CREW Blog

R. S. Thomas @100

We are already more than half way through the centenary year of the great Welsh poet R. S. Thomas, so just a quick post to mark the events dedicated to celebrating the man and his work. One of the most significant events was the publication of RS Thomas: Serial Obsessive, by CREW’s indefatigable founder, M. Wynn Thomas. This new collection of essays looks at previously unseen poems by Thomas, exploring his various obsessions. It has received wonderful reviews:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/apr/06/rs-thomas-serial-obsessive-review

http://www.newwelshreview.com/article.php?id=528

As well as Wynn Thomas’s new book, there have also been many events to mark RST’s centenary. A major event at the Dylan Thomas Centre took place in April, marking not only Wynn Thomas’s new book, but also the Uncollected Poems, edited by Tony Brown and Jason Walford Davies. Five commemorative poems were also composed in memory of R S Thomas, by some of Wales’s leading contemporary poets (in both Welsh and English). There are still many exciting events coming up to look forward to, including the RST Literary Festival in September, and an evening of conversation on RS’s religious poetry between Wynn Thomas, Dr Rowan Williams and Dr Barry Morgan at the Taliesin Arts Centre on 1^st November. For further information on all the events, see the links below:

http://www.literaturewales.org/news/i/143403/

http://rsthomas2013.org/digwyddiadau-events/

Here is a link to an interview with M Wynn Thomas, on his experiences with RS, and his own ‘obsession’ with this fascinating man and his powerful poetry:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/wales/posts/Academics-poets-and-musicians-unite-in-evening-to-mark-RS-Thomas-centenary

(I’ll post reminders of the Swansea-based events closer to the time)