2003 in Wales

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2002 | 2004 | Other years in Wales

2003 in the United Kingdom

2003 in Ireland

Other events of 2003

This article is about the particular significance of the year 2003 to Wales and its people.

Contents 1 Incumbents 2 Events 3 Arts and literature 3.1 Awards 3.2 New books 4 Music 4.1 Albums 5 Film 5.1 English-language films 5.2 Welsh-language films 6 Broadcasting 6.1 Welsh-language television 6.2 English-language television 7 Sport 8 Births 9 Deaths

[edit] Incumbents

• Prince of Wales - Charles, Prince of Wales
• Princess of Wales - vacant
• First Minister - Rhodri Morgan
• Presiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales - Dafydd Elis-Thomas
• Secretary of State for Wales - Peter Hain
• Archbishop of Wales - Barry Morgan (Bishop of Llandaff)

[edit] Events

• February - Former Conservative Assembly leader Rod Richards is declared bankrupt with debts estimated at over £300,000.
• February 27 - Rowan Williams is enthroned as Archbishop of Canterbury. Dominic Walker is installed as his replacement as Bishop of Monmouth
• March 9 - Ron Davies announces that he is quitting politics after being asked to stand down by his local party following further revelations by the press about his private life.
• May 1 - In the National Assembly for Wales election, Labour win 30 seats, enabling them to form a government.

Following disappointing results for Plaid Cymru, Ieuan Wyn Jones stands down as party president and leader of the assembly group.

• June 19 - Prince William of Wales visits Bangor and Anglesey, to mark his 21st birthday (on June 21).
• August
  • National Eisteddfod of Wales held at Meifod.
  • A memorial to Owain Lawgoch is unveiled at Montague-sur-Gironde, France.
• September - Porthmadog Cob is bought by the Welsh Assembly Government and the road toll is discontinued after 192 years.
• October - Dafydd Iwan, newly-elected President of Plaid Cymru, escapes a driving ban for speeding offences on the grounds that he needs to drive to fulfil his musical and political engagements.
• 12 October - The Friends of the Leinster hold a service at Holyhead to commemorate the 85th anniversary of the sinking of RMS Leinster by a German U-boat.
• November - Michael Howard becomes leader of the Conservative Party.
• December - Dafydd Wigley is appointed Pro-Chancellor of the University of Wales.
• The former Brain's Old Brewery site in Cardiff is redeveloped into the 85,000 sq ft "Old Brewery Quarter".
• Veteran Cardiff politician Stefan Terlezki goes to the European Parliament to press the case for eventual Ukrainian membership of the European Union.
• In Channel 4's 100 Worst Britons poll (which included only living people), the following entries had Welsh connections:
  • H from Steps - 8
  • Charlotte Church - 21
  • Charles, Prince of Wales - 24
  • Catherine Zeta-Jones - 39
  • Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen - 42
  • Vinnie Jones - 61
  • Tom Jones - 72

[edit] Arts and literature

[edit] Awards

• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - Twm Morys
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - Mererid Hopwood
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - Cefin Roberts
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Music Medal - Owain Llwyd
• Wales Book of the Year:
  • English language: Sugar and Slate - Charlotte Williams
  • Welsh language: O! Tyn y Gorchudd - Hunangofiant Rebecca Jones - Angharad Price
• Gwobr Goffa Daniel Owen - Elfyn Pritchard, Pan ddaw'r dydd
• John Tripp Award for Spoken Poetry: Emily Hinshelwood

[edit] New books

• Rhys Hughes - The Percolated Stars
• Bernice Rubens - The Sergeants' Tale

[edit] Music

[edit] Albums

• Huw Chiswell - Dere Nawr
• Elin Fflur - Dim Gair (No Words)
• Catrin Finch - Crossing the Stone
• Funeral for a Friend - Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation
• Karl Jenkins - Adiemus V: Vocalise
• Stereophonics - You Gotta Go There to Come Back
• Thighpaulsandra - Double Vulgar

[edit] Film

[edit] English-language films

• Michael Sheen stars in Underworld.

[edit] Welsh-language films

• Y Mabinogi

[edit] Broadcasting

[edit] Welsh-language television

• Wawffactor' is S4C's answer to Pop Idol.

[edit] English-language television

• Michael Sheen and Paul Rhys star in the award-winning TV drama, The Deal
• The Story of Welsh presented by Huw Edwards
• Quest For Perfection, written and presented by Russell Davies on BBC Four

[edit] Sport

• Cricket
  • December 31 - Tony Lewis is awarded the CBE in the New Year Honours List.
• Cycling - Nicole Cooke wins La Flèche Wallonne Féminine for the first time.
• Rugby union
  • October - The Welsh team participate in the Rugby World Cup in Australia. Having defeated Canada 41-10, Tonga 27-20, and Italy 41-10, they lose to New Zealand 37-53 and to England 17-28 to go out of the competition.
• Jamie Baulch finishes third in the BBC's Superstars event.

[edit] Births

[edit] Deaths

• 5 January - Roy Jenkins, politician and Chancellor of Oxford University
• 6 January - Glyn Davies, economist (born 1919)
• 17 January - Goronwy Daniel, academic and civil servant, 88
• 13 May - John Savage, prime minister of Nova Scotia 1993-97
• 29 May - Trevor Ford, footballer, 79
• 8 June - Leighton Rees, darts player, 63
• 10 June - Phil Williams, politician, 64
• 17 July - Dr David Kelly, government scientist
• 21 July - John Davies, Olympic athlete of Welsh descent
• 5 August - Benjamin Noel Young Vaughan, Bishop of Swansea and Brecon, 85
• 20 September - Gareth Williams, Baron Williams of Mostyn, politician, 62
• 25 September - David Williams, crime novelist, 77
• 7 October - Henry Herbert, 17th Earl of Pembroke, 64
• 23 November - Paul Grant, bodybuilding champion
• 1 December - Hugh Rees, politician, 75
• 19 December - Roy Hughes, Baron Islwyn, politician, 78
• date unknown - Brian Morgan Edwards, businessman