# 1959 in Wales

This article is about the particular significance of the year 1959 to Wales and its people.

## Incumbents

* Minister of Welsh Affairs – Henry Brooke
* Archbishop of Wales – Edwin Morris, Bishop of Monmouth
* Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales – William Morris

## Events

* 1 January – The 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards (informally known as the "Welsh Cavalry") is formed.
* February – The Queen makes the red dragon on a green and white background the official flag of Wales.
* 4 May – Aneurin Bevan is elected deputy leader of the Labour Party.
* 6 August – Huw T. Edwards leaves the Labour Party for Plaid Cymru in protest at the decision to flood the Tryweryn valley.
* 8 October – At the UK general election:
** Newly elected MPs include John Morris (Aberavon); Donald Box (Cardiff North); Ifor Davies (Gower) and Geraint Morgan (Denbigh).
** Poet Waldo Williams stands as a Plaid Cymru candidate.
** Hugh Dalton retires from Parliament.
* The Local Government Commission for Wales is set up, chaired by Sir Guildhaume Myrddin-Evans.
* Sir William Jones resigns from the Council for Wales and Monmouthshire in protest at the appointment of Henry Brooke.
* Will Paynter becomes Secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers (Great Britain).
* Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley, sells his holdings in Kemsley Newspapers to Roy Thomson.
* Gilbern Sports Cars begin production of their kit cars at Llantwit Fardre, Pontypridd, Glamorgan.

## Arts and literature

* 8 January – Sir Lewis Casson and Dame Sybil Thorndike celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary (last December) by appearing together in Eighty in the Shade, a play written especially for them, in London.
* 9 January – Shirley Bassey is the first Welsh singer to hit number one in the UK singles chart, with "As I Love You".
* December – Actress Siân Phillips marries Peter O'Toole in Dublin.
* Literature Wales is established as The Academi.
* Harry Secombe is voted Show Business Personality of the Year.

### Awards

* National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in Caernarfon)
* National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair – T. Llew Jones
* National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown – Tom Huws
* National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal – William Owen

### New books
#### English language

* Menna Gallie – Strike for a Kingdom
* Edgar Phillips – Edmund Jones, "The Old Prophet"
* Bertrand Russell – My Philosophical Development

#### Welsh language

* Albert Evans-Jones – Cerddi Cynan, y casgliad cyflawn
* D. Gwenallt Jones – Gwreiddiau
* Kate Roberts – Te yn y Grug

### Music

* Grace Williams – All Seasons shall be Sweet

## Film

* Rachel Thomas, Meredith Edwards and Megs Jenkins appear with John Mills and Hayley Mills in Tiger Bay.
* Hugh Griffith wins the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Ben-Hur.

## Broadcasting

* Statistics show that 50% of households in Wales have television licences.
* The BBC Third Programme becomes available on VHF from Wenvoe.

### Welsh-language television

* Lili Lon (children's programme)
* Trysor o Gân (Treasury of Song)

### English-language television

* Ivor the Engine (children's programme)

## Sports

* Athletics – The Welsh Games are held for the first time.
* Boxing – Former world flyweight champion Jimmy Wilde is elected to the American Boxing Hall of Fame.
* BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year – Graham Moore

## Births

* 30 January – Cynthia Carter, journalist, author, and academic
* 25 February – Mike Peters, musician
* 21 March – Colin Jones, boxer
* 24 April – Paula Yates, television presenter (died 2000)
* 3 May – Eddie Niedzwiecki, footballer
* 8 May – Jillian Evans MEP, politician
* 20 May – Annabel Giles, model
* 28 May – Steve Strange, born Steven Harrington, pop singer/promoter (died 2015)
* 18 June – Jocelyn Davies AM, politician
* 5 September – Mike Ruddock, rugby coach
* 7 November – Richard Barrett, composer
* 26 November – Dai Davies MP, politician
* date unknown – Paul Henry, poet

## Deaths

* 1 January – Dan Jones, Wales international rugby player, 83
* 13 January – Henry Weale, Victoria Cross recipient, 61
* 3 February – Sir Evan Williams, 1st Baronet, industrialist, 87
* 21 February – Kathleen Freeman, classical scholar, 61
* 24 February – Sid Judd, international rugby player, 30
* 3 March – Billy Bancroft, rugby and cricket player, 88
* 21 April – David Bell, writer and curator, 43
* 26 May – Thomas Baker Jones, Wales international rugby player, 96
* 18 June – Nantlais Williams, poet and preacher, 84
* 2 July – Ivor Davies, rugby player, 67
* 7 July – Frank Williams, Wales international rugby player, 49
* 23 July – George Davies, international rugby player, 83
* 5 August – D. W. Davis, Governor of Idaho, 86
* 9 August – John Hart Evans, rugby player, 78
* 15 October – Thomas Wynford Rees, army officer, 61
* 23 October – Anthony Windham Jones, rugby player, 80
* 16 November – Fanny Winifred Edwards, teacher and writer, 83
* 17 November – David Owen Morgan, zoologist, 66
* 27 November – Grenville Morris, footballer, 81
* 10 December – W. R. Davies, US academic of Welsh descent, 66 (heart attack)
* 28 December – David Brazell, singer, 84
* 30 December – Dick Duckfield, cricketer, 52