1. Get talking. Get tonguing.
Brace yourselves for Carys Eleri’s latest one woman show, Tonguing. We’ve teamed up with the creative powerhouse to bring her genre-traversing, new performance to Wales Millennium Centre this spring. Tonguing explores connection and communication through Carys’ insightful brand of comedy, hardline scientific research and an eclectic collection of songs from electronica to medieval flutes.
The twice BAFTA Cymru nominated actress and presenter is a regular performer in Charlotte Church’s Pop Dungeon and picked up a Best Cabaret award at the Adelaide Fringe Festival for her show Lovecraft (Not the Sex Shop in Cardiff), which also ran at Edinburgh Fringe and aired as a BBC Radio 4 special. Tickets are £15 and available here.
2. Closing the gap in cancer care
Two years ago, Victoria Reitze was planning her own funeral. Diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer, which had spread to her ovaries, liver and peritoneum, she was told palliative chemotherapy might extend her life by a year. But two-year funding for a new type of surgery in Wales – which until that point was only available elsewhere in the UK – means she is now cancer-free. We worked closely with BBC News to share her story on behalf of our client, Moondance Cancer Initiative, which has funded the establishment of the All-Wales Colorectal Peritoneal Metastasis Service to help patients like Victoria receive treatment that is easily accessible elsewhere in the UK. Now, Moondance is calling on the NHS in Wales to fund the service permanently. Read more on BBC News.
3. The £130m Investment Fund for Wales hits its stride
Lately we’ve been sharing a lot of stories about the British Business Bank’s Investment Fund for Wales funding SMEs of all shapes and sizes from right across Wales. The fund, which launched in late November 2023, recently hit its £10m lending milestone and the positive momentum is certainly making an impact on the Welsh SME landscape. This week alone we published stories about Blackwood nursery, Greenfields, and west Wales based play centre group, Sgiliau, who both received sizeable investments from BCRS Business Loans, who are one of the fund managers for the Investment Fund for Wales. Coverage has appeared in Business News Wales, Insider and News from Wales, among other titles. And there are many more funding stories in the pipeline.
4. Wales’ housing market poised to recover
Wales’ housing market is showing signs of stability according to the new Principality Building Society Q4 House Price Index. The report shows that the average house price in Wales edged up to £233,200 in Q4, holding steady compared to the start of the year. Transaction levels hit a three-year high, showing strong buyer demand. Regionally, Carmarthenshire (+8%) and Isle of Anglesey (+7.8%) saw price hikes, while Merthyr Tydfil saw a 17.9% drop in Q4. Overall, fewer areas are seeing price declines than a year ago, offering greater stability for buyers and sellers. We arranged an exclusive radio and TV package with the BBC and received extensive regional, national, and trade coverage.
5. Go with Chlo takes on Gower
To help showcase all that Swansea Bay has to offer, we sent content creator and outdoor enthusiast Chloe (Go With Chlo) on a trip to Swansea, Mumbles and the Gower Peninsula for some February fun. From woodland walks through Penllergare Valley Woods to surfing with Savage Adventures, Chloe and her friend had a jam-packed few days. It wasn’t all go-go-go though as they had plenty of rest and relaxation time at the King Arthur Hotel where they stayed for two nights. We’ve recently been working on quite a few exciting trip collaborations which will all be shared on @visitswanseabay over the next few weeks, so if you’re looking for spring/summer inspo, give it a follow.
