WIREDGOV

Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Lord Elis-Thomas has confirmed Welsh Government funding for the development of the National Broadcast Archive for Wales.

A ground-breaking £9million project to create a National Broadcast Archive for Wales, is a significant step closer, following confirmation of Welsh Government support of £1 million.  

Amendments to the project, which have been the subject of the recent discussions between the National Library, BBC Cymru Wales and Welsh Government, were recently agreed by the Board of Trustees.

Lord Elis-Thomas, recently said: 

“The Welsh Government has consistently expressed support for the ambition of the National Library to establish a National Broadcast Archive. I appreciate the efforts which have made been made over the last few weeks to resolve the outstanding issues and concerns, and am delighted that the project can now move forward.”

The President of the National Library of Wales, Rhodri Glyn Thomas added:

“We are delighted that the Deputy Minister has lent his support to this pioneering project which now means that we can submit our final bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund.  As the home of extensive sound and moving images collections, and with material from ITV Wales already at the Library, we intend to safeguard this vital source of our nation’s heritage for present and future generations. We are very grateful for the National Lottery’s support to develop our plans and to BBC Cymru Wales for generously gifting the archive to the Library.”

Rhodri Talfan Davies, Director of BBC Wales recently said: 

“BBC Wales’s archive is a rich tapestry of the nation’s history and I’m delighted to see the next phase of this exciting and innovative project in motion. Working with our partners, the National Broadcast Archive is set to ensure that treasures of the past will accessible to everyone for generations to come.”

The National Library of Wales and BBC Cymru Wales intend to develop an ambitious plan to provide public access to the BBC Cymru Wales archive at four digital heritage hubs, to be located at Aberystwyth, Wrexham, Carmarthen and Cardiff. In addition, 1500 digital clips, including entire programmes, will be available online for community use.

The archive, which has about 180,000 recordings dating back to the late 1930’s, is an unique and invaluable chronicle of the life of the nation from  the Second World War, Aberfan, the miners’ strike, political battles over devolution, sporting triumphs, films and news items capturing the key moments, people and places in Welsh history.