Sianel Pedwar Cymru (Channel Four Wales)
Launched	1 November 1982
Owned by	Welsh Fourth Channel Authority
Picture format	576i (SDTV 16:9) 1080i (HDTV)
Audience share	0.1% (January 2012, BARB)
Country	Wales
Language	Welsh
Headquarters	Llanishen, Cardiff
Sister channel(s)	Channel 4
Website	s4c.co.uk (Welsh) s4c.co.uk/e index.shtml (English)
Availability
Terrestrial
Freeview	Channel 4 (Wales only) Channel 53 (HD) (Wales only)
Satellite
Freesat	Channel 104 (in Wales) Channel 120 (rest of UK)
Sky	Channel 104 (in Wales) Channel 134 (rest of UK & Ireland)
Astra 2A	12129V 27500 2/3
Cable
Virgin Media	Channel 167 (Wales only)
Internet television
S4C Online	Watch live (UK only)

S4C (Welsh: Sianel Pedwar Cymru Welsh pronunciation: [ˈʃanɛl ˈpɛdwar ˈkəmrɨ], meaning Channel 4 Wales), currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is (after BBC One, ITV, BBC Two and Sky1) the fifth oldest British television channel (Channel 4 was launched in the rest of the United Kingdom one day later).

The channel - initially broadcast on analogue television - was bilingual (Welsh and English) with most of its English-language programming being either simultaneous or deferred broadcasts of Channel 4 programmes (analogue reception of which was unavailable in most of Wales). When digital television arrived several years later, a second channel was added: a 100% Welsh-language service, branded S4C Digidol (S4C Digital). The analogue version of S4C closed on 31 March 2010, when the Wenvoe transmitter completed the digital switchover. After this, S4C Digidol became the default S4C channel available across Wales available to Welsh viewers on cable, satellite and Freeview, broadcasting only in the Welsh language.^{[citation needed]}

A high definition service called S4C Clirlun (clear picture), simulcasting S4C Digidol, began broadcasting on 30 April 2010 on Freeview channel 53 in Wales.^[1][2] By the end of 2012, S4C has indicated that it plans to produce all of its programming in high definition.^[1]

Pre-history[link]

Before the launch of S4C, Welsh speakers had been served by occasional programmes in Welsh broadcast as regional opt-outs on BBC Wales and HTV Cymru Wales (the ITV franchise in Wales), usually at off-peak or inconvenient times. This was unsatisfactory for Welsh speakers, who saw the arrangement as a sop, and also an annoyance for non-Welsh speakers, who found the English programmes seen in the rest of the UK often rescheduled or not transmitted at all.^[3]

In 1962 the ITV network had created a licence area for North and West Wales, which was awarded to Wales (West and North) Limited. This traded as Teledu Cymru and provided significant levels of Welsh-language programming. However, problems with transmission infrastructure and poor market research led to financial difficulties within two years and the station was taken over by its neighbour Television Wales and West.

During the 1970s, Welsh-language activists had campaigned for a TV service in the language, which already had its own radio station, BBC Radio Cymru. Both the Conservative and Labour parties promised a Welsh-language fourth channel, if elected to government in the 1979 General Election.^[4] Shortly after the Conservatives won a majority in the election, the new home secretary William Whitelaw decided against a Welsh fourth channel, and suggested that, except for an occasional opt-out, the service should be the same as that offered in the rest of the UK. This led to acts of civil disobedience, including refusals to pay the television licence fee, thereby running the risk of prosecution or even a prison sentence, and sit-ins in BBC and HTV studios. Some took more extreme measures, including attacking television transmitters in Welsh-speaking areas.

In 1980, the former president of Plaid Cymru, Gwynfor Evans, threatened to go on hunger strike if the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher didn't honour its commitment to provide a Welsh-language TV service.^[5] The channel started broadcasting on 1 November 1982, the night before Channel 4's opening. S4C appointed its first female CEO, Iona Jones in 2005.

