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Leader Live
4 days ago
- Business
- Leader Live
Wrexham: The Drunk Monk celebrates its fourth birthday
The Drunk Monk is tucked away in Overton Arcade on Wrexham High Street. Run by Kieran Irwin, his fiancée Dannii Rathbone and Kieran's brother Sean, the idea of starting the business was first discussed during the Covid-19 pandemic. By now, it has grown to the point where it regularly offers over 100 beers, showcasing the best from across Wales and England and also the rest of the world. The Drunk Monk just recently scooped the 'Best Pub' prize at the Best of North Wales Business Awards. And, this weekend (July 26/27), the business is celebrating its fourth year of existence. The Leader paid them a visit earlier this week to speak to Kieran about its growth, the impact of Wrexham AFC's takeover and what's in store for the future. Kieran, who moved to Wrexham from Handsworth in the West Midlands a decade ago, told us: "It all started out as a lockdown hobby idea for me and my brother (Sean). He initially came up with the idea of opening our own microbrewery. "But, after we looked into it more, we said 'why don't we open a bar?' and that conversation led to us finding a premises. "To begin with, it was only the small room with the bar in but, after a year of being open, we knocked through into the old salon next door. We now have a pool table upstairs and a darts board up there and it's a room we use for parties." (Image: Wrexham) From the start Kieran - who also works at Wrexham University as the venue manager for the Students Union Bar - has set out with the goal of promoting the best of local Welsh beers. He said: "People talk about Belgium, Germany and places like that having the best beers, but they also don't realise how many breweries we have in Wales and the UK, where there are some quality beers on offer. "We do get our beers from across the world, including German beers in for OktoberFest. But, we also promote Tiny Rebel who are based down South, as well as the likes of Magic Dragon who are based here in Wrexham. "We try to always get the North Wales beers in and then we continuously have four different beers every week on draught. We have our set house beers of Snowdon (Colwyn Bay), Wrexham Lager and Clwb Tropica (Newport) and then four new beers which we change around and they could be from anywhere including Scotland and Plymouth. "We typically have anywhere between 80 to over 100 different beers at any one time, we just try to keep it constantly changing." Asked about which beers prove most popular, Kieran added: "Without a shadow of a doubt, it's Clwb Tropica at the moment. Then it's a toss up for second place between Snowdon and Wrexham Lager. Snowdon is very popular, it flies out." Kieran says that when he initially suggested the idea to people, they advised against it. But, he and partner Dannii - who are getting married in November - pushed on with the project. He said: "People said to us; 'don't do it, Wrexham is not a craft beer town, it's a lager town', but we wanted to prove people wrong. And it turns out it was worth it. "We have now taken on the bar at Ty Pawb market, and we have a Beer Festival coming up in November, with local breweries in Wales and the UK coming in for that. "Dannii is my co-owner in all of this, she is the real 'hands on' one." The upstairs function room at The Drunk Monk which features a pool table and a darts board. (Image: Newsquest) It's no secret that the takeover of Wrexham AFC by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney back in 2021 has had boosted the city's economy greatly. That takeover took place at around the same time The Drunk Monk was established. Talking about that, Kieran said: "It's been massive, it's brilliant on matchdays, we are packed before the match and after the game, especially if Wrexham win. "Even now, during the summer, we get Americans, Canadians, Germans and Dutch people coming in. The football has massively impacted not just us, but bars all across the town. "Especially with the promotions, it's like Christmas in May, so hopefully they can do it again." As mentioned, The Drunk Monk was recently awarded a 'Best Pub' in North Wales prize. And the night of the ceremony is one Kieran will not forget anytime soon - as he sadly wasn't there. He said: "A few customers nominated us for the prize, but we didn't think we had a chance, because we're still one of the smallest pubs around. READ MORE "So, we went on holiday and we missed the actual event, but watched the ceremony online. We were shocked to win, it was frustrating not being there, but awesome at same time." The Drunk Monk team now has its own OktoberFest event, as well as the 'A Brewed Awakening' beer festival on November 28 to look forward to later this year. Speaking about his longer term plans, Kieran said: "Long term, I want to open another bar, maybe not in Wrexham but within an hour radius. Then, in a year or two, we want to go back to the microbrewery, where the conversations started. We're not experts still but that would be our dream."
