Join us for part three of our Review of the Year for 2021. In part three we’ll be looking at news in Brecon and Radnorshire, as well as some nationally, for months July to September.

July

In July, Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall paid a visit to Powys as part of their annual tour of Wales.

The Prince of Wales dropped in to Llandrindod Wells to visit high-tech hydrogen car company Riversimple.

Meanwhile, the Duchess of Cornwall spent an afternoon at Hay-on-Wye, visiting Booth’s bookshop, Booth’s Cinema Room, the Courtyard, and Shepherd’s Ice Cream Parlour.

Also this month, a former Gwernyfed High School student stopped a screenplay award at a prestigious international film festival.

James Howells, who is originality from Llangors, won the award at the Tony Cox Screenplay Competition at the Nantucket Film Festival 2021.

James’ winning script, entitles Second Crossing, took the top honours in the Best Episodical Screenplay category.

Crickhowell High School also took part in a student versus teacher boat race this month, to celebrate the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival.

The teachers were the victorious team, after a competitive by good-natured race, in a wet and wild paddle along the canal at Llangattock.

Also in July, during a warm spell of weather, the B&R reported on a story about a dramatic River Wye rescue.

Darren Bailie, a music producer and DJ from Three Cocks, was visiting the beach at Glasbury when he noticed a family get into trouble in the water. After rescuing them from the water, Mr Bailie called for lifesaving equipment to be installed at the beauty a leisure spot, which is popular with both tourists and locals.

Staff in an Old Radnor pub were delighted to be recognised as the best pub in Powys in 2021.

The Harp Inn was crowned the best pub in the county by the National Pub and and Bar Awards.

Chef Josh Smith said: It was great - after being closed for 16 months, it was a nice little booster for us as we’ve opened our doors again. Everyone is really happy about it!”

Organisers thanked everyone who tuned into the Virtual Royal Welsh Show 2021 in July.

It was the second successive year Mid Wales’ biggest event was held online as opposed to the reen grass of the Llanelwedd showground, just outside Builth Wells.

Celebrations were in order as churchwarden Ken Rees stepped down Llandefalle Church, after more than 50 years of dedicated service. A celebration was held at the church, where Ken’s favourite hymns were sung and he was presented with a special watercolour painted and donated by Peta Mellors.

Making the headlines across the UK in July was England and its loss to Italy in Eufa Championship final at Wembley Stadium. The game on July 21, which went to penalties where England lost 2-3 following a 1-1 draw, had an estimated peak TV audience of almost 31 million. Later in the month, on July 21, Liverpool was stripped of its UNESCO World Heritage status after developments along the city’s waterfront

August

In August, celebrations were enjoyed at Brecon Cathedral when some of the area’s most dedicatee volunteers, workers and charity fundraisers received royal recognition for their achievements. British Empire Medals (BEM) were awarded to Brian and Lorna Keylock, Margaret Sims and Catharine Sinnadurai. Brecon Mountain Rescue Team received the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service - the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK. The Lord-Lietenant of Powys Mrs Tia Jones made the presentations on a fine day on the cathedral grounds.

Also In August, the B&R celebrated with students, parents and teachers across Powys, as pupils returned another excellent set of exam results. Both GCSE and A-level student gained superb results across the board, despite another challenging and disrupted year of education.

In August, tributes were paid to a a kind and hardworking former mayor who passed away. Rosemary Evans, known for her kindness and willingness to help the community, passed away on August 11. Rose’s daughter, Mary, said: “As a family, she taught me to be a good person, how to work hard, how to get on with others and to help, and how to put something back into our community.” Rose served as mayor of Brecon three times - in 1980, 2007 and 2016. She made local history in 1980 the she top up office as the first woman to hold the title of Brecon Mayor since Gwenllian Morgan - the first female mayor in the whole of Wales as well as Brecon.

August saw the return of the Green Man Festival to the Brecon Beacons. Wales’ largest music festival made a joyous return the the Glanusk Estate, near Crickhowell, for the 15th time - after it was uncertain whether it would go ahead, right up until four weeks beforehand. The 2021 event was officially sold out and many of the performers said they felt emotional to be playing their first gig in 18 months or more. The audience members also said they felt lucky to be watching live music in person once again.