Programming[link]

S4C's remit is to provide a service which features a wide range of programmes in the Welsh language. Like Channel 4, S4C does not produce programmes of its own; instead, it commissions programmes from BBC Cymru and independent producers^[6] (although the quantity purchased from ITV Wales has greatly reduced since the early years of S4C), and it has particularly developed a reputation for commissioning cartoons, such as SuperTed, Sam Tân (which became Fireman Sam in its English version on the BBC) and Shakespeare: The Animated Tales.

BBC Wales fulfils its public service requirement by producing programmes in Welsh, including Newyddion, S4C's news bulletin, and a soap opera, Pobol y Cwm, and providing them to S4C free of charge. It has also provided (or licensed) Welsh-language versions of English-language programmes e.g.: The Tweenies. On the analogue service, S4C showed programmes produced for Channel 4 in the rest of the UK outside of peak hours (usually a few days later). These programmes were provided to S4C by Channel 4, free of charge.^[7]

To make them more accessible to English speakers, all Welsh-language programming carries English subtitles on Teletext page 888, with Welsh subtitles on page 889. Both subtitle languages are also available on digital television platforms. For speakers of English who are learning Welsh, certain programmes, particularly children's programmes Planed Plant Bach and Planed Plant, carry subtitles on page 889 of Teletext, featuring Welsh subtitles with additional English translations in brackets next to more difficult Welsh-language words. TV films produced for S4C have received some good foreign reviews; Hedd Wyn was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Oscar in 1993 and Solomon & Gaenor was nominated in 1999.^{[citation needed]}

The S4C analogue signal also spilled over into southeast Ireland. In the past it was rebroadcast in a number of areas there on UHF terrestrial signals by so-called 'deflectors', however Channel 4 is now re-transmitted from satellite by the few remaining deflectors. Up until the 1990s, S4C was also carried by some Irish cable and MMDS providers before being replaced by Channel 4.^{[citation needed]}

Up until 2009, S4C ran its own teletext service, Sbectel ("Sbec", Welsh for "a peek" or "a glimpse", and a reference to an S4C schedule insert formerly included in the TV Times issues for the HTV Wales region.

Digital channels[link]

Following the switch off of analogue terrestrial signals on 31 March 2010, Wales became the first fully digital nation in the UK, with both S4C and Channel 4 now available to all homes. As a result, S4C now broadcasts solely in Welsh language and, as well as on Freeview in Wales, is available throughout Britain, Ireland and the rest of western Europe on Freesat and Sky. A review commissioned by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in 2004 suggested that "S4C should operate a single core service after digital switchover".^[8]

In addition, S4C also operated a sister channel, S4C2 until 2010. It formerly broadcast coverage of the National Assembly for Wales when in session. The programme content was provided by the BBC who, from January 2010, now make it available online and via BBC Parliament. Like the main channel, S4C2 was available within Wales on Freeview and throughout the UK and Ireland on Freesat and Sky. S4C2 had two audio feeds, allowing viewers to select between an untranslated version and an English-only version where all Welsh spoken is translated into English. Delayed coverage of Assembly proceedings is now broadcast overnight on S4C's main channel on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursday. In addition to the analogue TV signal transmitted throughout Wales, S4C, along with United News and Media, owned the company S4C Digital Networks (SDN). SDN was awarded the UK-wide contract to provide half a digital multiplex worth of programming. The other half continues to belong to the broadcaster Channel Five.^{[citation needed]}

On 27 April 2005 S4C sold its share of SDN to ITV plc for approximately £34 million, though it still has the half-multiplex as of right in Wales. ITV already owned some of SDN due to the consolidation of the ITV industry: Granada bought UNM's stake in SDN, and this was then incorporated into the united ITV plc. In January 2007, S4C announced plans to launch a Welsh-language children's service.^[9] The new service, in the form of a programming bloc, launched on 23 June 2008. Under the name "Cyw" (English: Chick), it brings together a wide range of programmes for nursery-age children, and S4C plans eventually to extend the service to include the "Stwnsh" strand for older children and a third service for teenagers and young people. The service currently airs on weekdays from 7am to 1.30pm on S4C.

