Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in

Bridgend County Borough Bridgend County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. The county borough has a total population of 139,200 people, and contains the town of Bridgend, after which it is named. It ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, west of

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 ...

and east of

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

. The town is named after the medieval bridge over the

River Ogmore The River Ogmore ( cy, Afon Ogwr) is a river in South Wales that is popular with anglers. It runs generally from north to south from the Ogmore Vale and Gilfach Goch, past Bridgend and Ogmore. The River Ogmore rises at Craig Ogwr (527 m) in the ...

. The

River Ewenny The Ewenny River ( cy, Afon Ewenni) is a river in South Wales. For most of its length, it forms the border between the Vale of Glamorgan and Bridgend. It is a major tributary of the River Ogmore, which it joins near its estuary. Course The rive ...

also flows through the town. The population was 49,597 in 2021.

Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

a part of

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

, Bridgend has greatly expanded in size since the early 1980s – the 2001 census recorded a population of 39,429 for the town and the 2011 census reported that the Bridgend Local Authority had a population of 139,200 – up from 128,700 in 2001. This 8.2% increase was the largest increase in Wales except for Cardiff. The town is undergoing a redevelopment project, with the town centre mainly pedestrianised and ongoing works including Brackla Street Centre redevelopment to Bridgend Shopping Centre, Rhiw Car Park redevelopment, ongoing public realm improvements and the upgrade of the Bridgend Life Centre and demolition of Sunnyside offices to accommodate a large retirement complex.

History

Prehistoric and Roman

Several

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

burial mounds have been found in the vicinity of Bridgend, suggesting that the area was settled before

Roman times In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

. The A48 between Bridgend and

Cowbridge Cowbridge ( cy, Y Bont-faen) is a market town in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, approximately west of the centre of Cardiff. The Cowbridge with Llanblethian community and civil parish elect a town council. A Cowbridge electoral ward exists for e ...

has a portion, known locally as "Crack Hill", a

Roman road Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...

and the 'Golden Mile' where it is believed Roman soldiers were lined up to be paid. The

Vale of Glamorgan The Vale of Glamorgan ( cy, Bro Morgannwg ), often referred to as The Vale, is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It borders Bridgend County Borough to the west, Cardiff to the east, Rhondda Cynon Taf to the north, and the Bristol C ...

would have been a natural low-level route west to the

Roman fort In the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, the Latin word ''castrum'', plural ''castra'', was a military-related term. In Latin usage, the singular form ''castrum'' meant 'fort', while the plural form ''castra'' meant 'camp'. The singular and ...

and harbour at

Neath Neath (; cy, Castell-nedd) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a po ...

(''

Nidum Nidum (or NIDVM) is a Roman fort found in Cwrt Herbert near the town of Neath, in Wales. An Auxiliary fort first built in around 74AD from earth banks and wooden structures, it underwent a reduction in size from 3.3 to 2.3 hectares (8 to 6 acres) ...

'') from settlements in the east like Cardiff and

Caerleon Caerleon (; cy, Caerllion) is a town and community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman ...

(''Isca'').

Norman invasion

In the decades after the

Norman conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in 1066, the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Fran ...

looked westwards to create new seats for lords loyal to

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

. Groups of Norman barons arrived in Wales, and in the south and east created what would later become the

Welsh Marches The Welsh Marches ( cy, Y Mers) is an imprecisely defined area along the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods. The English term Welsh March (in Medieval Latin ...

, while the north and west remained largely unconquered. At

Coity Coity is a village in Bridgend County Borough, south Wales, part of Bridgend town urban area. Coity is part of the community of Coity Higher and is notable for being home to Coity Castle, one of the best preserved castles in Glamorgan. Other bui ...

