An aspiring young writer from Machen finished above thousands of other entrants as he won bronze in BBC Radio 2’s 500 Words competition.
Jed Wherlock, nine, submitted a story entitled The Lady Who Grew A Beard to the competition, which aims to get children excited about reading and writing.
The brainchild of radio DJ Chris Evans, the 500 Words competition sees youngsters aged between five and nine, and ten and 13 write an original story in 500 words or fewer and submit it online.
A judging panel selects the best 50 stories from the two age categories, before the top three are then chosen from each.
Machen Primary School pupil Jed was presented with the bronze prize in the five to nine category at a star-studded ceremony at the Tower of London on Friday June 16.
His mother, Michelle, spoke of her pride at her son’s achievements.
She said: “Jed’s in the writers’ club at school, and we heard that he’d made the top 50 in Easter. There were close to 132,000 entries overall so for him to get through was incredible, and to win bronze was the icing on the cake. We’re so proud of him.”
Jed’s story – about a woman who grows a magic beard after eating some unusual food – was read live at the grand final by comedian John Bishop in front of a range of guests and celebrities, including HRH The Duchess of Cornwall.
Michelle said: “He’s a bit cool about the whole thing. He was nervous and excited going into it, but I’m not sure it’s sunk in.
“His story was funny, so it was fitting for a comedian like John Bishop to have read it out.
“As the presentation was live on Chris Evans’ show on BBC Radio 2 on the Friday, we travelled down to London the day before and stayed the night. His dad went with him to the ceremony and I was listening to the radio in the hotel room.
“When his name was called out it was incredible.
“I was shaking and running around the room like a lunatic.”
The young wordsmith has become the talk of his school, and has already been faced with requests to sign copies of his story for fellow pupils.
“It’s great for the school too”, Michelle added. “For someone from the Valleys to get to the final is a nice feather in the cap.”