Presentation[link]

1982–1993[link]

S4C's original logo, used until 1993

S4C's on-air appearance has always been a representation of the Welsh society and people, but this representation has changed several times. Initial idents featured clips from the natural landscapes of Wales with a basic logo animation and fanfare, with the logo forming as WALES4CYMRU.^{[citation needed]}

In 1988, the ident changed to a computer-generated ident featuring an animation of the streamlined S4C logo, the colours of the logo were blue, green and red and the new font was based on Bodoni MT. Other idents featuring a weather vane with the S4C logo and a water based setting were used during the early 1990s.^{[citation needed]}

1993–2006[link]

In 1993, S4C introduced a new series of idents designed by Lambie-Nairn, which depicted inanimate objects (such as a red kite, gas pipes, and a sousaphone) as having characteristics of dragons (such as flight or breathing fire), as a reference to the red dragon on the flag of Wales. S4C's logo was also refreshed in 1995, now using a dark red Futura typeface, and a tilde representing a dragon.

Current Idents[link]

In January 2007, S4C announced that their digital channels would be refreshed with a new corporate logo and brand.^[10]

The new branding was implemented online on 17 January, with S4C's television channels adopting it the next day. The new branding is themed around connections — the "C" in the logo is separated from "S4" with a forward stroke to emphasize Wales as a distinct region, and idents produced by London-based design firm Proud Creative featured a theme of magnetism, with a large amount of a single object gathering in one place (such as shopping carts at a grocery store, balloons in a roof, buoys in a dock, the Penarth Pier at Vale of Glamorgan, and golf carts at a golf course.) Additionally, S4C2 began to be branded as "S4C Dau" (two) in its new logo. In 2007, another new set of live-action idents were introduced, featuring live rendered dynamic elements which react to the voice of the continuity announcers, an effect similar to the original design of BBC Four, but utilising live-action footage instead of 3D rendered footage.^[11]

Channels[link]

• S4C
• S4C Clirlun (high-definition)
• Cyw (programming bloc on S4C)

Controversy[link]

Leaked internal reports in March 2010 showed that "over the 20-day period from February 15 to last Saturday, March 6, as many as 196 of the 890 programmes put out by S4C were rated as having zero viewers".^[12] An S4C spokesperson responded that 90% of these programmes were aimed at children, whose viewing isn't fully measured by BARB, the organisation that compiles television ratings in the UK, as they only take into account viewers aged four years and over.^[13] The remaining 10% consisted of repeats and daytime news bulletins.

On 28 July 2010, S4C's chief executive Iona Jones left her post without explanation. Assembly members and Members of Parliament have asked for an independent investigation into the circumstances leading up to her departure. The S4C Authority has refused to comment any further on the matter and commissioned a review into how the broadcaster is governed in August 2010.^[14]

Funding and regulation[link]

S4C is financed from its advertising revenue and a fixed annual grant from the UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), receiving £94m of funding in 2007.^[15]

Additionally, some Welsh-language programming (including Newyddion and Pobol y Cwm) is produced by BBC Wales as part of the BBC's public service remit, and provided to S4C free of charge. S4C is controlled by the Welsh Fourth Channel Authority (Welsh: Awdurod Sianel Pedwar Cymru or Awdurdod S4C), an independent body unconnected to Ofcom which regulates other UK television channels such as ITV or Channel 4.

From 2013, responsibility for funding S4C will begin to transfer to the BBC, with the DCMS reducing its funding by 94% by 2015.^[16] The BBC will provide around £76m of funding to S4C by this date, resulting in a cut of around 25% to S4C's annual budget.^[17] This decision has been challenged by Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (The Welsh Language Society), which wants the proposed transfer of responsibility for funding S4C from DCMS to the BBC to be stopped.^[18]

Clic[link]

Clic is a free online video on demand service provided by S4C.^[19] Clic offers a live streaming, signed programming, a 35 day catch up service and archive programming. Clic is available across the UK but also contains a limited selection of worldwide programming. Clic's catch up service is split into seven categories: Cyw, Drama, Entertainment, Factual and Arts, Music, Sport and Stwnsh. A Clic app was release for Apple's iOS devices on 18 August 2011.^[20]

