Something of an End of Year round-up

With special guests

I, for one, am looking forward to the opportunity to bid 2024AD adieu, taking full opportunity of the artificial benchmark created by some bright spark back in the mists of time who was desperate to close a door on a shitty twelve months. Oh the blessed hope of the opening of that new door to the bleak drizzle of a fresh January.

This, of course, is something of a person al reflection, and I’m not even getting started on Trump, Yemen, Gaza, Ukraine, or the Eras Tour.

It’s been a long year for me personally. I finished a PhD, said goodbye to Wales Arts Review, had a book out, opened a record shop, and probably did some other things I’m forgetting about.

Ah yes, I started Blue, Red and Grey, this newsletter, which has been a thing of peaks and troughs, highs and lows, intensity and periods of unearned relaxation. I would have written more if I’d had the time. I have a long list of subjects that for now remain titles in a file within a file within a file. I hope in 2025 I’ll be able to add some substance underneath those titles.

For now, though, here’s a link to the end of year BBC Radio Wales Arts Show, where I pick the brains of three of my favourite people, Emma Schofield, Elen Ifan, and Charles Williams, who have given a great deal of thought to what has been the best stuff around in the arts of Wales over the last year. It includes highlights in music, literature, theatre, TV, film, and a nod to festivals. It’s a rip-roaring run through 2024, and was a lot of fun to record, and you can listen to it here.

I hope you enjoy the show, and let me take this opportunity to thank all BRG readers and subscribers. It means the world to me the number of you that engage with this.

I look forward to doing more in 2025.

Happy New Year.