, the local Welsh chieftain Morgan Gam already had a stronghold. Sometime in the 11th century, Norman Lord Payn de Turberville approached Morgan to turn over control of

Coity Castle Coity Castle ( cy, Castell Coety) in Glamorgan, Wales, is a Norman castle built by Sir Payn "the Demon" de Turberville (fl. 1126), one of the legendary Twelve Knights of Glamorgan supposed to have conquered Glamorgan under the leadership of R ...

to Turberville. Morgan Gam agreed, on condition that Turberville either fought Morgan for the land, or took Gam's daughter Sybil's hand in marriage. Turberville married Sybil and became Lord of Coity, and rebuilt the castle. Newcastle Castle (on Newcastle Hill, overlooking the town centre, 1106) and

Ogmore Castle Ogmore Castle ( cy, Castell Ogwr) is a Grade I listed castle ruin located near the village of Ogmore-by-Sea, south of the town of Bridgend in Glamorgan, South Wales. It is situated on the south bank of the River Ewenny and the east bank of the Riv ...

(1116) were built by

Robert Fitzhamon Robert Fitzhamon (died March 1107), or Robert FitzHamon (literally, 'Robert, son of Hamon'), Seigneur de Creully in the Calvados region and Torigny in the Manche region of Normandy, was the first Norman feudal baron of Gloucester and the Norma ...

and

William de Londres William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

, respectively. About north-east of

, Maurice de Londres founded the fortified

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

Ewenny Priory Ewenny Priory ( cy, Priordy Ewenni), in Ewenny in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, was a monastery of the Benedictine order, founded in the 12th century. The priory was unusual in having extensive military-style defences and in its state of preserva ...

in 1141. These three castles provided a "defensive triangle" for the area – a quadrilateral if Ewenny Priory is included.

Early development

Bridgend developed at a

ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

on the

, which was on the main route between east and

west Wales West Wales ( cy, Gorllewin Cymru) is not clearly defined as a particular region of Wales. Some definitions of West Wales include only Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, which historically comprised the Welsh principality of ''Deheuba ...

. Just north of the town is the confluence of three rivers, the Ogmore, the

Llynfi The River Llynfi, cy, Afon Llynfi, is one of three main tributaries of the River Ogmore ( cy, Afon Ogwr). It runs for around 10 miles from its source north of Maesteg and flows generally southwards through the Llynfi Valley to the confluence w ...

, and the Garw. South of Bridgend, the River Ewenny merges with the River Ogmore and flows into the

Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel ( cy, Môr Hafren, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Seve ...

. In the 15th century, a stone bridge was built as a permanent connection between the two sides of the Ogmore (and was later rebuilt). Originally, this bridge had four arches, but in the 18th century, a massive flood washed two of them away. The rest of the bridge still stands and remains a focal point of the town: aesthetic restoration took place in 2006. Bridgend grew rapidly into an agricultural town. It became an important

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

, a status it retained until the late 20th century.

Industrial era

The discovery of

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

in the South Wales Valleys north of Bridgend had a massive impact on the town. The first

coal mining Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

operations opened north of Bridgend in the 17th century; the Llynfi Valley was the first to be industrialised. Bridgend itself never had coal deposits and remained a market town for some time, but the valleys of the three rivers grew into an important part of the

South Wales coalfield The South Wales Coalfield ( cy, Maes glo De Cymru) extends across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Bridgend, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen. It is rich in coal deposits, espec ...

Ironworks An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''. Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...

and brickworks (notably at

Tondu Tondu ( en, Black Meadow) is a village in Bridgend County Borough, Wales, located about north of the town of Bridgend, in the community of Ynysawdre. Tondu lies on the A4063 from Bridgend to Maesteg, and was established in the late 18th centur ...

) were also established in the same period by

John Bedford John Bedford (c. 1720–1791) was an English iron worker and industrialist. Life He was born in Birmingham to John and Sarah Bedford, and followed his father into the iron trade to become a japanner in 1748. Bedford was perhaps best known for h ...

, although the ironworks faltered after his death and ceased operating entirely in 1836. The

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

arrived and Bridgend was at the junction between the main

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Fishguard Fishguard ( cy, Abergwaun, meaning "Mouth of the River Gwaun") is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, with a population of 3,419 in 2011; the community of Fishguard and Goodwick had a population of 5,407. Modern Fishguard consists of two pa ...

line and the branch to the three valleys. Frequent coal trains took coal down the valleys; and when the Vale of Glamorgan railway opened, coal could be sent directly to port at

Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...

or via other branch lines to

Porthcawl Porthcawl (, ) is a town and community on the south coast of Wales in the county borough of Bridgend, west of the capital city, Cardiff and southeast of Swansea. Historically part of Glamorgan and situated on a low limestone headland on the So ...