See also[link]

Related Welsh television services

• S4C Sport
• Cyw
• BBC 2W
• List of Welsh-language programmes

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website (Welsh)
• Learners' site
• Cyw children's channel
• S4C 2007 Annual Report - audience share

Listen to this article (info/dl)

This audio file was created from a revision of the "S4C" article dated 2008-06-24, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. (Audio help)

More spoken articles

Links to related articles v t e Department for Culture, Media and Sport of the United Kingdom Headquarters: 2–4 Cockspur Street, London, SW1Y 5DH Executive agencies Royal Parks Agency Non-departmental public bodies Advisory Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites Advisory Committee on National Historic Ships Advisory Committee on the Government Art Collection Advisory Council on Libraries English Marketing Advisory Board Legal Deposit Advisory Panel Public Lending Right Advisory Committee Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest Spoliation Advisory Panel Theatres Trust Treasure Valuation Committee Executive Arts Council of England Big Lottery Fund British Film Institute British Library British Museum Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment English Sports Council Football Licensing Authority Gambling Commission Geffrye Museum English Heritage Historic Royal Palaces Horniman Museum Horserace Betting Levy Board Imperial War Museum Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester Museums, Libraries and Archives Council National Gallery National Heritage Memorial Fund National Lottery Commission National Maritime Museum National Museums Liverpool National Museum of Science and Industry National Portrait Gallery Natural History Museum Olympic Delivery Authority Olympic Lottery Distributor Registrar of Public Lending Right Royal Armouries Museum Sir John Soane's Museum Sport England Tate UK Film Council UK Sport Victoria and Albert Museum VisitBritain Wallace Collection Tribunal Horserace Betting Levy Tribunal Public broadcasting authorities British Broadcasting Corporation Sianel Pedwar Cymru (S4C) (Welsh Fourth Channel Authority) Statutory corporations Channel Four Television Corporation Historic Royal Palaces Office of Communications (Ofcom) Ministers Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt Under-Secretaries of State Culture, Communications and Creative Industries: Ed Vaizey Sport and the Olympics: Hugh Robertson Tourism and Heritage: John Penrose Category v t e Television in Wales Channels and services BBC Current BBC One Wales BBC Two Wales Defunct BBC 2W ITV WWN TWW ITSWW Harlech/HTV ITV Wales Other Current Channel 4 Channel 5 S4C Defunct S4C2 Places Broadcasting House Cardiff Roath Lock Wenvoe Transmitter Category v t e Media in Cardiff Television and film production Aspect Television BBC Wales ITV Wales S4C Broadcasting House Cardiff BBC Roath Lock BAFTA Cymru Dragon International Film Studios Cube Interactive Hartswood Films Calon Cardiff Film Festival Television series Drama Doctor Who Torchwood The Sarah Jane Adventures Caerdydd Being Human Crash Merlin Sherlock Upstairs Downstairs Casualty Pobol y Cwm Comedy Gavin & Stacey Factual Hospital 24/7 Newyddion Wales Tonight CF99 Children's Superted Film Panic Button Flick Human Traffic Patagonia Skellig The Contractor Tiger Bay Press Western Mail South Wales Echo Echo Extra Y Dinesydd gair rhydd Buzz Metro Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies Media Wales Radio BBC Radio Wales BBC Radio Cymru Capital FM South Wales Nation Radio Gold Real Radio Xpress Radio Radio Cardiff Online WalesOnline CardiffOnline Pizzaman Category v t e Economy and industry of Cardiff Company and organisation headquarters 118 118 Admiral Group BBC Cymru Wales Brains Brewery Clark's Pies Cube Interactive IQE ITV Wales Julian Hodge Bank Media Wales Peacocks Peski Records Placid Casual Principality