If You Grew Up in the Valleys in the 1960s, You Remember This

A Thursday night in November 1963. The rain has stopped over Treorchy, the winding wheels stand black against the sky, and in the Workmen's Hall a hundred colliers fresh from the pithead baths begin to sing. This is the Rhondda in the 1960s — the Parc and Dare, concessionary coal in the back lane, the Corona pop lorry from Porth, chapel three times on a Sunday, the Sunday school trip to Barry Island and frothy coffee in the Italian café. And then the closures: the Parc and Dare in 1966, the Cambrian in 1967, Lewis Merthyr in 1983, and Maerdy, the last pit in the Rhondda, in December 1990. It is the story of David Davies of Llandinam and the Ocean coal, of Barry Docks, of the Treorchy Male Choir singing for Queen Victoria in 1895 — and of why, when the coal was gone, the valleys kept singing. 00:00 Practice night, November 1963 01:40 One long street 07:12 The pits close 10:53 The gamble at Cwm Parc 18:24 They could never take the song Illustrations are AI-generated reconstructions based on period descriptions and archive references. Gwyn, Megan and Carol are composite characters drawn from many families' memories. Hashtags: #Rhondda #WelshValleys #ForgottenBritain