. Several

quarries A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their environ ...

opened in and around Bridgend town centre; some remnants of these can still be seen today near Brackla. An engine works was opened in the town and a larger farmers' market also opened in the town centre, where it remained until the 1970s. In 1801, the population of what is now Bridgend County was around 6000. By the beginning of the 20th century this had risen to 61,000. By this time Bridgend was a bustling market town with prosperous valleys to the north, a thriving community and good links to other towns and cities.

Second World War

In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Bridgend had a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

(POW) camp at

Island Farm Island Farm, also called Camp 198, was a prisoner of war camp on the outskirts of the town of Bridgend, South Wales. It hosted a number of Axis prisoners, mainly German, and was the scene of the largest escape attempt by German POWs in Britain d ...

and a large

munitions Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...

factory (

ROF Bridgend ROF Bridgend, (Filling Factory No. 2), located in Bridgend, South Wales, was one of the largest of sixteen World War II, UK government-owned, Royal Ordnance Factory munitions Filling Factories. Of great significance to the Britain's war effort, a ...

– known as the "Admiralty") at Waterton, as well as a large underground munitions storage base at

Brackla Brackla ( cy, Bracla) is a large housing estate and community in the east of Bridgend in Bridgend County Borough, Wales. Along with the communities of Bridgend and Coychurch Lower, it makes up the town of Bridgend. At the 2001 census the communi ...

(known as the 8Xs). This was an overspill of the

Royal Arsenal The Royal Arsenal, Woolwich is an establishment on the south bank of the River Thames in Woolwich in south-east London, England, that was used for the manufacture of armaments and ammunition, proofing, and explosives research for the Britis ...

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

. At its peak, the arsenal had 40,000 workers, many of them women. Large numbers of them were transported by bus from the

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley ('' ...

and the valleys. The factory complex had three sites in Bridgend, all linked together by a large network of railways. Many reminders of the factory sites remain to this day �
Brackla Ordnance Site
In March 1945, 87 POWs from

escaped through a tunnel, but all were recaptured. While Bridgend was as important during the war as any other part of Wales, and although it was photographed by the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

, it was never blitzed, although the area immediately around Bridgend did suffer bombing raids. The admiralty ceased full-scale production in December 1945 after five years. Two of the munitions-storage magazines in the Brackla ROF site were converted to a regional government headquarters during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

as part of the UK

continuity of government Continuity of government (COG) is the principle of establishing defined procedures that allow a government to continue its essential operations in case of a catastrophic event such as nuclear war. COG was developed by the British government bef ...

plans. It is now in the hands of a private company.

After the war

Bridgend remained a solid market town after the war. In 1948, Newbridge Fields (a short distance from the town centre) hosted the 1948

National Eisteddfod The National Eisteddfod of Wales (Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competitors ...

. In 1960, the River Ogmore burst its banks and flooded the town centre. Subsequent floods and extreme weather led the

Welsh Water 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 peopl ...

Authority to develop concrete flood defence walls along the banks of the River Ogmore in the town centre. The town centre has not been flooded since. During this time, Bridgend was chosen to become the headquarters for

South Wales Police South Wales Police ( cy, Heddlu De Cymru) is one of the four territorial police forces in Wales. It is headquartered in Bridgend. The force was formed as South Wales Constabulary on 1 June 1969, by the amalgamation of the former Glamorgan Const ...

. This action was ideal as geographically, Bridgend stands equidistantly between Swansea to the west and Cardiff to the east. The

Beeching cuts The Beeching cuts (also Beeching Axe) was a plan to increase the efficiency of the nationalised British Rail, railway system in Great Britain. The plan was outlined in two reports: ''The Reshaping of British Railways'' (1963) and ''The Develop ...

of the 1960s had the loss of passenger rail links in the Vale of Glamorgan and to the northern valleys. The Vale of Glamorgan link to

via

Rhoose Rhoose ( , cy, Y Rhws from "the moor") is a village and community near the sea (the Bristol Channel) in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, near Barry. The wider community includes villages and settlements such as Font-y-Gary, Penmark, East Abertha ...

