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North Wales Live
17-05-2025
- North Wales Live
I went to one of the oldest pubs in Wales and the 'small' fish dwarfed the plate
The Owain Glyndwr Hotel in Corwen has been around in one form or another, since before the 1400 Welsh Revolt against the rule of Henry IV of England. The main structure of the hotel dates back to 1740, with some parts going back to the 14th century when it was a former monastery. The OG (as it is known locally) was the site of the first ever National Eisteddfod in 1789, but there were real fears that the historic Grade II listed building would be lost to the town, after it had been on sale for three years with no takers. However, the local community stepped in with a fundraising committee raising £164,000 through sales of shares, a figure boosted by a grant for £452,700 from the UK Government's Community Ownership Fund. Volunteers helped to get the top bar ready and the hotel reopened to the public last year with Daf and Pam Morris in charge. There is a small snug bar is to the right of the entrance hall with an open fire and room for two tables. To the rear of the hotel is the larger 1329 restaurant area with extra tables situated in the wide hallway. There is also a bottom bar with two televisions, a pool table and a darts board. Framed pictures of Owain Glyndwr are displayed proudly on the wall along with old saddles and a yard of ale glass. We were sat on old red cushioned benches underneath dark oak tables with a sense of history pouring out of each knot of wood. You can even see Corwen church directly through the back windows. The menu has an emblem inspired by the great seal of Owain Glyndwr, the last native prince of Wales, a symbol of resilience, leadership and Welsh Heritage. The menu is small but is packed full of Welsh spirit with starters such as Leek and Potato soup for £6 or Breaded Perl Wen creamy brie style cheese with a cranberry compote for £9. There are six choices in the mains section with some available as a smaller portion. All the usual pub grub classics are listed with rib eye steak, pie and mash and a hand pressed beef burger and chips. Corwen butchers G.R Evans, well known for their top-quality meat, provide the pork sausages for the O.G. So, it was a no brainer to order the bangers and mash. Three huge juicy sausages were nested on top of a mountain of perfect creamy mashed potatoes with some cabbage on the side. It was all served in a big red bowl with the mash soaking up a delicious rich stout and onion gravy. The succulent sausages were the best I had tasted in ages and this was true pub comfort food at its finest and very filling. My wife went for a small portion of fish and chips for £12. Despite being the smaller version, the fish still dwarfed the plate. It was encased in a crispy bubbling batter with huge chunky chips and mushy peas. She had a wedge of lemon on the side with a portion of tangy tartare sauce to spread on top of the meaty white fish. We washed it all down with two halves of Wrexham Lager but there were plenty of other beers and spirits available. The wine list had Jack Rabbit red or white wine from £4.50 a glass or £16 for a bottle. Desserts included sticky toffee pudding, chocolate brownie, lemon posset or the local chilly cow ice cream for around the £8.50 price mark. There was also a Welsh cheese board with a handpicked selection of three Welsh cheeses served with crackers, grapes, celery and crisp apple slices for £12. The O.G serves up a really popular Sunday Lunch at the weekend but you need to book in advance to guarantee a seat. There are plenty of open mic dates in their calendar along with live music from various Welsh and Folk artists. We decided to walk off our calories by going up to Pen y Pigyn afterwards, which is a beautiful half a mile uphill stroll just behind the hotel and the church. The legend says that Owain Glyndwr is believed to have hurled his dagger from the top of Pen y Pigyn, a point overlooking Corwen, and it struck a rock, leaving an impression now incorporated into the church's south porch. I am not sure if that story is true, but the walk is worth it for the beautiful views alone, and you might even hear the hoot of the Corwen to Llangollen steam train as it huffs and puffs its way into the newly built station on the edge of the town. A group of loyal Owain Glyndwr supporters once proclaimed him to be the true Prince of Wales at nearby Glyndyfrdwy, Now, with the help of the people of Corwen, Owain's spirit lives on in the teeming pub hub of the local community. The Facts Fish and chips £12.00 Sausages and mash £15.00 Wrexham Lager x 2 Total £33.45 Opening Times Bar Monday Tuesday 5pm to 11pm Wednesday Thursday 11am to 11pm Friday Saturday 11am to 12am Sunday 11am to 10.30pm Food Wednesday to Saturday, 12 to 9pm Sunday lunches from 12-6pm. Other Atmosphere- Hub of the community Car Parking- Large car park by the Corwen to Llangollen steam train station Disabled Access- Some steps to the entrance and narrow corridor to the toilet Service- Table service with a chat and a smile
