1972 in Wales

This article is about the particular significance of the year 1972 to Wales and its people.

← 1971 1970 1969 1968 1967 1972 in Wales → 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977
Centuries:	18th 19th 20th 21st
Decades:	1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
See also:	List of years in Wales Timeline of Welsh history 1972 in The United Kingdom Scotland Elsewhere

Incumbents

For United Kingdom incumbents, see 1972 in the United Kingdom § Incumbents.

• Secretary of State for Wales – Peter Thomas^[1]
• Archbishop of Wales – Gwilym Williams, Bishop of Bangor^[2]
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales
  • Tilsli (outgoing)^[3]
  • Brinli (incoming)^[4]

Events

• 1 January – Welsh rugby captain John Dawes is made an OBE in the New Year Honours List.^[5]
• 30 January – Opening to rail traffic of the new Britannia Bridge linking Anglesey with mainland Wales (following the destruction of the previous bridge by a fire).^[6]
• March/April – The "Miners' Tramway" underground at Llechwedd Slate Caverns, Blaenau Ffestiniog, opens to the public.
• 3 May – Leslie Harvey, guitarist of Stone the Crows, is fatally electrocuted while performing at Swansea's Top Rank Suite.
• 13 September – Hypermarkets make their debut in the United Kingdom some twenty years after debuting in France, when French retail giant Carrefour opens a hypermarket in Caerphilly.^[7]
• 26 October – Passage of the Local Government Act 1972, which will reorganise and simplify local government in Wales and Monmouthshire from 1974.
• 11 December – Rhoose Airport is opened by The Duke of Edinburgh.^[8]
• date unknown
  • Sir Morien Morgan becomes Master of Downing College, Cambridge.
  • The island of Flat Holm is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
  • The communities of Machynys and Bwlch y Gwynt cease to exist, following the closedown of local industry; the residents are moved into Llanelli.^[9]
  • Llyn Brianne regulating reservoir on the River Towy is completed; its dam is the UK's tallest, standing at a height of 300 ft (91 m).^[10]

Arts and literature

• Writer James Morris becomes Jan Morris.

Awards

• National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in Haverfordwest)
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair – Dafydd Owen, "Preselau"^[11]
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown – Dafydd Rowlands, "Dadeni"^[12]
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal – Dafydd Rowlands, "Ysgrifau yr Hanner Bardd"^[13]
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Drama Medal – Urien Wiliam

New books

English language

• Alexander Cordell – The Fire People
• A. H. Dodd – Life in Wales
• Emyr Humphreys – National Winner
• Richard Jones The Tower is Everywhere
• Roland Mathias – Absalom in the Tree
• Edith Pargeter – A Bloody Field By Shrewsbury
• Will Paynter – My Generation (autobiography)
• Goronwy Rees – A Chapter of Accidents
• Ifor Williams – The beginnings of Welsh poetry

Welsh language

• Marion Eames – Y Rhandir Mwyn^[14]
• Islwyn Ffowc Elis – Eira Mawr
• Bobi Jones – Allor Wydn^[15]
• David Tecwyn Lloyd – Lady Gwladys a Phobl Eraill
• Gerallt Lloyd Owen – Cerddi'r Cywilydd^[16]
• Kate Roberts – Gobaith a Storïau Eraill

Drama

• Gwyn Thomas – Amser Dyn sef Darnau o Einioes^[17]

Music

• Badfinger – Straight Up (album)
• John Cale – The Academy in Peril (album)
• Dafydd Iwan – Yma Mae 'Nghân (album)
• Mary Hopkin – Live At The Royal Festival Hall (album)
• Tom Jones – Close Up (album)

Film

• The film of Dylan Thomas's Under Milk Wood appears, with Richard Burton, Glynis Johns, Ryan Davies and many other Welsh stars.
• Hywel Bennett stars with Hayley Mills in Endless Night.

Welsh-language films

• The Song We Sing Is About Freedom

Broadcasting

Welsh-language television

• Gwrando ar fy Nghan with singer Heather Jones
• Teliffant with Myfanwy Talog

English-language television

• Kenneth Griffith's reputation is underlined with a four-part documentary series about the Boer War, Sons of the Blood.
• Anthony Hopkins wins acclaim for his first starring role on television in BBC2's adaptation of War and Peace.
• Glyn Houston appears as Bunter opposite Ian Carmichael as Lord Peter Wimsey, in the first of several TV serials based on the stories of Dorothy L. Sayers.^[18]

Sport

• Chess – Wales competes in the World Chess Olympiad at Skopje, Yugoslavia.
• Cricket – Tony Lewis captains England on his Test debut in Delhi, India.
• Rugby union
  • 25 March – Derek Quinnell makes his debut for Wales against France.
  • 31 October – Llanelli RFC defeat the New Zealand All Blacks 9–3 at Stradey Park in front of 26,000 supporters.
• The Welsh Sports Association is established.
• BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year – Richard Meade^[19]

Births

• 27 January
  • Nathan Blake, footballer
  • Wynne Evans, tenor
• March - Helen Raynor, dramatist and screenwriter
• 23 March – Joe Calzaghe, boxer^[20]
• 10 April – Chris Corcoran, comedian
• 7 June – Sian Lloyd, television news presenter
• 5 July – Nia Roberts, actress
• 20 August – Scott Quinnell, rugby player^[21]
• 24 August – Jason Bowen, footballer
• 4 September – Guto Pryce, musician
• 23 September – Julian Winn, cyclist^[22]
• 3 October – Josie d'Arby, actress and television presenter
• 4 November – Tim Vincent, television presenter
• 27 December – Colin Charvis, rugby player^[23]