was reinstated in June 2005. In the 1970s, Bridgend began to see the catalyst of arguably its biggest growth period. The "missing section" of the

M4 motorway The M4, originally the London-South Wales Motorway, is a motorway in the United Kingdom running from west London to southwest Wales. The English section to the Severn Bridge was constructed between 1961 and 1971; the Welsh element was largely ...

was constructed around the town, plans were afoot to change the Waterton Admiralty into an industrial estate, and the water supply was improved including new

sewage treatment Sewage treatment (or domestic wastewater treatment, municipal wastewater treatment) is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable for discharge to the surrounding envir ...

works near Ogmore. Two major multinational

corporation A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...

s, the

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

and

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

, set up factories in or on the outskirts of the new

Bridgend Industrial Estate Bridgend Industrial Estate is a large industrial park complex in Bridgend, Wales. It is made up of three adjoining Industrial Estates, being Waterton, Bridgend, and North Road and incorporating a retail park in Waterton. History It was built on ...

(former Waterton Arsenal). The development of the Brackla Housing Estate in the 1980s, housing developments at Broadlands to the south-west of the town centre and the continuing expansion of Brackla to the north-east have caused Bridgend's population to swell dramatically. Due to this, traffic congestion and a lack of parking facilities within the town have become important issues in the area. In 1997, a new link road/ bypass was built to link the town centre directly to the M4 motorway, as well as redirect traffic around the town centre. A new

Securicor Securicor plc was one of the United Kingdom's largest security businesses. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but merged with Group 4 Falck in 2004. History The Company was founded by Edward Shortt, a former Liberal Cabinet Minister, ...

-operated prison ( HM Parc Prison) was built near Coity in the late 1990s. The prison opened in November 1997. The McArthur Glen Designer Outlet opened in 1998.

New millennium

Objective 1 The regional policy of the European Union (EU), also referred as Cohesion Policy, is a policy with the stated aim of improving the economic well-being of regions in the European Union and also to avoid regional disparities. More than one third ...

investment in regeneration and public realm improvements has led to the pedestrianisation of the town centre and the restoration of some buildings. Some local traders have argued that this has damaged trade due to a lack of access by taxis and the disabled. Car parking provision and pricing have also been a concern to retailers with calls for free or reduced-price parking to increase town centre visits. To counteract the dominance of

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues and the ninth-largest in th ...

in the area,

Asda Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of York ...

were granted planning permission for a new superstore near the town centre. The store was opened on 31 March 2008 by the local MP, and players from

Bridgend Ravens Bridgend Ravens ( cy, Cigfrain Pen-y-bont) (formerly Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales. They currently play in the Welsh Premier Division and are a feeder club to the Ospreys regional team ...

. Over 1500 customers were thought to have walked through the new doors to take a look around the new store. In 2004, an award-winning new bus station was constructed and traffic movements around the town centre were altered. Local committees, together with the council, started to use the pedestrianisation of the town centre to its advantage, culminating in several fairs including Continental Markets,

Celt The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient ...

ic Festivals, a small

Mardi-Gras Mardi Gras (, ) refers to events of the Carnival celebration, beginning on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three Kings Day) and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday, which is known as Shrove Tuesday. is French for "F ...

, and seasonal markets and events. Bridgend Council estimated in 2009 that these events have brought 900,000 visitors to the town and generated around £53 million for the local economy. riverside walk

About £2.5 million of European funding was used to create a "riverside café culture" by constructing a walkway along the

, which was completed in March 2009.

Future developments

Construction on a 1500-home sustainable "village" at Parc Derwen near Coity began in 2011. The scheme was a collaboration between several house-builders and public bodies including the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

, and was planned with strict guidelines regarding architecture and the environment. Concerns exist from Coity in particular that this development may impact on their village's identity. Studies were carried out by the local council with a view to improving retail provision in the town centre. Attracting bigger high-street chains to the town, such as

Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer Group plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks's or Marks & Sparks) is a major British multinational retailer with headquarters in Paddington, London that specialises in selling clothing, beauty, home ...

Next Next may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Next'' (1990 film), an animated short about William Shakespeare * ''Next'' (2007 film), a sci-fi film starring Nicolas Cage * '' Next: A Primer on Urban Painting'', a 2005 documentary film Lit ...

