Ceredigion Landscapes David Wilson, Ed Talfan and Ed Thomas
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Hinterland Ceredigion Landscapes Published in Great Britain in 2017 by Graffeg Limited Written by Ed Talfan and Ed Thomas, Fiction Factory copyright © 2017. Production photographs by Fiction Factory copyright © 2017. Photographs of Ceredigion by David Wilson copyright © 2017. Designed and produced by Graffeg Limited copyright © 2017 Graffeg Limited, 24 Stradey Park Business Centre, Mwrwg Road, Llangennech, Llanelli, Carmarthenshire SA14 8YP Wales UK Tel 01554 824000 www.graffeg.com Graffeg is hereby identified as the author of this work in accordance with section 77 of the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Photography: All photographs are the © copyright of the photographers listed as follows:
A CIP Catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
David Wilson: page 2, 5, 6, 28-29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34-35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48-49, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58-59, 60-61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68-69, 70, 71, 72, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96-97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106-107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116-117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163, 164-165, 166, 167, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172-173, 174, 175, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 192-193
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers. With the financial support of the Welsh Books Council. ISBN 9781910862995 123456789 Front cover photograph, above: Ceulan Valley © David Wilson Front cover photograph, below: © Warren Orchard End paper photo: Syfydrin Lake © David Wilson
Paul Andrew: page 8, 24-25 Fiction Factory/Warren Orchard: page 9, 1011, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 27, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 140, 188, 189, 190
Y Gwyll Tirweddau Ceredigion Welsh language edition ISBN 9781912213016
Ceredigion Landscapes David Wilson, Ed Talfan and Ed Thomas
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Contents Hinterland Ceredigion Landscapes features production photographs taken during the filming of Hinterland series 1, 2 and 3, with photographs of set locations and Ceredigion landscapes by David Wilson.
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Introduction
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David Wilson
Series 1
Series 2
Series 3
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Borth by Ed Talfan
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Alltgochmynydd
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Syfydrin Lake
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Borth
95 Nant-y-moch Reservoir
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Devil’s Bridge
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Aberystwyth
100 Towards Disgwylfa Fawr
157 Trefenter
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Cwmsymlog Chapel
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Ynys-las
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Elan Valley
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Ffos-las
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Ynys-las Boatyard
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Cwmystwyth
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Llyn-yr-oerfa
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Cors Caron, Tregaron
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Ceulan Valley
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Corrugated Iron
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Fyrnach Fach
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Production photographs
50 Hinterland landscape by Ed Thomas 51
bandoned Farm, Cambrian A Mountains
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Aberaeron
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Llangrannog
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Mwnt
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Production photographs
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Production photographs
174 Soar y Mynydd to Tregaron 183 Towards Carn Penrhiwyllwydog 186
Teifi Pools
Newquay
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Production & Cast Lists
Essay by Cynan Jones
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Locations Map
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Introduction Our ambition with Hinterland was to give the Welsh audience a crime show to call its own; a show that would hold up a sometimes warped and cracked mirror to the place we call home. From the beginning, our greatest inspiration for the series was the landscape. From the marshlands of Borth to the surging waters of Devil’s Bridge, everywhere we went, it seemed there were stories waiting to be told, characters waiting to be discovered. We wanted the series to feel authentic, to have a genuine sense of place. We wanted the world of the stories to feel timeless. To achieve this, we avoided the contemporary and throw-away, and focused instead on those places that had a sense of history; places that felt like they had been witness to something.
