Gwyn Thomas (Q59179)

Gwyn Thomas (1913-1981) was one of the foremost Welsh writers of the 20th century. He wrote novels and short stories, plays for radio and stage, and was also a scriptwriter and presenter for television. He was born in Cwm Rhondda, Glamorgan, the son of Walter and Ziphorah, and was the youngest of their twelve children. He was educated at Cymer Elementary School and Porth County School, Glamorgan, and went to St Edmund Hall Oxford in 1931, to read Modern Languages. He spent part of his degree course at the University of Madrid, and visited parts of northern Spain on his trek homewards during the summer of 1933. He returned home to Cymer in 1934, and between 1936-1938 he contributed articles to the Rhondda Leader, and lectured for the WEA on international relations. He married Eiluned (Lyn) Thomas in 1938. In 1940, he became teacher of Modern Languages at Cardigan County School, and later at Barry County School, where he remained until 1962. During this period he published eight novels, a novella and three collections of stories, and produced over a dozen plays and feature programmes for radio. In the 1960s and 1970s, he contributed more to television and theatre, and wrote articles for periodicals including Punch. Gwyn Thomas died in April 1981. After his death, Michael Parnell (1934-1991) prepared a biography, and also oversaw new editions of some of his novels.