, and

Debenhams Debenhams plc was a British department store chain operating in the United Kingdom, Denmark and the Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1778 as a single store in London and grew to 178 locations across those countries, also owning the Danish ...

is seen as key to this. At Elder Yard, a derelict Grade II-listed building in the heart of the town centre is due to be converted to a restaurant and provide the impetus for other improvements there, including a public courtyard and extra retail and leisure provision.

Politics

As of December 2019, the local Member of Parliament is

Jamie Wallis Jamie Hamilton Wallis (born 2 June 1984) is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Bridgend in Wales since the 2019 general election. Wallis defeated incumbent Labour MP Madeleine Moon, who had re ...

(Welsh Conservative), the

Member of the Senedd A Member of the Senedd (MS; plural: ''MSs''; cy, Aelodau o'r Senedd; , plural:) (AS)., group=la is a representative elected to the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ). There are sixty members, with forty members chosen to represent individual Senedd ...

for Bridgend is Sarah Murphy (Labour) along with the regional members for the South Wales West region:

Luke Fletcher Luke Jack Fletcher (born 18 September 1988) is an English cricketer who bats right-handed and bowls right-arm medium-fast. He has played for Nottinghamshire since 2008, with loan spells at Derbyshire and Surrey. In franchise cricket, he has pla ...

(Plaid Cymru),

Thomas Giffard Sir Thomas Giffard (c.1491 – 27 May 1560) was a Tudor dynasty, Tudor courtier, Staffordshire landowner and Member of the English Parliament. Background and early life Thomas Giffard's father was John Giffard (died 1556), Sir John Giffard of ...

(Conservative), Altaf Hussain (Conservative) and

Sioned Williams Sioned Williams is a Welsh politician and a Member of the Senedd (MS) for the South Wales West (Senedd electoral region), South Wales West region since 2021 Senedd election, 2021. Williams is a member of Plaid Cymru. Early life Williams was bor ...

(Plaid Cymru).

Local government

Bridgend County Borough Council Bridgend County Borough Council ( cy, Cyngor Bwrdeistref Sirol Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr) is the governing body for Bridgend County Borough, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. History Bridgend County Borough and Bridgend County Borough Council came ...

is led by the Welsh Labour Party, which has been running a majority administration since the May 2022 local elections, where the Labour party gained ten seats to finish on 27 out of a possible 51 seats. At those elections Independents won 21 seats, Plaid Cymru 2 and the Conservatives 1. A few weeks after the elections Labour lost the ward of Bridgend Central in a by-election to an independent candidate reducing the Labour group to 26 and increasing the independent group to 22. After the 2012 election, the council was made up of 39 Labour councillors, 10 Independents, 3 Liberal Democrats, 1 Conservative and 1 Plaid Cymru. The Youth Mayor of Bridgend County Borough as of 2017 is Niamh Gwilym, and the Deputy Youth Mayor is Leigh Williams. Bridgend was an

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

Glamorgan County Council Glamorgan County Council was established in 1889 together with the administrative county of Glamorganshire under the Local Government Act 1888. The first elections to the council were held in January 1889. The council was abolished under the Local ...

from 1889 to 1974, electing the

Earl of Dunraven Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl (usually referred to as Earl of Dunraven) was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 5 February 1822 for Valentine Quin, 1st Viscount Mount-Earl. Quin had already been created a Baronet, of Adare ...

as its first representative. Since 1995 the town has been covered by three wards to Bridgend County Borough Council, Morfa, Oldcastle and

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

, which each elect two councillors. At the Town Council level, Bridgend is represented by nineteen town councillors on Bridgend Town Council, elected from the three town wards of Morfa, Oldcastle and

Economy

Bridgend's

travel to work area A travel to work area or TTWA is a statistical tool used by UK Government agencies and local authorities, especially by the Department for Work and Pensions and Jobcentres, to indicate an area where the population would generally commute to a ...

has expanded since 1991 and the 2001-based area now incorporates the western part of the

. Bridgend recovered quickly from the decline of traditional industries, particularly coal-mining due to other alternative forms of employment. Wages are generally higher here than in other parts of the South Wales valleys. There are large industrial estates at Bridgend and Waterton (formerly Waterton Admiralty) which host a number of small-scale and multi-national companies, mainly manufacturing.