BBC News
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
House of the Dragon quarry location collapses in rockslide
Part of a hillside has collapsed in a disused slate quarry in north Wales where battle scenes from the hit fantasy series House of the Dragon were filmed.A huge rockslide and a thick grey cloud of dust can be seen in video footage from a trail at Dinorwig Quarry in Jones, 21, from Sling, Anglesey, was returning from a hike up Yr Wyddfa, also known as Snowdon, and trying to film goats when he heard "cracking" sounds and saw falling slate."Next thing as I'm filming the whole wall just collapses... I was mind blown... the last thing I expected to see," he said. "I kind of thought it might be a controlled demolition, but then I remembered the quarry's been inactive since I think 1969."Opened in 1787 above Llyn Padarn, the quarry was at one point the second largest in the is part of the slate landscape of north west Wales, which is being developed as a tourism destination since becoming a Unesco World Heritage site in quarry was also a key filming location for House of the Dragon. Gwenydd council said the site was privately Jones was back in north Wales from his studies at Cardiff University. "Luckily for me there's a massive pit under the ridge [between Aran and the slide]," he said. "I thought it was alright, but the minute I started to feel worried was when the couple I saw came sprinting down from the hill. "Seeing the fear on their faces that like kicked in my flight or fright." Like the couple, he said he started to run as well."I was like, 'God!, what if this is like a chain reaction? What if there's more collapses all the way down the quarry?'"So I just started running with them out of like sheer instinct."Mr Jones said there a number of off limits areas in the quarry, but he came across climbers who were heading to climb in the quarry that said he showed them the video and some said they were "looking forward to climbing the new routes that had been made from the collapse". It has had the opposite effect on Mr Jones. "The main takeaway is just be careful. "When I was there you could hear the slate dropping... cracking... the advice I would give is if you can hear any of that, just get as far away as possible."
Times
7 days ago
- Times
The fun Welsh wellness retreat — for people who hate wellness retreats
I've no truck with restrictive diets, my liquid intake is roughly 95 per cent coffee and red wine and I loathe camping. So I'm not a likely candidate for one of those hardcore boot-camp retreats I keep seeing on Instagram, where you're doing burpies on gravel from the second you arrive, caffeine isn't an option in the low-cal fasting regime and it's £950 for two nights in 'a vegan-friendly yurt' that may or may not have been constructed from bin bags. When it comes to wellness my passions are yoga and walking and I'd like somewhere cosy to sleep once I've kicked off my trekking boots. It had felt impossible to find the reset I was after — something doable in a weekend that wouldn't involve dollops of self-denial or wrestling with tent pegs — but then I found Zest Life's small-group hiking and yoga retreat in Anglesey, north Wales, on social media. There is no booze and meals are vegetarian, with the ethos being about embracing mental and physical wellness through a combo of seasonal outdoor activities and yoga. I was drawn to a weekend on Anglesey in May, but other options included wild swimming in Norway in summer and breath-work and cold-water swimming in November. The plan was straightforward: get to Anglesey for Friday evening, do an hour's yoga, get up early on Saturday to trek up Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) and have a post-walk yoga session. Then on Sunday there would be a short local walk and lunch before leaving feeling virtuous and refreshed, no self-flagellation needed. Indeed the only hellish part was an eight-hour drive from London to north Wales, until my friend Jo and I turned onto the A55 and the hilly Gwynedd coastline facing the Irish Sea unspooled. The sun was shining and the mercury set to gloriously warm for the weekend. Our digs for two nights was Plas Cadnant Hidden Gardens, a mini country manor house with holiday cottages and 200 acres of grounds in a valley outside the town of Menai Bridge, just a hop over Robert Stephenson's Britannia Bridge and 35 minutes from Eryri National Park (Snowdonia). The drive up to the traditional Welsh stone-walled buildings past neat lawns was promising, and inside — once I'd decanted a car boot's worth of my overpacking — things got off on an instantly cheerful footing. First things first, refreshments of cherry cake and apple and elderflower kombucha were served and there was an introduction to our course leader, the yoga teacher Katy Stylli. We were shown to our room, which had an en suite (some of the lower-priced rooms have a shared bathroom), and while it wasn't five-star, the duvets were super-soft, the beds as cosy as I'd hoped and there was a homeliness to the antique dark-wood furniture you wouldn't get at a hotel. Just after 5.30pm we met the rest of the group; 13 of us, all women, with ages spanning from 30s to 60s. Stylli broke the ice with a variation of the