Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
Dylan Thomas will be the subject in Rhys Ifans' latest documentary.
Directed by Kevin Allen...
He also directed Twin Town, the film that brought Rhys Ifans to fame.
The production questions exactly who Dylan Thomas was...
...Through interviews with people he knew or the ones who have been inspired by him.
Such as the pop artist, Sir Peter Blake.
Famous for designing Sergeant Pepper's album cover by The Beatles.
I went over to the Laugharne weekend to question Rhys about the project.
Well Rhys, it's a beautiful morning in Laugharne!
You're here filming a programme about Dylan Thomas...
What exactly is this programme then?
Well... I'm a big fan of Dylan Thomas...
...That's why Kevin Allen, the director asked me to do it.
He, of course wrote and directed Twin Towns.
It was a chance for us to work together again.
It's been a very personal journey for me.
I did Under Milk Wood years ago in the National Theatre...
...My dad brought me here to visit the grave, then to Brown's...
I wanted to familiarise myself once again with his words, and to meet those who have been inspired by him...
Throughout this journey, questions have been raised, such as...
Have we pickled Dylan Thomas?
The purpose of this documentary in a way is to 'un-pickle' Dylan Thomas!
His words are still very much alive, they're not full of dust in a museum...
How long have you been working on this programme?
Oh...about 20 years!!
No, we started...
...Well, we've been at it for a few months now..!
We've been doing it occasionally, which is a wonderful thing to do!
Like playing golf! Although I don't play it myself...
It's almost like a hobby.
It's fairly low key, there are no big set ups or anything.
I came here a few months ago after I'd finished a film in Barcelona...
...I realised I've never presented anything before...
I never knew this presenting business was such hard work!
I never look down the lens...
Very quickly, I had to talk with this invisible audience!
Pretending I'm a lot cleverer than I actually am!
So, you say it's a personal journey for you. What have you discovered so far?
I've rediscovered his passion and his humour...
There was also a question pencilled in whether he spoke Welsh or not...
People believed he was anti Welsh...
But, I've discovered this was not the case...
Dylan is often quoted 'The land of my Fathers, my Fathers can keep it.'
However, those words didn't come from his mouth.
He wrote a film about two sisters living in Powys...
Their brother returns from England, wanting to buy the farm...
So, of course, those words come from that character's mouth.
In time, those words have been attributed to Dylan Thomas.
It's a point of friction for us in Wales...
But, I think Dylan more than anyone has united them rather than separate them.
It's been an epiphany for me somehow...
What sort of people have you been questioning then?
People you'd expect, such as Welsh poets...
Jim Parc Nest, who translated Under Milk Wood.
People who knew Dylan, his friends...
I've been very teary at times!
Reconnecting with Dylan Thomas...Like I said before...
We've done so much, I can't even remember a lot of it!
There's no plan...
...We'll just see what happens.
We're in this caravan today...
With John Cooper Clark, who's another poet I've grown up with.
I'm going to try and get him to read some of Dylan's work in the caravan.
We'll see what happens!
...Without getting arrested!
Can we go right to the beginning of your relationship with Dylan then?
Why did his work capture you so much?
The fact he's Welsh, and wrote about Wales...
As a performer, when you read Dylan Thomas, you can't read it in your head...
His words have to be spoken.
You have to taste it, hear it, speak it for it to make any sense!
His alliteration and technical use of language is fantastic.
The documentary will be shown on S4C next year to celebrate the centenary of the birth of Dylan Thomas.
There's a base line in his language which elevates you as a performer.
I had the pleasure of discovering this by doing it on stage.
There's something very simple, accessible and passionate about his language.
Do you think it's important when we analyse his work...
...Sorry...
You have to go?
No...
...I'm talking!
I'll let you go!
Good luck in the caravan!
The documentary will be shown next year on S4C to celebrate the centenary of the birth of Dylan Thomas.