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

's engine plant near Waterton used to employ around 2,000 workers and was one of the area's largest employers, working on range of low carbon "EcoBoost" engines. The plant won praise from

Peter Mandelson Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson (born 21 October 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who served as First Secretary of State from 2009 to 2010. He was President of the Board of Trade in 1998 and from 2008 to 2010. He is the ...

in January 2009 who described it as "a top-of-the-class, world-beating engine production plant." Ford invested £315million in the Bridgend plant between 2004 and 2009. The Ford plant closed in September 2020. IT Consultancy Group CGI have an office in Bridgend, and

Lidl Lidl Stiftung & Co. KG (; ) is a German international discount retailer chain that operates over 11,000 stores across Europe and the United States. Headquartered in Neckarsulm, Baden-Württemberg, the company belongs to the Schwarz Group, whi ...

has also set up its Welsh headquarters and distribution site at Waterton. Zoobiotic, a company specialising in

maggot therapy Maggot therapy (also known as larval therapy) is a type of biotherapy involving the introduction of live, disinfected maggots (fly larvae) into non-healing skin and soft-tissue wounds of a human or other animal for the purpose of cleaning out the ...

, has its facility near Bridgend town centre. Also, since 1983, famous

dart board Darts or dart-throwing is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small sharp-pointed missiles known as darts at a round target known as a dartboard. Points can be scored by hitting specific marked areas of the boa ...

producer

Winmau Winmau, pronounced "win more", is a Welsh manufacturer of dartboards, other darts equipment and title sponsor of the oldest darts tournament still running, the Winmau World Masters. Founded in 1945, Winmau was acquired by rival dartboard manufac ...

has based its global headquarters in Bridgend. Others include

Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics Ortho Clinical Diagnostics is an in vitro diagnostics company that makes products and diagnostic equipment for blood testing. Ortho serves two primary industries in the medical field: clinical laboratories, by producing platforms and assays that ...

Staedtler Staedtler Mars GmbH & Co. KG () is a German multinational stationery manufacturing company based in Nuremberg. The firm was founded by J.S. Staedtler (1800–1872) in 1835 and produces a large variety of stationery products, such as writing implem ...

, engineering consultancy

Skanska Skanska AB () is a multinational construction and development company based in Sweden. Skanska is the fifth-largest construction company in the world according to ''Construction Global'' magazine. Notable Skanska projects include renovation of t ...

, aeronautic maintenance and project management company TES Aviation and home accessories manufacturer Dekor plc. The Semiconductor Photomask Company, Photronics Inc, has had a manufacturing operation for the last 20 years at the Ewenny Science Park. However, there have been significant economic blows to Bridgend including

's closure of the Bridgend plant and downsizing of the Pencoed plant. The plant is still Sony's biggest in the UK despite this. Other manufacturers to have pulled out of the area include

Wrigley Company The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, known as the Wrigley Company, is an American multinational chewing gum (Wrigley's gum) company, based in the Global Innovation Center (GIC) in Goose Island, Chicago, Illinois. Wrigley's is wholly owned by Mars, In ...

and

Dairy Farmers of Britain Dairy Farmers of Britain (DFoB) was a UK co-operative milk processor that bought milk directly from farmers and had several factories producing milk and cheese products for sale in various regions throughout the UK. The company was formed as a r ...

which went into receivership in June 2009. Bridgend has a lack of high-wage service jobs; however the retail sector in particular provides a large proportion of employment in the town and borough. In 2008, there were 13,100 people in Bridgend County working in construction and manufacturing, while 42,900 were working in the service sector. Sub-regional GVA for the Bridgend & Neath Port Talbot NUTS3 region stood at £12,402 per capita in 2006 ($23,191 at June 2006 values). This figure represents 65% of the UK GVA per capita, 87% of

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 ...