shopping list memory game; we had to say our names and something we like that begins with the same letter. I went for lemons, Jo Jack Russells. It was a surprising success and gave our group an instant in-joke that was called back to throughout the weekend; we chatted about Tanya's choice of tango (she'd never actually done the dance) and Sonia's genuine love of a sunset. • Discover our full guide to Wales At 6pm it was time for the first yoga class and I was jangling with nerves as we walked across the gardens to Plas Cadnant's visitor centre, which doubles as the studio. While I love yoga, I started doing it only four years ago, aged 39, and I'm far from bendy. My crow pose involves genuine corvid-style squawking and my downward dog is modelled on a recalcitrant labrador. I need not have worried. Stylli took the first class gently (somewhere between the vinyasa and hatha styles I'm used to), starting with breathing exercises that moved into a flow of poses. Everyone worked to a pace they felt comfortable with, no contortions needed. The focus was on loosening the legs before the next day's big walk and feeling present in the moment. • Now's the perfect time to visit Wales. Here's where to stay Later, dinner was in the upstairs dining room of the house, which looked like a Plantagenet king's banqueting room. The long, heavy table was set with candles and the high-backed chairs gave off a grand air. We were all thinking it: 'It looks a bit like the Traitors' castle — where's Claudia Winkleman and which one of us is going to get banished at the end of the night?' Jo joked, as we sat down to proper portions of Sri Lankan beetroot curry with tofu, heaps of salad and sambal, and, after, a chia seed pudding. Our chef for the weekend was Cathy Whitfield, who popped out from the kitchen to explain that her dishes are inspired by her travels and her love of fermentation. Aware of the 6am start, we all hit the (very comfortable) hay by 10pm. The following day was the big hike and by 5.45am it was that rare thing in Wales — shorts weather. I was glad I'd brought enough water bottle capacity, three litres, plus an SPF 70 sun cream I'd bought in the Caribbean. I'd been up Yr Wyddfa once before, 20 years ago, on the Llanberis Path, effectively the easiest route, approaching from the northwest. This time we were taking a more strenuous trail: Rhyd Ddu, a quiet pathway known for its views, which approaches Yr Wyddfa's summit from the southwest. We took taxis to the car park of Rhyd Ddu train station, where the trail starts. There was time for a breakfast of tea and banana bread (homemade by Whitfield) as we were introduced to our guides, Iona Pawson and Amy Fox from RAW Adventures. The ascent is taken seriously: both are qualified mountain leaders, and there was a short safety briefing, radios, and an equipment check. I'm not a fast walker — I lingered near the back, and I knew from the off it would take me the full six hours. As Pawson said: 'You've come to terms with your pace on the mountain and that's all good.' The first part of the walk was easy strolling, with views up to Pen ar Lon and down to Llyn y Gadair, where hills and yawning valleys covered in grass the colour of the Starbucks logo lay ahead when I turned to admire the views. Two hours in and there was a shock for me. Yr Wyddfa's southern ridge involved some significant scrambling. There was a moment when I wasn't so grateful for the sparkling sun after all. If it had been foggy I wouldn't have been able to see the terrifying sheer drop either side of me. My pace dropped to sloth-like over the small cliffs of steep uneven rock. It was properly challenging and I was puffed out — this isn't a climb for the faint-hearted or unfit. At the summit, though, I realised that for the first time in months I was untroubled by the constant noise in my head: thoughts of work, an impending remortgage and my recurring paranoia of whether I've left the gas on back in London all simply stopped. Sorry to say it, but the summit of Yr Wyddfa wasn't as much fun as the ascent itself. There was a whiff of sewage around the back of the café and the queue to check in at trig point 10684 on the man-made plinth was at least an hour. We didn't join it. I was troubled by the fact I didn't see a single bird up there, other than chonky gulls. But it's a truth universally acknowledged that a sandwich at the top of a mountain tastes better than it does at the bottom, and Whitfield's packed lunch of a cheese and chutney roll proved the point again. After 20 minutes or so we all agreed to head back down. We took the Llanberis Path and with the summit done, we chatted more deeply. Sonia Rowbotham, 30, had come from Hartlepool: 'I wanted to do this because I just love hiking, and yesterday I did a circular walk around Conwy, finishing at the Smallest House in Great Britain, to extend the weekend,' she told me. 'My next project is more Munro-bagging in Scotland.' That ambition is something that Laura Bell, who founded Zest Life in 2001, understands well. Her experiences are why Zest Life's retreats are grounded in a holisitc approach to wellness and fitness. 'I had an eating disorder in my twenties and very low self-esteem,' Bell explained. 