Books Council of Wales to fund two Welsh-language digital news services from April 2022

Wales will have more dedicated Welsh-language digital news channels from April 2022 as the Books Council of Wales announces the recipients of the digital news service funding for the next 4 years.

Golwg 360 and Corgi Cymru will each receive annual funding of £100,000 under the new agreement, which will run from April 2022 until March 2026.

The grants were awarded following an open tender process, which invites applications for the delivery of a dedicated Welsh-language digital news service. The grant is administered by the Books Council of Wales on behalf of Welsh Government, with an independent panel awarding the funding.

Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Books Council, said: “The purpose of the grant is to enable Welsh-language news provision that makes a significant contribution to the quality and range of journalism in Wales, with the ultimate aim of increasing the number of people, especially young people, who engage with news through the medium of Welsh.

“Both companies presented exciting and distinct proposals to the independent grants panel about how they would deliver high-quality news services that will appeal to readers across Wales, with stories and content that are relevant, accessible and have a strong Welsh voice.

“We’re very pleased that we have been able to award grant funding to both companies and provide more choice than ever for people to access their daily news in Welsh through a variety of digital platforms.”

Owain Schiavone, Interim Chief Executive of Golwg Cyf, said:  “Golwg is glad to have the opportunity to continue to offer a digital Welsh-language news service through golwg360.cymru. We have exciting plans for how to move the service in a slightly different direction, as we respond to what we have learnt about the audience since launching golwg360 in 2009, as well as the ways in which the world of news has evolved since then. We are confident in the ability of our experienced team to continue to provide the highest-quality service through the medium of Welsh in the years to come.”

Huw Marshall, Publisher of Corgi Cymru, said:  “We’re grateful to the Books Council of Wales who have embraced our vision for a new Welsh-language digital news service that will target a new generation of Welsh speakers in post-industrial Welsh communities, as well as those living in more traditional Welsh-language communities.

“The investment from the Books Council of Wales will, hopefully, allow us to develop a commercially viable service in the Welsh language and add plurality to the Welsh media landscape.”

You can follow news from Golwg 360 at Golwg360 – Newyddion, materion cyfoes, chwaraeon a chelfyddau – y diweddara yn ddi-dor yn y Gymraeg.

Corgi.Cymru will launch on 25 April 2022. You can follow news from Corgi at:
www.corgi.cymru
Facebook.com/corgicymru
Instagram.com/corgicymru
https://www.tiktok.com/@corgicymru

English-language shortlist revealed for Wales’ oldest children’s book award – Tir na n-Og 2022

Gripping wartime drama… a retelling of ancient legends… a reflective tale of the healing power of nature, and a colourful cast of characters from Welsh history. The Books Council of Wales will reveal the English-language shortlist for this year’s Tir na n-Og Awards on the Radio Wales Arts Show on Friday, 11 March at 18:30pm. This year’s awards are an eclectic mix of the very best of stories from Wales and stories of Wales published in 2021.

The Tir na n-Og Awards are the oldest and most popular awards for children’s literature in Wales and are held every year by the Books Council of Wales, sponsored by CILIP Cymru Wales. They celebrate the talents of authors and illustrators who either create original works in Welsh, or who write about authentically Welsh themes or backgrounds through the medium of English. 

Some of Wales’ leading authors and illustrators have won the award in previous years, including Manon Steffan Ros, Jac Jones and Catherine Fisher. The aim is to celebrate reading for pleasure and to inspire reading choices for young readers. Through the awards, children and young people can enjoy and be inspired by stories and writing from or about Wales.

The shortlist for the best English-language book with an authentic Welsh dimension is:

Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths and Legends by Claire Fayers (Scholastic, 2021)
‘A beautiful book packed full of wonderful, intriguing and exciting stories of Welsh fairy tales, myths and legends, retold with great warmth and full of humour.’

10 Stories from Welsh History that everyone should know by Ifan Morgan Jones (Illustrations by Telor Gwyn) (Dragon Press, 2021)
‘A wonderful introduction to 10 key figures and events in the history of our country, with information presented in a very accessible and readable style, with eye-catching illustrations.’

Swan Song by Gill Lewis (Barrington Stoke Ltd, 2021)
‘A beautiful and emotive book about the healing power of nature that, despite its lyrical and elegant gentleness, has a powerful message of hope and recovery.’

The Valley of Lost Secrets by Lesley Parr (Bloomsbury Publishing Ltd, 2021)
‘A gripping wartime drama set in the south Wales valleys, full of mystery and intrigue, but also kindness and friendship.’

Independent panels of judges select the shortlists and decide on the winners for the Welsh and English awards each year. This year’s judges on the English Panel – Alex Ball (Chair), Jannat Ahmed, Simon Fisher and Lydia Bundy – bring with them a wealth of experience and passion for children’s books.

• More about the Tir na n-Og 2022 judges

The Chair of the English-language judging panel, Alexandra Ball, said: “It has been a pleasure to be part of the Tir na n-Og judging process again this year. As a librarian, it has been wonderful to discover authors and titles with such a variety of content with authentic Welsh dimensions, many in beautiful settings. I have recommended so many of these books to friends, family and young readers I meet in the library. It is always joyful to share wonderful titles with a new audience and share the opportunity to see our culture, history and country reflected between the covers of a good read.”

Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Books Council of Wales, said: “Again this year, we have a shortlist of such a high standard – and I am very glad that I do not have to choose a winner from this wonderful selection! Many congratulations to everyone involved in creating these shortlisted titles. It is telling that this year four books were shortlisted instead of the usual three – a testament to the number of fantastic books in this year’s prize.”

The shortlisted titles for the Welsh-language Tir na n-Og Awards 2022 were announced on the Heno programme on S4C on Thursday, 10 March.

The shortlisted titles in the Welsh-langauge primary age category are Gwil Garw a’r Carchar Crisial (Gwil Garw and the Crystal Prison) by Huw Aaron (Llyfrau Broga), Sara Mai a Lleidr y Neidr (Sara Mai and the Snake Thief) by Casia Wiliam (Y Lolfa), and Gwag y Nos (Empty at Night) by Sioned Wyn Roberts (Atebol).

The books shortlisted in the Welsh-language secondary age category are Hanes yn y Tir (History Grounded) by Elin Jones (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch), Y Pump (The Five), ed. Elgan Rhys (Y Lolfa), and Fi ac Aaron Ramsey (Me and Aaron Ramsey) by Manon Steffan Ros (Y Lolfa).

The winners of the Welsh-language categories will be announced at the Urdd Eisteddfod in Denbighshire on Thursday, 2 June, while the winning English-language title will be revealed on the Radio Wales Arts Show on Friday, 20 May.

Further details about the awards and the shortlisted titles can be seen on the Books Council’s website.

Welsh-language shortlist revealed for Wales’ oldest children’s book award – the Tir na n-Og Awards 2022

Exciting mysteries and comic book capers… a fresh look at the history and people of Wales… and powerful and empowering stories of growing up in Wales today. The Books Council of Wales will reveal the Welsh-language shortlists for this year’s Tir na n-Og Awards on S4C’s progamme, Heno, on Thursday, 10 March. This year’s awards are an eclectic mix of the very best of stories from Wales and stories of Wales published in 2021.

The Tir na n-Og Awards are the oldest and most popular awards for children’s literature in Wales and are held every year by the Books Council of Wales, sponsored by CILIP Cymru Wales. They celebrate the talents of authors and illustrators who either create original works in Welsh, or who write about authentically Welsh themes or backgrounds through the medium of English.

Some of Wales’ leading authors and illustrators have won the Award in previous years, including Manon Steffan Ros, Jac Jones, Caryl Lewis and Gareth F. Williams. The aim is to celebrate reading for pleasure and to inspire reading choices for young readers. Through the Awards, children and young people can enjoy and be inspired by stories and writing from or about Wales.

Primary Age Shortlist

Gwil Garw a’r Carchar Crisial, Huw Aaron, Broga
A book full of humour, imaginative events, special monsters, and a main character who can somehow survive all misery and disorder.

Sara Mai a Lleidr y Neidr, Casia Wiliam, Y Lolfa
A story that grips the reader from the outset; the writing is skilful, well proportioned and has an easy humour.

Gwag y Nos, Sioned Wyn Roberts, Atebol
An action-packed story that captivates the reader from the first few paragraphs, and captures the alien world of the workhouse subtly and compellingly.

Secondary Age Shortlist

Hanes yn y Tir, Elin Jones, Gwasg Carreg Gwalch
A beautiful book that, in its simplicity of presentation and language, makes complex history accessible to the reader.

Y Pump, ed. Elgan Rhys, Y Lolfa
A collection of challenging and experimental stories that inverweave into one complete composition.

Fi ac Aaron Ramsey, Manon Steffan Ros, Y Lolfa
A contemporary and gripping novel that presents real characters of flesh and blood that can resonate with today’s young readers.

Independent panels of judges select the shortlists and decide on the winners for the Welsh and English awards each year. This year’s judges on the Welsh language panel were Alun Horan (Chair), Morgan Dafydd, Sara Yassine and Ceri Griffith, who bring with them a wealth of experience and passion for children’s books. 

• More about the Tir na n-Og 2022 Judges

The Chair of the Welsh-language Panel, Alun Horan, said: “It was a pleasure and a privilege to chair the Welsh-language Panel this year with the output being a clear indication that the industry is very healthy. It was nice to see a number of new names and the standard of writing and the appearance of the shortlisted titles was excellent. Amongst the titles, there were several highly original books, taking children and young people’s books in Welsh to exciting new areas, with the potential of attracting reluctant and harder-to-reach readers.”

Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Books Council of Wales, said: “Huge congratulations to everyone who has been involved in creating the excellent books on this year’s shortlists. The aim of these awards is to celebrate the best of original Welsh writing and it’s a real pleasure to see such innovative and exciting books being recognised. I’m very glad that I don’t have to choose the winners from this wonderful selection!”

The shortlist for the best English-language book with an authentic Welsh dimension (age 4–18) will be announced at 18:30 on Friday, 11 March on the Radio Wales Arts Show.

The winning titles in each category will be announced on 20 May on the Radio Wales Arts Show (English-language) and on 2 June at the Urdd Eisteddfod in Denbighshire (Welsh-language).