CBS News
21-03-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Treating and studying the injuries of wounded warriors
Dr. Daniel Perl had already made a groundbreaking discovery with profound implications for veterans when Frank Larkin turned to him after his son's 2017 suicide. Perl had discovered a pattern of microscopic scarring in the brains of service members and veterans who died by suicide. While his early work found scarring in victims who'd lived through major bombings, there was a difference with Larkin's son, Ryan: he had not been involved with any roadside bombings during his two combat tours in Iraq or during his two tours in Afghanistan. Research into these wounds could change the way veterans are treated and trained, something Larkin has pushed for since his son's death. The father says he's on a path to make sure "we have no more Ryans." Depression and post-traumatic stress disorder are common concerns for veterans. In 2011, 60 Minutes reported on a therapy program run by the Troops First Foundation with the cooperation of the U.S. military that took combat veterans suffering from severe injuries and PTSD back to Iraq as a way of providing emotional closure. Matt Bradford was one of the veterans 60 Minutes met. He was blinded and lost both legs to an explosion in Iraq in 2007. "I wake up in the middle of the night and can't go back to sleep because I keep thinking about, you know, getting blown up, laying there on the ground," he told 60 Minutes at the time. Bradford's doing well in the years since his trip back to Iraq. He's now a college graduate living in Kentucky and working as a motivational speaker. Bradford was also a State of the Union address guest during President Trump's first term. Rick Kell started Operation Proper Exit and led the trips. He's never been in the military himself, but he worked as a volunteer at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Wounded warriors he regularly saw at Walter Reed inspired the program. "In every conversation, it came up: 'I want to go back. I need to go back,'" Kell said the veterans told him. Frank Larkin would succeed Kell as head of Troops First Foundation. Brian Mancini also returned to Iraq in 2011 as part of Operation Proper Exit after his service there. He was struck by a roadside bomb in 2007 while serving as an Army medic. "I have a titanium mesh plate in my forehead. They rebuilt my whole orbital socket. My sinuses were replace-- are rebuilt. My palate was blasted out. My cheekbone-- was blasted out, with all my teeth. They actually rebuilt that from my hip," he told CBS News in 2011 . Despite his injuries, Mancini was doing well — until he wasn't. He took his own life in 2017. His family wanted answers, so they turned to Perl , a neuropathologist at the Uniformed Services University, the military's medical school. Perl wondered if there might be some kind of invisible brain injury. "When an IED goes off there's a tremendous explosion. And with the explosion comes the formation of something called the blast wave. And it is sufficiently powerful to pass through the skull and through the brain," Perl told 60 Minutes at the time. "And when it does that, it does damage the brain tissue." Navy doctors had scanned Ryan Larkin's brain before his suicide, but they found no sign of physical injury. After Ryan Larkin took his own life, his father — Frank Larkin — donated his brain to Dr. Perl, who did a post-mortem exam and found scarring. Frank Larkin, a former SEAL himself with decades working for the Secret Service and Defense Department, took the evidence to old friends in the military. In 2019, Special Operations Command (SOCOM) commissioned a study to look for brain injuries from cumulative, low-level blasts. Harvard professor Dr. Brian Edlow, who led the research at Massachusetts General Hospital, put 30 active-duty volunteers into powerful scanners and found changes in brain structure to a region critically important because it modulates emotion and cognition. Dr. Edlow showed his findings to Special Operations in 2023 and a new five-year study is being planned by SOCOM with 200 subjects. Scott Pelley's full report, Larkin's War, is set to air on 60 Minutes on March 23, 2025. Additional resources: Suicide prevention: If you are a service member or a veteran and need someone to talk to, dial 988 and press other options, click here . Recognizing the symptoms of blast exposure: If you are a service member, veteran or health care provider and you want to learn more about detecting the symptoms of blast exposure and traumatic brain injury, click here . Brain health: To learn more about all aspects of the U.S. military's program aimed at enhancing brain health, click here . Brain donation: For service members, veterans and their relatives, if you are interested in donating your brain for research into advanced traumatic brain injury, the Defense Department has established a brain tissue repository under the guidance of Dr. Dan Perl.