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Our approach throughout was intentionally lo-fi, humble and - we like to think - un-cynical. In any event, the series could not have been made without the amazing help and support of the people of Ceredigion - and the tireless dedication of our wonderful cast and crew. To live and work in Ceredigion for four years was an extraordinary experience. An unforgettable one. Television may be impermanent, but the landscape, and its affect upon us, is not. Ed Talfan and Ed Thomas Series creators, Hinterland
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David Wilson My photographic adventure into Ceredigion began in March 2016. As an avid fan of Hinterland, I embarked on the project with euphoric anticipation! This was an opportunity to capture one of the grittiest and most authentic landscapes in Wales in collaboration with the creators of the grittiest and most authentic evocation of that landscape ever brought to the small screen; the makers of Hinterland. Nowadays television often espouses the hidden village or the secret valley in their outdoor programming. In many ways though Ceredigion is hidden and secret. Pembrokeshire, Gower, the Brecon Beacons and Snowdonia are all up there in the pantheon of Welsh landscape gems, trodden by visitors from all four corners of the globe. Ceredigion perhaps falls off their radar. Yet, to explore this elongated county is to connect with a Wales, a sense of Welshness, that feels pure and true. For me, photographing the landscape is about telling stories; composing visual narratives. When I happened upon the Abandoned Farm in the Cambrian Mountains I was at once captivated and intrigued. Who last farmed there? What events had blessed or cursed that homestead? 6
I closed my eyes and imagined the sounds of bygone years; a farmer beckoning his sheep-dog, a horse made ready for ploughing, chickens clucking in the yard. The farm would have been a hive of activity. Now, all was silent save for birdsong and the swishing of grass in the breeze. Generations had lived, loved and dreamt on this farm yet the building now stood empty, having outlived them all. And that is part of what draws me to the landscape; industrious human endeavour and our co-existence with the environment. In the final reckoning, all of that cumulative shaping of the land survives us, to be inherited by the next generation and the next and the next. The cycle of our lives played out in an eternal landscape. Heading towards Soar y Mynydd chapel it is easy to become disorientated in a landscape of endless grassy uplands. A land bereft of visual markers that even at the height of summer is soft underfoot; sodden and peaty. Up there you find the drovers’ roads, the pre-tarmac highways that transported livestock to the cities. Strip away that modern road surface and the recent plantations of firs and you are back with those men of Tregaron on their
epic journey to the London markets. The Ceredigion landscape possesses an honesty that at once invites you in while making no attempt to hug you. Forestry tracks weave and wend their dusty journey around the hills near the Nant-y-moch reservoir. Harsh abstractions and a muted palette define this landscape. It is as if the winds and rains have washed and blasted this earth into submission. The Teifi Pools on a moist and misty October day is a chilled and monochrome experience. These landscapes do not attempt to put on a show – you take them or leave them. I take them every time. This is contemplative country, where your mind is cleared of all the mental detritus cluttering our daily lives. No mobile reception – how glorious. You can be beautifully lost in yourself for hours. The landscape of Ceredigion is a totem, an idea of Welshness that perhaps has become elusive in other parts of the nation. Here, more than anywhere in Wales, I bore witness to a rhythm of continuity, a striving to co-exist with a sometimes harsh landscape and often inhospitable elements. This is a land of remote hill farms, tiny hamlets sheltering on the sunny-side of a hill, traditional
coastal resorts, proud towns and a people brought up with the certainty of their Welsh identity embedded in a native language; a language that is as true and authentic as the landscape itself. This is Wales. David Wilson David Wilson is a Welsh landscape photographer, renowned for his atmospheric black and white images. He was brought up in Haverfordwest and now lives in the riverside village of Llangwm with his wife and children. David’s passion for photography took flight soon after buying his first camera at the age of seventeen. He possesses a great eye for capturing the many characters of Wales through his photography and shows that the beautiful landscape tells the story of Wales. Displaying some of his best monochrome photography, David published his first book, Pembrokeshire with Graffeg in 2009. Graffeg has since collaborated with David to produce Wales A Photographer’s Journey, showcasing the breathtaking landscape across Wales, as well as the book 50 Buildings That Built Wales.
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Series 1 DCI Tom Mathias, reeling from a troubled past, arrives in Aberystwyth on the windswept coast of west Wales. Paired with DI Mared Rhys, he is confronted by a series of disturbing murders.
