DENBIGHSHIRE is hoping to invite the National Eisteddfod back to the county over the next decade.
Denbighshire County Council's cabinet has supported a proposal that will see an expression of interest being submitted to the National Eisteddfod for the popular annual festival to be held in the county before 2032.
Cllr Emrys Wynne, Denbighshire's lead member for the Welsh Language, said he was asking for "support of the cabinet to express an interest in inviting the National Eisteddfod to Denbighshire in the years following 2025".
Cllr Wynne said the wish would be for the Eisteddfod to pay a visit to the county between 2026 and 2031, with 2027, 2029 or 2031 the likeliest options.
The value of this would be 150,000 visitors coming to the area and "income of £22m to the local economy" stressed Cllr Wynne.
Already this century, the National Eisteddfod has been held twice in Denbigh, with Rhuddlan being Cllr Wynne's preferred location for the next festival.
Cllr Gwyneth Ellis, offering her support for the recommendation, feels the Eisteddfod should be held in the south of the county.
Cllr Win Mullen-Jones said she was in "full agreement" with the proposal to welcome the Eisteddfod to the county once more, a viewpoint echoed by Cllr Gill German, who said her preference was for a north Denbighshire event.
Councillors were told that the location of the week-long festivel will be decided by the National Eisteddfod.
Rhuddlan Town Council is keen for a site in their area to be considered, but the festival’s final location will be decided by the Eisteddfod.
Local authorities, though, are being asked to identify possible sites for consideration, and the council report specifically refers to Rhuddlan as an early candidate.
The event is the largest of several eisteddfodau held annually and features eight days of music and poetry competitions and performances.
The National Eisteddfod is often considered one of the great cultural festivals of the world, typically attracting in the region of 150,000 visitors each year, bringing in an estimated £22m.
This year’s event will be held in Llŷn and Eifionydd, Boduan, Gwynedd, from August 5-12.
Denbighshire last hosted the event in 2013 when it was welcomed by Denbigh, with the town also the site of the festival in 2001.
Whilst locations for the National Eisteddfod and Urdd Eisteddfod have been agreed up to and including 2025, the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) is now preparing locations for between 2026 and 2031.
Typically, the cultural festival alternates between north, south, and mid Wales.
Denbighshire, though, last hosted the Urdd Eisteddfod – the Welsh-language youth festival of literature, music, and performing arts – last year so will likely resist submitting for consideration.
The WLGA has partnership agreements in place to help fund both eisteddfodau.
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