionary architect Sir Clough Williams-Ellis. Now his grandson,
Robin Llywelyn leads the team which runs the village. Robin, the
Managing Director of Portmeirion Ltd tells the programme: “Portmeirion really
is the embodiment of Clough’s vision of the harmony between the manmade
and the natural.” “What Clough abhorred over anything was that the place
should become some sort of a museum. “He wanted the place to live
and breath and be somewhere that inspired and allowed events to take
place and things to happen.”
Portmeirion was the backdrop for the pioneering Sixties TV
show The Prisoner. Now it attracts
some 200,000
visitors a year. The new series features a wide range of characters –
some of whom have worked at Portmeirion for decades. Martin
Couture has been there for 42 years – starting when he was just 16 years old.
Now the Head Painter and Decorator, he tells the programme how he maintains the
colours and style laid down by Sir Clough as the village was built.
“We have got about 80 different colours and we have got to keep a record of
every colour we use. “We write everything down in case the
building needs re-rendering. We know then that we have got the correct
colour to put them back again as Sir Clough originally put them.” Head
Housekeeper Rhian Roberts also features in the series. She helps look after the
two four star hotels and range of holiday cottages on the site.
“Our job is to keep
the people who come here as happy as possible and that’s our aim really,
isn’t it?”
“I have been here
22 years. Why have I stayed so long? Well, I’m very fond of the place. I enjoy
my work.”
Another star of the
show is Location Manager Meurig Jones who looks after many of the film
crews who visit
Portmeirion from around the world. He also tells visitors about famous
VIPs who have stayed in the village, from Beatles manager Brian Epstein
who had a cottage at Portmeirion for several years in the early 1960s to Jerry
Lee Lewis and George Harrison who had his 50th birthday party there.
“Clough always wanted Portmeirion to appeal to creative people and of course
it’s a wonderful venue for a whole range of different things. “It’s
a place you do get very attached to. I can’t imagine going anywhere else, to be
honest.” The ITV series is the latest to celebrate the diverse
communities of Wales. It follows The Mountain , looking at people living
and working around Snowdon in 2015, The Harbour , featuring Tenby in
2017 and The Strait – highlighting communities around the Menai Strait in
2018. Both The Harbour and The Strait were broadcast across the ITV
network. The Village will also be broadcast on the ITV network on a
future date. Each of the hugely successful series were created by Aled
Llŷr from boutique independent production media Slam Media in
partnership with Anglesey-based brand design and media company Cread Cyf
and its managing director Stephen Edwards. Said Aled: This series is a
tribute to a remarkable place and special people who bring it alive. It’s
been a joy to capture their passion and love for this unique Village. Added
Stephen: “It’s been a magical year of filming. We can’t wait for people to
see the series.” Jonathan Hill, ITV Cymru Wales Executive Producer on
the series called it “a remarkable insight into the running of one of
Wales’ most famous and iconic locations”. Added Robin Llywelyn: “ It was
a pleasure having the film crew with us over the course of the past year
and we are very much looking forward to the series. “We hope that
everyone enjoys watching!” The series airs on ITV Cymru Wales at 8pm on
Monday 15th April and will then be available online on
itv.com/walesprogrammes