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Borth
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Borth
Borth
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Series 1
Location Manager: Paul ‘Bach’ Davies Designer: Eryl Ellis Costume: Ffion Elinor Sound: Ray Parker Make-up (1&2): Claire Pritchard-Jones Make-up (3&4): Heulwen Evans Line Producer (1&2): Kathy Nettleship Line Producer (3&4): Meinir Stoutt Producers: Gethin Scourfield, Ed Talfan. Executive Producer: Ed Thomas Broadcast year: 2013 Main Cast: Richard Harrington, Mali Harries,
Alex Harries, Hannah Daniel and Aneirin Hughes. Full Cast: Beth Robert, Brychan Llŷr, Celyn Evans, Ceri Murphy, Charlotte Griffiths, Cler Stephens, Dan Rochford, Dewi Rhys Williams, Dewi Savage, Dyfed Thomas, Dylan Raw-Rees, Efa Morris, Eiry Thomas, Euros Llŷr Morgan, Geraint Lewis, Geraint Morgan, Glyn Pritchard, Gruffudd Glyn, Gwen Ellis, Gwyn Elfyn, Heledd Baskerville, Hywel Emrys, Iestyn Jones, Ifan Huw Dafydd,
Jeremy Turner, Lara Kipp, Llion Williams, Lowri Walton, Mared Swain, Matthew Gravelle, Nia Roberts, Paul Morgans, Phillip Hughes, Phylip Harries, Rhodri Evans, Rhodri Miles, Rhodri Siôn, Rhys Ap Hywel, Rhys Griffiths, Rhys Parry Jones, Rhys Rowlands, Richard Elis, Sara Harris-Davies, Sara Lloyd, Sara Gregory, Sioned Dafydd, Steffan Rhodri, Valmai Jones, Victoria Pugh and Wyn Bowen Harries
Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3
Director: Marc Evans Writers: David Joss Buckley, Ed Thomas DOP: Hubert Taczanowski Editor: Mali Evans
Director: Gareth Bryn Writer: Ed Talfan DOP: Hubert Taczanowski Editor: Kevin Jones
Director: Rhys Powys Writers: David Joss Buckley, Ed Thomas DOP: Richard Stoddard Editor: Mali Evans
Episode 4
Director: Ed Thomas Writer: Jeff Murphy DOP: Richard Stoddard Editor: Kevin Jones
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Series 1
Series 2
Location Manager: Paul ‘Bach’ Davies Designer: Tom Pearce Costume: Ffion Elinor Sound: Simon Fraser Make-up: Meinir Jones Lewis Line Producer: Meinir Stoutt Producers: Gethin Scourfield, Ed Talfan. Executive Producer: Ed Thomas Broadcast year: 2015
Main Cast: Richard Harrington, Mali Harries, Alex Harries, Hannah Daniel and Aneirin Hughes. Full Cast: Anamaria Marinca, Bradley Freegard, Carli De’la Hughes, Catrin Fychan, Catrin Mara, Dafydd Hywel, Dyfan Dwyfor, Dyfrig Morris, Elen Rhys, Ella Peel, Gareth Pierce, Gareth Potter, Glan Davies, Gwenno Hodgkins, Gwydion Rhys, Hannah Franklin, Hedydd Dylan, Helen Griffin, Huw Euron,
Huw Thomas, Hywel Morgan, Ian Saynor, Ioan Hefin, Jams Thomas, Jason Speake, John Ogwen, John Pierce Jones, Joseff Owen, Kasha Bajor, Llinos Daniel, Manon Wilkinson, Mark Lewis-Jones, Morfudd Hughes, Non Haf, Oliver Ryan, Owain Arthur, Rhian Jones, Rhys Ap Trefor, Rhys Bidder, Richard Elfyn, Ryland Teifi, Shelley Rees, Sion Daniel Young and Tom Rhys Harries.
