The Hours Bookshop at Brecon Cathedral has announced it will close following Brecon Women’s Festival next month.

The shop has been a cultural hub for the town for 16 years.

Owners Leigh Hendra and Nicola Bickerton shared the news on social media. They said: “After a great deal of soul-searching we have decided our journey as 'The Hours' has come to an end. It has been an incredible 16 years - not always easy - but when the debilitating stress and worry of ever escalating costs outside your control eclipse the pure and simple joy of running your own business and serving your community - it is time to stop.

“So this year's Brecon Women's Festival will be a swansong of sorts - we will open the bookshop only for our BWF events. Please do join us for the very many brilliant events taking place across town throughout March; we are particularly looking forward to hosting the first ever female Archbishop of Wales Cherry Vann on March 22nd and to having lovely Larry Lamb back in the fold amongst so many other amazing writers and speakers.

“We'd like to thank all our amazing, hardworking staff old and new, family, friends, customers, collaborators and partners for all their support over the years. New adventures await we hope, but for now it's adieu, or rather, So long...”

Messages of support have flooded in for the bookshop with one Hours regular writing a poem. Alexis Dimyan said: “Having heard the news that ‘The Hours Cafe & Bookshop’ will soon be no more, and reflecting on all the inimitable wonderment and incredible brilliance they have given to the community of Brecon and to everyone who has been blessed to visit their emporium of delights down the years, please find herewith a small poetical tribute.”

Alexis’ poem reads: "Hip hip hooray" to the mighty Hours, Blessed be for all their charming powers. For sixteen years, breathing hope into Brecon. A beacon, a sanctuary, to nurture and to beckon. Now the time has come for this chapter to end - Leigh & Nicky, timeless stars, simply the best. Diolch yn fawr for the heavenly blend!

Brecon Women’s Festival gets underway with Brecon Film Society showing a screening of Blue Road – a final testimony in her own words from the late great controversial Irish novelist Edna O'Brien. The screening begins at 7.30pm on Monday, 2 March.

Brecon Cathedral will mark Brecon Women’s Festival with a month of special Organ Post- ludes. Each Sunday Eucharist will feature music composed by women.

Brecon's Reclaim The Night Walk to raise awareness of the need for women to feel safe on the streets at night will also take place in March. The walk is now a firm and popular fixture during Women's Festival month as the town unite to highlight the very real issues women still deal with today.

Also part of the festival will be journalling workshops, talks by authors such as Larry Lamb, an outdoor dip by the promenade led by Brecon Bluetits, and more.