Building Society See Monkey Do Monkey S4C The Barcud Derwen Group Target Group Advanced Transport Systems Veritair WJEC Wales Social Partners Unit Welsh National Opera Company and organisation major locations Atradius Asda Stores British Airways Engineering British Gas British Telecom Deloitte Eversheds HBOS ING Direct J. Sainsbury plc Legal & General Lloyds TSB NHS Wales Tesco Stores Ltd. The AA SWALEC Zurich Financial Services Major public sector employers Cardiff and Vale University Health Board Cardiff Bus Cardiff Council Cardiff University Coleg Glan Hafren Department of Trade and Industry HM Revenue and Customs National Assembly for Wales Commission University of Glamorgan University of Wales Institute, Cardiff Welsh Assembly Government Retail Shopping (St. David's Queens Arcade Capitol Centre Howells The Hayes Castle Quarter Central Market Victorian Arcades) Retail Parks (Cardiff Bay Retail Park Capital Retail Park Culverhouse Cross) Hospitality Hotels (St David's Hotel & Spa Copthorne Marriott Hilton Radisson Blu Accor Hotels Holiday Inn) Restaurant quarters (Red Dragon Centre Eastside Mermaid Quay) Regeneration and development Cardiff Bay Cardiff International Sports Village Cardiff International Pool Cardiff Bay Development Corporation St. David's 2 Leckwith development Tourism Wales Millennium Centre St Fagans National History Museum National Museum Cardiff Castle Castell Coch Senedd Cardiff Bay Visitor Centre Techniquest Cardiff Story Major events Cardiff Big Weekend 1958 Commonwealth Games FA Cup Heineken Cup 2012 Olympics Rugby World Cup (1991 1999 2007 2015) National Eisteddfod Six Nations The Ashes Tsunami Relief Cardiff Urdd Eisteddfod Wales Rally GB Sparks in the Park (Round Table Fireworks) Michael Forever – The Tribute Concert 19th and 20th centuries Bank of Wales Cardiff Docks Coal Exchange Glamorganshire Canal South Wales coalfield Taff Vale Railway Tiger Bay v t e Media in the United Kingdom   Newspapers, magazines and other periodicals Newspapers National Berliner: The Guardian · The Observer · Broadsheet: Financial Times · The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph · The Sunday Times · Compact: i · The Independent, The Independent on Sunday · The Times · Middle-market: Daily Express, Sunday Express · Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday · Tabloid: Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror · Morning Star · The People · Daily Star, Daily Star Sunday · The Sun · Sunday Sport Regional and local Local newspapers in England · Regional newspapers in England · Newspapers in Northern Ireland · Newspapers in Scotland · Newspapers in Wales Other resources Defunct newspapers · Editors · Fleet Street · History · Journalists · Specialist newspapers · List by circulation Magazines and other periodicals Arts magazines · Business magazines · Comics · Defunct magazines · Fashion magazines · Literary magazines · Political magazines · Satirical magazines · Science and technology magazines · Women's magazines · List of magazines by circulation   Radio National stations BBC Analogue/digital: Radio 1 · Radio 2 · Radio 3 · Radio 4 · Radio 5 Live · Digital: Radio 1Xtra · Radio 4 Extra · Radio 5 Live Sports Extra · 6 Music · Asian Network · BBC National DAB (multiplex) Commercial Analogue/digital: Absolute Radio · Classic FM · Talksport · Digital: Absolute 80s · Absolute Radio 90s · Absolute Radio Extra · Amazing Radio · BFBS Radio · Digital One (multiplex) · Jazz FM · Planet Rock · Premier Christian Radio · Smooth Radio UK · UCB UK Regional and local stations BBC List of BBC Local Radio stations · List of BBC Regional Radio stations Commercial List of community radio stations · List of local commercial radio stations · List of semi-national analogue and digital stations Other stations List of hospital radio stations · Pirate radio · Restricted Service Licence (List of RSL stations) · List of satellite radio stations · List of