Wales Celebrates Poet Dylan Thomas’s New York Connections during his Centenary Birth Year

First Minister and Dylan’s Granddaughter Explore Dylan’s Haunts on the

Dylan Thomas Walking Tour of Greenwich Village

New Free App and Pocket Guidebook Launched

New York, New York – February 27, 2014 - Wales’s First Minister, Carwyn Jones and Dylan Thomas’s granddaughter, Hannah Ellis, officially launched the walking tour of Dylan’s New York haunts created by his daughter Aeronwy Thomas Ellis and contemporary Welsh poet Peter Thabit Jones. A newly developed smartphone app highlights 10 places located in and around Greenwich Village synonymous with Dylan Thomas, who visited and stayed in New York City while on four reading tours of North America between 1950 and 1953.  He died at St. Vincent’s Hospital on November 9, 1953.

Narrated by Welsh actor Nicholas McGaughey, and developed by the Pembrokeshire company Moilin Cyf, the app is a self-guided tour which takes about 1:30-2hrs to complete. More information on the app can be found on the following linkhttp://moil.in/dtnytour.  The app can be downloaded free of charge from iTunes and Google Play.

A pocket guidebook version of the tour is also available:

http://www.amazon.com/Dylan-Thomas-Walking-Greenwich-Village/dp/0893049972  or from

www.spdbooks.org/dylan-thomas-walking-tour-of-greenwich-village.

The First Minister of Wales is visiting the USA to raise the profile of Wales in time for St David’s Day festivities on March 1.  St. David is the Patron Saint of Wales. He said, “I’m delighted to launch this new walking app today. The walking tour has given a valuable insight into his life in New York which I hope many fans of his work will wish to follow. And the Welsh Government is proud to be leading on the Dylan Thomas 100 Festival to further raise the awareness of this internationally admired Welsh cultural icon.”

Dylan Thomas was born in Swansea on October 27, 1914 and the Dylan Thomas 100 Festival, celebrating the Centenary of his birth, is in full gear in Wales. The festival encompasses the entire country and beyond.  And the program ranges across all artistic disciplines – from literature, to opera, theatre and painting. From high profile exhibits and live performances to community-based educational programs.  This celebration will transcend geographic boundaries, stretching beyond Wales to New York.  For information on the New York-based events: www.dylanthomas100.org.

Notes to Editors:

The Welsh Government is the devolved administration responsible for governing Wales in the UK. The Welsh Government’s US office is in New York where a small but dedicated team is raising the profile of Wales in the USA in order to stimulate trade and investment, tourism, and academic and cultural links between Wales and America.

Dylan Thomas 100 is a high-profile festival to mark the centenary of Dylan Thomas’s birth in 2014. The Welsh Government is leading the co-ordination of activity in Wales with its partners - Arts Council of Wales; British Council; Literature Wales; Carmarthenshire County Council; Ceredigion County Council, City and County of Swansea and Cadw. The aim is to ensure the festival delivers educational, cultural and tourism benefits before, during and after 2014

Literature Wales Chief Executive, Lleucu Siencyn, said: “The walking tour of Greenwich Village is a special part of Literature Wales’ Dylan Odyssey event programme, which offers a host of unique Dylan Thomas-inspired literary tours. We are delighted to be able to play an integral part in this strong partnership between the creative and technological industries in the development of this app which will bring the words and landscapes of Dylan Thomas to a global audience.”

British Council Wales is leading the co-ordination and development of “Starless and Bible Black,” the international program for the Dylan Thomas 100 Centenary. The anniversary presents an important opportunity for the British Council to complement the work and investment of national partners in Wales.

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