One of the more quirky stories was reported by the B&R in August too, when a Brecon grandmother described her horror after she found a snake in her kitchen.

Lorraine Jones came across the corn snake after going to get water from the kitchen tap. The snake was collected by its rightful owners who lives nearby, after going missing around four weeks previously.

Lorraine said: “It was not something I expected to find on a Sunday evening!”

Libanus was bathed in August Bank Holiday sunshine as the village hosted its agricultural show. The Libanus Show, which took pale on August 28, saw a fantastic turn out of produce and livestock. A huge effort has been made by the society to make sure the show was ready and safe for exhibitors and visitors. This effort was repaid by all the competitors, who turned out a fabulous array of flowers, cakes, artwork, and sheep - just to name a few.

The UK was left in a state of grief and shock in August after a Plymouth shooting made headlines on August 12. Maxine Davison, Stephen Washington, Kate Shepherd and father and daughter Lee and Sophie Martyn were killed by the gunman in his 12-minute attack before he turned the gun on himself. The world watched Afghanistan in August as Taliban forces took control of the capital city Kabul during a military offensive against the Afghan worry creating a mass effort to evacuate various people, including UK nationals and those who had helped UK forces.

September

In September, tributes were paid to rugby club stalwart Andrew ‘Gonzo’ Williams who passed away in August.

Former player and committee member for Brecon RFC, Andrew was a staunch supported of the club during his lifetime, and gave up so much of his time to help wherever he could.

The Old Railway Line Garden Centre proved the previous eight years were no fluke, when they scooped a prestigious award for the ninth successive year. The team were delighted to announce that they were awarded ‘Best Garden Centre in Wales and West’ at the Garden Centre Association Awards.

Katie Eckley, director of operations, said: “All the staff have been amazing through all of the challenges we’ve faced over the past eighteen months.

“Their hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed and it’s incredible to be recognised for this, once again.”

Also in September, The B&R reported on a well-known grandfather, who was to walk on Pen y Fan 60 times in 45 days.

Gurka veteran Mahadev Thapa raised money for Wales Air Ambulance Charity, as well as for Sunrise Primary School in Yanchock - his hometown in Nepal.

Nine-year-old Ryley Reed from Llangors made the front page in September, after showing his determination to tackle a 40-mile challenge as part of his ongoing storks rehabilitation.

Ryley suffered a stroke in January 2021, causing right-side weakness and speech difficulties. Ryley has been completing the challenge to bravely raising awareness of strokes among children, while also fundraising over £3,000 which will go towards playpark equipment in the village.

More fundraising efforts were celebrated this month when a doctor from Brecon plummeted 12,000 feet on his birthday to help save your lives.

GP Mark Henegan took part in the skydive at Swansea Airport on his 63rd birthday on September 11 to fundraise for PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide. Mark raised over £4,500 for the national charity.

September also saw the month when Britain’s most inured Afghan war veteran conquered Pen y Fan to mark the 15th anniversary of his survival.

Former British paratrooper Ben Parkinson was told he wouldn’t survive 15 years ago when he became the veteran who is thought to be the most seriously injured solider to survive the conflict, which lasted more than 20 years.

The 37-year-ld Pilgrim Bandits Patron, lost both his legs and suffered brain damage, as well as a broken and pelvis while serving in Afghanistan in 2006.

He was joined on the Pen y Fan trek by John Charr, who suffers from Motor Neurone Disease and has lost use of his arms, and police officer Laurence East, who has stage four cancer.

On September 6, the UK Government announced a plan to increase the limit for human sperm, egg and embryo for cryopreservation from 10 to 55 years.

There was some good news on September 11 as British tennis player Emma Radcanu became the first qualifier in history to win a Grand Slam at the US open winning the tournament without losing a set.

Also in the news across the UK was the Consumer Price Index jump from two to 3.2% on September 15 - its biggest increase since 1997. The headlines saw petrol panic buying later in September as the fuel supply crisis took hold, with ministers suspending competition laws on September 26 to enable fuel suppliers to talk to one another and priorities locations most in need.

For Part 3 of our 2021 Review of the Year looking at April to June, visit our website again tomorrow at 5pm.