student and schools radio Other Broadcasting companies · Broadcasting House · FM broadcasting · MediaCityUK · People · Programmes · Radio Academy · Radio Independents Group · RAJAR · Sony Radio Academy Awards · Most-listened-to programs   Television Principal channels BBC Analogue/digital: BBC One · BBC Two · Digital: BBC Three · BBC Four · BBC News · BBC Parliament · CBBC · CBeebies · BBC Alba · HD: BBC HD BSkyB Digital: Challenge · Pick TV · Sky1 · Sky2 · Sky 3D · Sky Arts · Sky Atlantic · Sky Betting and Gaming · Sky Living · Sky Livingit · Sky Movies · Sky Movies Box Office · Sky News · Sky Sports · Sky Sports F1 · Sky Sports News Channel Four Analogue/digital: Channel 4 · Digital: E4 · Film4 · More4 · 4seven · S4C Channel 5 Analogue/digital: Channel 5 · Digital: 5* · 5USA ITV Network Analogue/digital: ITV · Digital: ITV2 · ITV3 · ITV4 · CITV UKTV Digital: Alibi · Blighty · Dave · Eden · Gold · Good Food · Home · Really · Watch · Yesterday Services and platforms 4oD (Film4oD) · Analogue (Analogue terrestrial) · BBC iPlayer · blinkbox · BT Vision · Cable · Demand 5 · Digital (Digital terrestrial · List of channels) · Freesat (Freesat+ · List of channels) · Freeview (Freeview+) · Freewire (List of channels) · High-definition (List of channels) · ITV (ITV Player · STV Player) · Real Digital · Restricted Service Licence · Satellite (List of channels) · Sky (Freesat from Sky · Sky Anytime · Sky Anytime+ · Sky+ · Sky+ HD · List of channels) · Smallworld Cable (List of channels) · TalkTalk TV (List of channels) · Top Up TV · TVCatchup (List of channels) · Virgin Media (FilmFlex · TiVo · V+ · List of channels) · WightCable · YouView · Zattoo (List of channels) Studios BBC Pacific Quay · BBC Television Centre · Broadcasting House · Broadcasting House (Cardiff) · The Fountain Studios · The Leeds Studios · MediaCityUK · Granada Studios · Roath Lock · Teddington Studios Other Awards · Defunct channels · Edinburgh International Television Festival · History (List of years) · List of channels · Production companies · Programmes · Student television · Viewing statistics (Most-watched broadcasts)   Companies and organisations Companies Major companies Aegis Group · Archant · BBC · Bloomsbury Publishing · British Sky Broadcasting · BT Group · Channel Four · Chrysalis Group · Daily Mail and General Trust · Economist Group · EMAP · EMI Group · Endemol UK · Global Radio · Guardian Media Group · Haymarket Group · Informa · IPC Media · ITN · ITV · Johnston Press · Mecom Group · News International · Newsquest · Northern & Shell · Pearson · Press Holdings · Reed Elsevier · Reuters · STV Group · Syco · TalkTalk Group · Trinity Mirror · UBM · UTV Media · Virgin Media Other resources Broadcasting companies · Defunct media companies · Publishing companies (List of largest UK book publishers) · Record labels Government and regulatory bodies Advertising Standards Authority · BBC Trust · British Board of Film Classification · British Film Institute · Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee · Department for Culture, Media and Sport · Ofcom · Press Complaints Commission · UK Film Council · Welsh Fourth Channel Authority Industry and trades bodies British Academy of Film and Television Arts · British Phonographic Industry · Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union · Clearcast · Digital TV Group · Digital UK · Equity · Federation Against Copyright Theft · National Union of Journalists · The Publishers Association · Royal Television Society · United Kingdom Independent Broadcasting Other BBC Academy · National Film and Television School · National Media Museum   Regional and student media Regional media Media in England (Media in Birmingham · Media in London · Media in Manchester) · Media in Northern Ireland · Media in Scotland (Media in Aberdeen · Media in Dundee · Media in Glasgow) · Media in Wales (Media in Cardiff) Student media Student television Category ·  Commons