'And I started Zest with what I love, which is being out in nature and feeling in tune with the seasons. 'But I also want these retreats to be luxurious, with delicious food and an opportunity where everyone can push themselves and have a laugh.' We reached the bottom around 3pm and there was an option to go to the wood-fired Sawna Bach next to the National Slate Museum, which faces Llyn Padarn. I had my swimsuit in my backpack, but I was too exhausted to get changed — all I could do was lie on the ground and wait for the feeling in my feet to return. Back at Plas Cadnant, the gentle, hour-long yin-style yoga session led by Stylli was most welcome, holding leg poses including baddha konasana (butterfly pose) and kapotasana (pigeon pose) for several minutes at a time to help us stretch. The yoga session on Sunday at 8am was the most strenuous of the three, designed to iron out any walker's tension. After the hard work came a breakfast of spinach tart, great wedges of bread (no carb bans here) and a berry kefir smoothie. Then we were off for an hour's guided walk with Stylli around Menai Bridge. All the mountain hiking, yoga and eating meant I'd inadvertently saved seeing the gardens at Plas Cadnant for Sunday afternoon. Beyond the formal section of perfectly trimmed lawns and pyramid-shaped hedges was a steep valley. A maze of pathways edged by ferns, rhododendrons, late tulips, hibiscus and roses about to bud led to a secluded waterfall. Zest Life had done exactly what it promised: I felt stretched by nature in all the best possible Jackson was a guest of Zest Life, which has two nights' full board from £695pp, including yoga, guided walks and accommodation at Plas Cadnant, departing on October 3, 2025 (
Sky News
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Sky News
Jess Fishlock: Mural of Wales star unveiled in 'European first'
A mural of Wales star Jess Fishlock has been unveiled in what organisers say is a European first. The artwork in Splott, Cardiff, is believed to be the first five-a-side football pitch-sized mural of a female footballer in Europe, according to organisers. With 47 goals to her name, Fishlock is Wales 's all-time record goalscorer. The 38-year-old will be part of the team making history for the nation at the UEFA European Women's Championship in Switzerland. The upcoming competition marks the first time the women's team has qualified for a major tournament. The team will face off against reigning champions England, as well as 2017 winners The Netherlands and 2022 semi-finalists France. The squad of 23 chosen to represent their country was revealed at the summit of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) last week. 2:01 On Thursday, Fishlock's mural, which was designed by Regan Gilflin and created by Shawqi Hasson and Yusuf Ismail from the Unify project, was unveiled in front of community representatives and children from local schools. The footballer's sister, Francesca Fishlock, told Sky News that she was "super proud" of her older sibling and that it was "lovely" to have a mural dedicated to her on her first home ground. "She's tried her hardest to get to a major tournament with Wales, the whole group has, so to be able to go over there and just experience it with them is amazing," she said. "They've got nothing to lose and nothing to prove, so they're just going to go out there and give their all really and do the best that they can. Hopefully get out of the group, but if they don't, they're there, and that's what matters." Members of the local football team, Splott Albion FC, attended the launch event of the mural, which has been supported by funding from the Welsh Government and Wales Arts International. Lola, 15, said the women's team was "inspiring many younger girls to start playing" in Wales. Gracie, 14, added that the mural was "a good representation of women's football" and was confident of the team's chances, adding: "We're going to win". Lilly, 14, said the team were "someone to look up to" and are giving potential future Wales stars "an opportunity to see how far they can come". Aliyah, 14, whose cousin is also part of the Wales squad, said it was "really cool" to have a relative representing her country, and the advice she had given her was to "just smash it". One person who knows more than most what it's like to represent Wales is Professor Laura McAllister, who made 24 appearances for her country between 1994 and 1998. Professor McAllister told Sky News that it was a "fabulous opportunity" to see Wales represented on the world stage. "I was at the Men's Euros last year, and of course, Wales weren't there, and that was quite painful. So this time I'm really excited about being there when my own nation is represented on the global stage," she said. The women's game in Wales has "come a long way" since she was representing her country, Professor McAllister's added. "We didn't have everything we needed to perform at the highest level, and there's still a journey to go" "Let's not get carried away, we don't have full equality between men's and women's football or the same opportunities for girls as we have for boys. "So we're very mindful that there's more work ahead, but for now, let's celebrate the important steps we've made on the journey."
