Betsan Powys (born 1965), is a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

and former Editor of Programmes for

BBC Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio network owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts on two stations across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and online. The main network broadcasts for hours a day from ...

Biography

Powys was born in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

. A native

speaker after being educated at

Ysgol Gyfun Llanhari Ysgol Llanhari is a Welsh-medium school for 3-19 year olds situated in the village of Llanharry, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. History Llanhari is one of the Welsh medium secondary schools in the area, having opened in 1974. It followed Ysgol Gyfu ...

, Powys joined BBC Wales as a News Trainee in 1989, before joining the newsroom in

as a bilingual, bi-media reporter. Moving to Current Affairs in 1994 she reported undercover, where one investigation required her to pose as one half of a swinging couple in the "Garden of Eden", a West Wales

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

. Powys then presented the Welsh language news programme ''Newyddion,'' was chief reporter on the European current affairs series , and joined

Huw Edwards Huw Edwards (; born 18 August 1961) is a Welsh journalist, presenter, and newsreader. Edwards presents ''BBC News at Ten'', the corporation's flagship news broadcast. Edwards also presents BBC coverage of state events, international events, th ...

to front

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

national election specials. Powys was lent for a period to

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

's flagship current affairs programme ''

Panorama A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word was originally coined in ...

,'' during which time she returned to Wales to give birth to her daughter. Her first report for ''Panorama'' was an investigation into the way

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

deal with allegations of child abuse, while her first worldwide exclusive occurred when she persuaded the commanding officer of 30

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers ( cy, Ffiwsilwyr Brenhinol Cymreig) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales' Division, that was founded in 1689; shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated ...

held hostage in

Goražde Goražde ( cyrl, Горажде, ) is a city and the administrative center of Bosnian-Podrinje Canton Goražde of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of Drina river. As of 2 ...

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and He ...

, to allow her to interview colleagues and friends, agreeing to his condition that the programme would be broadcast only "in the Gaelic tongue." After working for a period at

ITV Wales ITV Cymru Wales, previously known as Harlech Television and HTV Wales, is the ITV franchise for Wales. The new separate licence began on 1 January 2014, replacing the long-serving dual franchise region serving Wales and the West of England. Li ...

, she returned to BBC Wales as Culture and Media Correspondent, and as a result of presenting '' Week In Week Out'' she won the BT Welsh Journalist of the Year. Powys also presented the Welsh-language version of ''

Mastermind Mastermind, Master Mind or The Mastermind may refer to: Fictional characters * Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde), a fictional supervillain in Marvel Comics, a title also held by his daughters: ** Martinique Jason, the first daughter and successor of th ...

'' on S4C. From 11 September 2006, Powys replaced the retiring David Williams, and took editorial charge of all BBC Wales' daily political output ahead of the

Welsh Assembly The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gove ...

elections in 2007. She resigned from this role in June 2013. Powys is a frequent contributor to Radio Cymru's popular and is regarded as a stalwart of the programme, adding much to its 'flagship' status as the BBC's most prestigious Bangor-produced daily news broadcasts. She was appointed Editor of Programmes (in effect, director) of BBC Radio Cymru in May 2013, taking up her post from July 2013. In June 2018, Powys announced that she would leave the role, with effect from Autumn 2018. Since leaving the BBC, Powys has returned to broadcasting for both television and radio. In December 2019 she joined

Dewi Llwyd Dewi Llwyd (born 1954) is a Welsh journalist and television presenter who is best known for his work for S4C. He presented the Welsh-language news programme ''Newyddion'' until the end of 2012, and Pawb a'i Farn until the end of 2019. Llwyd cur ...

and

Vaughan Roderick Vaughan Roderick (born 5 June 1957) is a Welsh radio and television journalist and news presenter. Television Roderick is BBC Cymru Wales' editor for Welsh affairs on '' Wales Today'' and S4C's ''Newyddion'' respectively, having previously ancho ...

as co-presenter for S4C and

's coverage of the 2019 General Election (''Etholiad 2019''). During the Election campaign Powys also fronted ''The Leaders Lounge'' for

BBC Radio Wales BBC Radio Wales is a Welsh radio station owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It began broadcasting on 13 November 1978, replacing the 'Radio 4 Wales' opt-out service (previously the Welsh Home Service). Radio Wales br ...

. In July 2020, she replaced Llwyd as presenter of (, a Welsh-language equivalent to ''

Question Time A question time in a parliament occurs when members of the parliament ask questions of government ministers (including the prime minister), which they are obliged to answer. It usually occurs daily while parliament is sitting, though it can be ca ...

'').

Personal life

Powys lives with Dylan Hammond, a former artist. She lists her hobbies as choral singing, harp music and competing in choral recitation competitions at local and chapel . She is a member of the Gorsedd of the Bards and has adopted the bardic name ''Betsi Treganna''.

References

External links

Betsan's blog – BBC Wales' political editor. I'll be blogging the inside track on Welsh politics.Betsan Powys Welsh Assembly Election blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powys, Betsan 1964 births Living people Welsh-speaking journalists BBC Cymru Wales newsreaders and journalists BBC Radio Wales presenters Welsh bloggers Welsh women bloggers Welsh women journalists Welsh radio presenters Welsh women radio presenters People educated at Ysgol Gyfun Llanhari People educated at Ysgol Tryfan