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (September 2010)

Gruff Rhys
Rhys, on stage with the band Mogwai in Scotland in 2001
Background information
Born	(1970-07-18) 18 July 1970 (age 41) Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Wales
Origin	Bethesda, Wales
Occupations	musician, songwriter, producer.
Instruments	guitar, vocals, keyboard, saz, drums,
Years active	1988–present
Labels	Rough Trade, Team Love
Associated acts	Super Furry Animals Ffa Coffi Pawb Neon Neon Mogwai Boom Bip Gorillaz Manic Street Preachers
Website	www.gruffrhys.com

Gruffydd Maredudd Bowen Rhys (Welsh pronunciation: [ˈɡrɨ̞fɨ̞ð maˈrɛdɨ̞ð ˈbowɛn ˈr̥ɨːs]; born 18 July 1970 in Haverfordwest)^[1] is a Welsh musician, performing solo and with several bands, including Super Furry Animals who obtained mainstream success in the 1990s. He also most recently formed the electro-pop outfit Neon Neon with Boom Bip. Their album Stainless Style was nominated for the 2008 Nationwide Mercury Prize. He won the 2011 Welsh Music Prize for his album Hotel Shampoo.

He was educated at Ysgol Dyffryn Ogwen, Bethesda, Gwynedd, North Wales and was awarded a degree in art at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Musical career[link]

Ffa Coffi Pawb[link]

After playing drums for the band Emily, Gruff Rhys found fame in Wales as the front man of Ffa Coffi Pawb. Translated, the name means 'everyone's coffee beans', though if said quickly in Welsh, it can sound like 'fuck off everyone' in English and Welsh combined.
On signing to Ankstmusik, Ffa Coffi Pawb became one of the leading bands on the Welsh music scene, and released three albums - Clymhalio, Dalec Peilon and Hei Vidal!'.

Rhys plays the guitar in an unusual style. Although he is right-handed, he learnt to play left-handed on his brother's left-handed guitar. Once his brother left home, however, Rhys only had access to a right-handed guitar. As he had already learnt to play left-handed, and rather than invert the nut and re-string it, he taught himself to play the right-handed guitar upside down so the bass strings are on the bottom. Today, Rhys still plays left-handed on an upside down right-handed guitar.^[2]

Super Furry Animals[link]

When Ffa Coffi Pawb disbanded in 1993, Rhys and drummer Dafydd Ieuan, of Rhoscefnhir, Anglesey, who had played for Catatonia, Anhrefn, Hanner Pei and many other Welsh language bands, formed the basis of the Super Furry Animals. They soon settled on a line-up consisting of Rhys on vocals and guitar, Ieuan on drums, his brother Cian Ciaran (formerly of WWZZ) on keyboards, Huw Bunford (formerly of U-Thant) on guitar and Guto Pryce on bass. This line-up has remained constant to the present day, although the role of each member has become more flexible, particularly in the studio.

In 1995, following a couple of largely Welsh-language EPs on the Ankst label, they signed to Creation Records. Apparently, when offering them the deal after a gig, Alan McGee, head of Creation, asked that they sing more songs in English. Rhys pointed out that all the songs that night had been in English. The Super Furries went on to release of their critically acclaimed first album, Fuzzy Logic, in 1996 - the first time Rhys had recorded in English. He later observed that his singing sounded like a random collection of accents - but it was nevertheless very successful.

Follow-up albums included Radiator in 1997, Guerrilla in 1999 and Mwng in 2000. They also became particularly famous for their 40-foot inflatable bears and the SFA blue tank, which toured summer festivals playing techno music at high volume. The Super Furries made a further mark on history in July 2001, when they released their first album for the Sony label, Rings Around the World, on CD and DVD simultaneously: they repeated this for 2003's Phantom Power. Unfortunately 2005's Love Kraft performed poorly commercially and SFA agreed to leave Sony. They are presently signed to Rough Trade and released Hey Venus! in 2007 in the UK. In 2009 they released their latest record to date, entitled "Dark Days/Light Years".

Solo[link]

On 24 January 2005, Gruff Rhys released his first solo album, Yr Atal Genhedlaeth on the Placid Casual label. This was a loose, sketchy, all-Welsh-language album, with most of the instruments played by Rhys. A tour of Wales and several festival appearances followed. After SFA signed to Rough Trade, the new label agreed to take on his solo work as well and on 8 January 2007 they released Candylion, a batch of acoustic pop songs in English, Spanish and Welsh, which Rhys wrote whilst touring Love Kraft but which didn't fit with the direction of the new SFA album. A third solo album by Rhys, Hotel Shampoo was released on 14 February 2011. On the 4 March 2011, it was announced that Gruff will be playing at Glastonbury 2011.