GVA per capita (£14,226) and 103% of West Wales & The Valleys GVA per capita (£12,071). Gross disposable income for Bridgend & Neath Port Talbot in 2006 stood at £3,338 million or £12,379 per head. This was 88% of UK per head figure (£14,053) and slightly above the Welsh per head figure (£12,366). In 2008, the average full-time gross weekly earnings in Swansea, Bridgend & Neath Port Talbot was £484.20 (£531.70 for men, £426.10 for women). This was 97% of the Welsh average (£498.10). In the first half of 2009, unemployment in

stood at 8.9% and economic inactivity stood at 21.4%. The percentage of workless households in December 2008 stood at 20.6% compared to the UK average of 16% and the

average of 18.8%.

Shopping

In the town centre the main retail shopping areas are the Rhiw Shopping Centre (containing Bridgend Market), Adare Street, Caroline Street, Derwen Road, Nolton Street, Queen Street, Dunraven Place, Market Street and Cheapside (home of the Brackla Street Centre and Asda store). These are near the bus and railway stations and pay and display car parks. There are out-of-town shopping areas at Waterton, near the A473, on Cowbridge Road and at The Derwen, Junction 36 of the M4, home to the

Bridgend Designer Outlet The Bridgend Designer Outlet, also known as ''McArthurGlen Designer Outlet'' (and known locally as "The Pines") is a commercial retail park and outlet store development in Bridgend, Wales, United Kingdom. It is owned and operated by McArthurGlen G ...

Transport

Bridgend railway station , symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = File:Bridgend_Railway_Station,_Sept_2018.jpg , caption = Station entrance, September 2018 , address = , borough = Bridgend, Bridgend county borough , country = Wales , coordinates = , ...

has regular services to Cardiff Central, Bristol Parkway and

London Paddington Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a London station group, Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services pro ...

to the east; Port Talbot Parkway,

and the West Wales Line to the west; and

Maesteg Maesteg is a town and community in Bridgend County Borough, Wales. Maesteg lies at the northernmost end of the Llynfi Valley, close to the border with Neath Port Talbot. In 2011, Maesteg had a population of 20,612. The English translation of Mae ...

to the north. There are also services to

Manchester Piccadilly Manchester Piccadilly is the principal railway station in Manchester, England. Opened as Store Street in 1842, it was renamed Manchester London Road in 1847 and became Manchester Piccadilly in 1960. Located to the south-east of Manchester city ...

. Bridgend is the western terminus of the

Vale of Glamorgan Line The Vale of Glamorgan Line ( cy, Llinell Bro Morgannwg) is a commuter railway line in Wales, running through the Vale of Glamorgan from Barry to Bridgend, via Rhoose and Llantwit Major. Route The Barry branch starts at Cardiff West and ru ...

which reopened to passenger traffic in 2005.

Wildmill railway station , symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = Wildmill railway station, Bridgend (geograph 4125889).jpg , borough = Bridgend, Bridgend , country = Wales , coordinates = , g ...

, about north of

, serves the estates of Wildmill, Pendre and Litchard and is on the Bridgend-Maesteg branch line. A park and ride station at Brackla, about south-east of

is planned and is due to be constructed once capacity improvements have been made to the

South Wales Main Line The South Wales Main Line ( cy, Prif Linell De Cymru), originally known as the London, Bristol and South Wales Direct Railway or simply as the Bristol and South Wales Direct Railway, is a branch of the Great Western Main Line in Great Britain. ...

. Services to a new railway station in

Llanharan Llanharan is a village and community in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. As a community Llanharan takes in the neighbouring settlements of Bryncae, Brynna, Llanilid, Peterston-super-Montem and Ynysmaerdy. Llanharan thrived during ...

began in December 2007. Bridgend bus station has services to urban and rural areas in South Wales. Most services are operated by

First Cymru First Cymru is an operator of bus services in South West Wales. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup with its headquarters in Swansea. History In 1987, South Wales Transport was sold during the privatisation of the National Bus Company in a m ...

under the "Bridgend & County" livery. An east–west cycle route has been constructed from Brackla through to Broadlands and into Cefn Glas. Bridgend is on the

National Cycle Route The National Cycle Network (NCN) is the national cycling route network of the United Kingdom, which was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout Britain, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the cha ...

and there are off-road spurs from the

Celtic Trail The Celtic Trail is a network of dedicated cycle routes in the National Cycle Network, crossing West, South and Mid Wales, and covering 377 miles in total. It is divided into east and west sections. The west section links Pembroke and Fishgua ...

to the town centre and a community route in the

Ogmore Valley Ogmore Valley ( cy, Cwm Ogwr) is a community in the Bridgend County Borough, Mid Glamorgan, Wales. Made up of the villages of Nantymoel, Ogmore Vale, Price Town and Wyndham, its population at the time of the 2001 census was 7,800, increasing to ...