Special
Episode 1
Episode 2
Director: Ed Thomas Writer: Jeff Murphy DOP: Simon Tindall Editor: Kevin Jones
Director: Gareth Bryn Writer: Debbie Moon DOP: Stuart Biddlecombe Editor: Sara Jones
Director: Julian Jones Writer: Eoin McNamee DOP: Rory Taylor Editor: Mali Evans
Episode 3
Episode 4
Director: Ed Thomas Writer: Sue Everett DOP: Mattias Nyberg Editor: Kevin Jones
Director: Ed Thomas Writer: Ed Talfan DOP: Rory Taylor Editor: Mali Evans Series 2
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Series 3
Location Manager: Paul ‘Bach’ Davies Designer: Tom Pearce Costume: Ffion Elinor Sound: Simon Fraser Make-up: Meinir Jones Lewis Line Producer: Meinir Stoutt Producer (1-4): Ed Talfan Producer (3): Mark Andrew Producer (4): Nora Ostler Executive Producer: Ed Thomas Broadcast year: 2016
Main Cast: Richard Harrington, Mali Harries, Alex Harries, Hannah Daniel and Aneirin Hughes. Full Cast: Aled Pugh, Alun Elidyr, Brochan Evans, Caitlin Richards, Catrin Arwel, Delyth Wyn, Dyfrig Evans, Eiry Hughes, Elen Roberts, Eleri Morgan, Gary Hoptrough, Gaynor Morgan Rees, Glain Davies, Gwenllian Rhys, Gwyneth Keyworth, Ieuan Rhys, Jacob Ifan, Julian Lewis Jones, Lisa Palfrey, Llŷr Evans, Mabli Jen Eustace, Melangell Dolma,
Miriam Davies, Morgan Hopkins, Owen Arwyn, Rhian Blythe, Rhodri Meilir, Richard Lynch, Sharon Morgan, Sian Reese-Williams, Sion Alun Davies and William Thomas.
Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3
Director: Gareth Bryn Writer: Debbie Moon DOP: Stuart Biddlecombe Editor: Sara Jones
Director: Ed Thomas Writer: Cynan Jones DOP: Rory Taylor Editor: Kevin Jones
Director: Gareth Bryn Writer: Jeff Murphy DOP: Luke Jacobs Editor: Sara Jones
Episode 4
Director: Ed Thomas Writer: Mark Andrew DOP: Rory Taylor Editor: Kevin Jones 190
Series 3
Locations G W Y N E D D
Ynys-las
C A R D I G A N Key Kilometres
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Miles
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Ceulan Valley Borth Fyrnach Fach Nant-y-moch Reservoir Alltgochmynydd B AY Syfydrin Lake Disgwylfa Fawr Cwmsymlog Aberystwyth Llyn-yr-oerfa Devil’s Bridge Ffos-las Cwmystwyth Elan Valley
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Teifi Pools
Trefenter Aberaeron
P O W Y S
Tregaron
New Quay
Llanddewi Brefi
Llangrannog
Cwm Brefi
Soar y Mynydd
Carn Penrhiwyllwydog
Mwnt
C E R E D I G I O N
C A R M A R T H E N S H I R E
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© Crown Copyright 2017 OS 100050715 Map of locations
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The boarded-up windows of a chapel, undisturbed for decades. A solitary farmhouse abandoned and over-grown. A lonely stretch of beach where the Irish Sea booms. The county of Ceredigion resonates with stories of the lives led there; a setting readily crafted for Hinterland.
Hinterland: Ceredigion Landscapes explores the silent but ever-present character of Ceredigion, documenting the links between its landscapes and the visual style and atmosphere of the acclaimed TV crime drama. Behind-the-scenes photographs taken during the filming of Series
1, 2 and 3 appear alongside stunning new landscapes by David Wilson as he re-visits the locations.
its place as part of the fabric of the series, and the richness it offers for both the eye and the imagination.
Essays from co-creators Ed Talfan and Ed Thomas, David Wilson and screenwriter Cynan Jones also discuss their personal responses to this unique area,
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