BBC News
19-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
How a mountain changed Wales' mindset as they seek Euro highs
It took Rhian Wilkinson the length of a game to climb Yr Wyddfa on Thursday at 06:00 BST – texting Football Association of Wales (FAW) staff to let them know she would not be joining them on the train to Wales' highest peak – she took some time for herself at the top 90 minutes was the sixth time she had scaled the 3,500-foot mountain since being named Wales head coach little more than a year ago, but her attachment to the spectacular summit stretches a lot parents – dad Keith and Welsh mother Shan - took their honeymoon in the Eryri national park. When the family returned from Canada for a year when Wilkinson was a schoolgirl, they would regularly holiday in an area they loved to her father died, six months before she took the Wales job, it felt the fitting place tor the family to hold a ceremony to remember him."It feels quite full circle," Wilkinson said, back on the mountain as she named her Wales squad for a summer where they will attempt to scale new heights in their first appearance at a major also felt fitting. Whether fate or coincidence, the FAW had no idea of Wilkinson's bond with the breathtaking landscape when they decided there was no better spot to show how their side – not even officially recognised until 1993 – now deserves to be high on a platform of its own for everyone to the 43-year-old former Canada international had also used the mountain, also known as Snowden, to help change a mindset."This place is what we based our journey on," said defender Rhiannon Roberts, who could not resist a trip to the summit for the announcement, having seen images of it throughout the qualifiers. "From the start of the campaign, we'd have our badge and all the fixtures going up the mountain and then our goal, our summit, at the top."Each game, we'd climb up the mountain, ticking them off one by one. And here we are."As well as the PowerPoint to start international weeks, posters were dotted around the team's breakfast and meeting rooms."We got on board with every camp as we moved up and onto the next fixture," said goalkeeper Olivia Clark. "And then we reached the top with qualifying, but we're going again because we're at the tournament with a new mountain."One that perhaps represents a bigger challenge, hence the inclusion of the influential and experienced Sophie Ingle in the 23-player squad for Switzerland - where Wales face the Netherlands, France and England - represented such a timely boost after nine months 33 and having won 141 caps, has been on this journey longer than most, one that Wilkinson admitted some players and staff openly wondered if they would ever accomplish given the number of near misses to suspected a mental block, so brought in a mental performance coach to try and place past baggage behind them, and returned to the mountain."It was used as a theme because it was always going to be an uphill battle, with setbacks," Wilkinson said. "The challenge of steeper parts, the flattening off, all these parallels."And as we move towards the Euros, we've started talking about the Everest part of it, that something is impossible until it isn't. And we're there."Getting 'there' is new for Wales, but not for Wilkinson. She won two bronze medals from three Olympics and appeared at four World Cups during her 181-cap career with Canada, being inducted into their hall of fame and recognised as one of their greatest players."They were huge moments for me, realising a dream to be an Olympian, but helping this team create a moment for themselves is very special," she aim is for more moments."We will surprise people," promised Wilkinson, who added that she also expects some of the lower-profile players in the squad, beyond the likes of Ingle and the iconic Jess Fishlock, to catch the eye now the platform is she put it: "These names should be known."They might well be if the lowest-ranked side at the Euros do cause the surprise she of the fixtures against three of the European game's heavyweights - holders, past winners, and former semi-finalists - was put into suitable climbing context, with the audience told things would be taken step by step in the two and a half weeks before the opener against the Dutch in obvious questions on England came, but were not the focus. No-one thought to ask whether the Wyddfa legend of a slain giant being entombed at the summit was another metaphor Wilkinson was about to lean a Portugal training camp is next for the squad – plus three as-yet unnamed training players – and a hectic schedule before the first game on 5 to come, but a longer-term future was also on Wilkinson's mind as she took her walk up the the interviews and photos at the summit, where only the haze of the sunshine prevented the view reaching Pembrokeshire 96 miles to the south, Wilkinson joined the media and officials on the train for the trip back down the mountain and a reminder that the impact of this side has stretched just as historic trip, even for a railtrack in operation for 129 years, as a local team welcomed Wilkinson in front of a giant Wales shirt – dubbed Ein Crys Cymru/Our Wales shirt - about to set off on a tour of the country to engage with the next generation. Participation figures are thought to be close to a 2026 target of 20,000 girls, if not already passed ahead of the some of those numbers smiled for one last photo, Yr Wyddfa stared back at Wilkinson, the mountain that has motivated her team and the 23 heading to so a new journey – and a new summit – awaits.