Neon Neon[link]

In 2007 Rhys launched a new electro-pop collaborative project with Boom Bip under the collective moniker Neon Neon.^[3] Their album, titled Stainless Style, is a loose concept album based on the tumultuous life of De Lorean Motor Company founder John De Lorean,^[4] and was released on 18 March 2008 via Lex Records. The album includes a number of high-profile guest appearances from Fab Moretti of The Strokes, Har Mar Superstar, Yo Majesty, Spank Rock, Cate Le Bon and The Magic Numbers. The first single, "Raquel", was released on 26 November 2007.^[5] The follow-up single "I Lust U", featured fellow Welsh artist Cate Le Bon on vocals. The album was nominated for the 2008 Mercury Prize.

Collaborations with other artists[link]

Rhys has occasionally collaborated with other artists, providing vocals for the track "Dial: Revenge" on the Mogwai album Rock Action as well as guesting on the songs "Fear of Guitars" (from the album Machine Says Yes by FC Kahuna) and "Do's and Don'ts" (by Boom Bip) as well as "Just War" from Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse's album Dark Night of the Soul. He has also featured on the myspace remix track "I'm Not Lying" by Goldie Lookin' Chain. He features on the track "Cream Dream" from the 2009 Simian Mobile Disco album Temporary Pleasure. He also eats carrots on the Misty's Big Adventure album Television's People, continuing the vegetable relay started by Brian Wilson on Smile.^[6] Miles Kane has also called for him to produce the next album by his band the Rascals. Rhys has also recently collaborated with influential hip-hop group De La Soul on a new Gorillaz track titled "Superfast Jellyfish". The track is on the third Gorillaz studio album, Plastic Beach.

In 2010 he released an album with Brazilian artist Tony da Gatorra on Turnstile Music. The album featured both compositions by Tony da Gatorra, who is relatively unknown in his native Brazil, and Gruff Rhys.^[7]

On December 17, 2011, Rhys joined the Manic Street Preachers on stage during the band's 38 song 'A Night of National Treasures' one-off live event at the The O2 Arena (London) to provide the lead vocals for the song Let Robeson Sing. Introducing Rhys to the stage, lead singer James Dean Bradfield explained that Rhys had been set to perform the song at the bands 2001 performance in Havana, Cuba but that circimstances had prevented this from happening.

Documentary Separado[link]

In 2010 Gruff's film 'Separado' premiered. It is a documentary about Gruff's trip to Patagonia to meet members of his family whose ancestors had emigrated in Victorian times.

Computer Game Music[link]

In 2011 Rhys composed the music for the successful iOS game Whale Trail^[8] which has been an iTunes game of the week.^[9]

Personal life[link]

Rhys was born 18 July 1970 in Haverfordwest, Wales.^[1] His father was Ioan Bowen Rees (13 January 1929 – 4 May 1999), a "poet, essayist, polemicist, mountaineer, internationalist ... and a White Robe Druid of the Gorsedd of Bards."^[10] Ioan Bowen Rees "campaigned all his life for Welsh rights, language and culture" although he did not believe in the narrow view of nationalism, glorifying one country over another, rather that the "battle for Wales is the battle for all small nations, all small communities, all individuals in the age of genocide."^[10][11] Rhys's mother shared his father's love of writing and was a poet.^[11] Gruff supports Bangor City F.C. of the League of Wales.^[12]

Discography[link]

Ffa Coffi Pawb[link]

Super Furry Animals[link]

Gruff Rhys[link]

Albums[link]

Singles and Extended plays[link]

Neon Neon[link]

Tony da Gatorra vs Gruff Rhys[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Super Furry Animals
• Placid Casual
• Candylion MySpace
• Gruff Rhys biography from BBC Wales
• SFA biography from BBC Wales

Reviews

• Short story review of Candylion at The Wheel's Still In Spin