Deaths

• 17 January – Stan Davies, footballer, 73
• 4 February – Sir Charles Robert Harington, chemist, 74^[24]
• 25 February – S. O. Davies, politician, 85^[25]
• 27 February – Will James, dual-code rugby player, 69
• 7 March – Jack Morley, Wales and British Lions rugby player, 62
• 10 March – Gwynfor Davies, cricketer, 63
• 20 March – Dudley Lloyd-Evans, First World War flying ace, 76 or 77^[26]
• 28 March – James Edward Nichols, geneticist, 69^[27]
• 10 April – Ormond Jones, footballer, 61
• 28 May – The Duke of Windsor, Prince of Wales 1910–1936), 77
• 14 June (at Goathurst) – Glyn Simon, Archbishop of Wales (1968–71), 69
• 9 July – Sir Henry Morris-Jones, doctor, soldier and politician, 87^[28]
• 10 July – Emrys Jones, actor, 56 (heart attack)^[29]
• 12 August – Reg Anderson, cricketer, 58
• 28 September – Tom Roberts, Wales international rugby union player, 75?
• 19 October
  • David Hughes, opera singer, 47 (heart failure)
  • Fred Keenor, footballer, 78
• 6 November – Hilary Marquand, economist and MP, 70^[30]
• 13 November – Glyn Prosser, dual-code rugby player, 64
• 30 November – Frank Evans, dual-code international rugby player, 75
• 4 December – Lynn Ungoed-Thomas, politician and judge, 68^[31]
• unknown date
  • Sam Davies, Wales international footballer, 77 or 78^[32]
  • Lillian Griffith, sculptor, 94 or 95

See also

• 1972 in Northern Ireland

References

1. "Obituary". The Guardian. 6 February 2008.
2. Gerald Parsons (20 June 2013). The Growth of Religious Diversity - Vol 2: Britain From 1945 Volume 2: Controversies. Routledge. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-136-13628-3.
3. Meic Stephens (April 1986). The Oxford companion to the literature of Wales. Oxford University Press. p. 589. ISBN 978-0-19-211586-7.
4. Meic Stephens (April 1986). The Oxford companion to the literature of Wales. Oxford University Press. p. 523. ISBN 978-0-19-211586-7.
5. Ross Reyburn (26 July 2013). John Dawes: The Man who changed the world of Rugby. Y Lolfa. p. 96. ISBN 978-1-84771-614-9.
6. Peter E. Baughan (1991). North and Mid Wales. David St. John Thomas. p. 33. ISBN 978-0-946537-59-4.
7. "The Hypermarket — Gold mine or white elephant". International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management. 1 (6). MCB: 42–44. doi:10.1108/eb017761.
8. Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons (1972). Papers by command. HMSO. p. 44.
9. Fisk, Stephen (June 2009). "Abandoned Communities - Machynys". Retrieved 2009-08-05.
10. British Dam Society. Conference; British Dam Society (1998). The Prospect for Reservoirs in the 21st Century: Proceedings of the Tenth Conference of the BDS. Thomas Telford. p. 303. ISBN 978-0-7277-2704-6.
11. "Winners of the Chair". National Eisteddfod of Wales. 17 November 2019.
12. "Winners of the Crown". National Eisteddfod of Wales. 17 November 2019.
13. "Winners of the Prose Medal". National Eisteddfod of Wales. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
14. Meic Stephens (1998). Cydymaith i lenyddiaeth Cymru. University of Wales Press. p. 195. ISBN 978-0-7083-1383-1.
15. Europa Publications (2003). International Who's Who of Authors and Writers 2004. Psychology Press. p. 279. ISBN 978-1-85743-179-7.
16. Felicia Hughes-Freeland (16 December 2003). Ritual, Performance, Media. Routledge. p. 10. ISBN 978-1-134-71382-0.
17. Bibliotheca Celtica. The Library. 1976. p. 385. ISBN 9780901833792.
18. Anthony Hayward (8 July 2019). "Glyn Houston Obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
19. "BBC Wales Sport Personality winners". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
20. Joe Calzaghe (1 April 2010). No Ordinary Joe. Random House. p. 24. ISBN 978-1-4090-6452-7.
21. Scott Quinnell (2012). The Hardest Test. Headline. ISBN 9781909335462.
22. "Julian WINN - Wales [WAL]". Commonwealth Games 2002. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
23. "Wales at the Rugby World Cup 1999". Wales Rugby Union. Archived from the original on 2009-02-12. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
24. Himsworth, H.; Pitt-Rivers, R. (1972). "Charles Robert Harington. 1897-1972". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 18: 266–308. doi:10.1098/rsbm.1972.0009. PMID 11615748. S2CID 31136079.
25. Griffiths, Robert (1983). S. O. Davies: A Socialist Faith. Llandysul, Dyfed: Gomer Press. p. 295. ISBN 978-0-85088-887-4.
26. Lockie, Rosemary (2015). "Some Memorial Inscriptions, Boddington, Gloucestershire". places.wishful-thinking.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
27. Royal Society of Edinburgh (1971). Year Book of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Royal Society of Edinburgh. p. 46.
28. John Graham Jones. "Morris-Jones, John Henry (1884-1972), Liberal/National Liberal politician". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
29. "Emrys Jones, a British stage and film actor, was found dead..." New York Times. July 11, 1972. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
30. John Graham Jones. "Marquand, Hilary (1901-1972), economist and Labour politician". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
31. John Graham Jones. "Ungoed-Thomas (Arwyn) Lynn (1904-1972), Labour politician". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
32. Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 76. ISBN 978-1905891610.