New poetry booklet celebrating Aber Valley’s heritage set to be released

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A new poetry booklet celebrating the history of the Aber Valley is being launched this weekend.

It is the fourth edition of Tatws Sion Cent, which features poetry written by Aber Valley residents.

The launch event, on Sunday June 7, starts at 3pm with poetry recitals at the National Mining Memorial in Senghenydd. The event then moves down to the Aber and Senghenydd Ex-servicemen’s Club, where there will be an open mic session and short film screenings.

The event, which is free to attend, is being run by the Aber Valley-based community group Y Bowlen Werdd, which promotes creativity and local traditions in the area.

Y Bowlen Werdd has produced the annual Tatws Sion Cent poetry booklet for the past three years. The booklet is named after Sion Cent, a 14th‑century poet from Abertridwr, and the legend in which he tricked the devil into helping him harvest potatoes. 

Each edition is themed around a different area of the Aber Valley. This year’s booklet saw a record participation, with 40 entries submitted – almost double last year’s total of 21.

Welsh for ‘The Green Bowl’, Y Bowlen Werdd launched its first debut art‑focused magazine this year, titled Gomer Oer Jacko.

The publication was named after Gomer Thomas, an Aber Valley artist and town crier from the 1940s, and was promoted at the group’s own contemporary art exhibition, held in Abertridwr in March.

For the magazine, the 14 artists were given three words with historical links to the Aber Valley, and asked to create artwork inspired by one or more of them. The words were selected using the app What3Words – which assigns every three‑metre square on Earth a unique three‑word combination. 

For its debut publication, the three words provided were Ceffyl, Plaice, and Milwr: Ceffyl from Nant Cwm Ceffyl, Plaice from Sonia’s Fish and Chip Shop, and Milwr from Gwern y Milwr apartments in Senghenydd.

The event was a success, with Y Bowlen Werdd eyeing expansion by organising more pop‑up events throughout Abertridwr and Senghenydd.