Glyncorrwg Glyncorrwg is a village in the Afan Valley, in southern Wales. Glyncorrwg is also the name of an electoral ward and formerly a community covering the village and surrounding countryside, in Neath Port Talbot county borough. Glyncorrwg community ...

and the Afan Valley about north of Bridgend near

is famed for its

mountain bike A mountain bike (MTB) or mountain bicycle is a bicycle designed for off-road cycling. Mountain bikes share some similarities with other bicycles, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain, which ...

trails, considered amongst the best in Europe. For scheduled and chartered air travel, Bridgend is served by

Cardiff International Airport Cardiff Airport ( cy, Maes Awyr Caerdydd) is the only airport offering commercial passenger services in Wales. It has been under the ownership of the Welsh Government since March 2013, operating at an arm's length as a commercial business. Pa ...

, to which there are direct

rail Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Rail (rail transport) or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' ( ...

and bus services.

Education

Bridgend town has three

comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is res ...

s: Archbishop McGrath Catholic Comprehensive,

Brynteg Comprehensive School Brynteg School ( cy, Ysgol Brynteg) is one of the largest secondary schools in Wales. It is located on Ewenny Road in Bridgend, Wales. The school is one of seven comprehensive schools in the County Borough of Bridgend and mainly receives pupils ...

and Bryntirion Comprehensive School. Brynteg generally serves the area east of the River Ogmore, while Bryntirion serves the areas west of the river. Brynteg is renowned for its rugby alumni, including

J.P.R. Williams John Peter Rhys Williams (born 2 March 1949) is a former Welsh rugby union player who represented Wales in international rugby during their Golden Era in the 1970s. He became known universally as J. P. R. Williams (or sometimes just as JPR) aft ...

Rob Howley Robert Howley (born 13 October 1970) is a Welsh former rugby union player and coach. As a player, he won 59 caps for Wales, 22 of them as captain. He was part of the Wales coaching team for many years. He is currently a coaching consultant for th ...

Gavin Henson Gavin Lloyd Henson (born 1 February 1982) is a Welsh former professional rugby union player, who played as a fly-half, fullback and inside centre. Between 2000 and 2019 he played for Llanelli, Swansea RFC, the Ospreys, Saracens, Toulon, Car ...

, Mike Hall and

Dafydd James Dafydd Rhys James (born 24 July 1975) is a Welsh former rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes o ...

; many talented athletes at other local schools join Brynteg to play for the school in the Welsh School Rugby Union leagues. The school has produced several Welsh rugby union internationals, and prominent athletes in other sports have also attended, including top female cyclist

Nicole Cooke Nicole Denise Cooke, MBE (born 13 April 1983) is a Welsh former professional road bicycle racer and Commonwealth, Olympic and World road race champion. At Beijing in 2008 she became the first British woman to win a Gold Olympic medal in an ...

. Bryntirion has also produced its fair share of sporting talent, notably

Gareth Llewellyn Gareth Owen Llewellyn (born 27 February 1969), is a Welsh former rugby union player who gained a record 92 caps for Wales as a lock. His record for Wales caps was surpassed by Gareth Thomas in May 2007. His brother, Glyn Llewellyn, also played i ...

and triathlete Marc Jenkins. Archbishop McGrath School covers the whole of the county, and moved to a new campus at

in 2011. At least nine primary,

junior school A Junior school is a type of school which provides primary education to children, often in the age range from 8 and 13, following attendance at Infant school which covers the age range 5–7. (As both Infant and Junior schools are giving Primary E ...

s, and

infant school An infant school is a term used primarily in England and Wales, for the education of children between the ages of four and seven years. It is usually a small school serving a particular area. It is sometimes a department in a larger primary school ...

s are in the town, though several of the junior and infant schools have merged to form single

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

s in recent years. Also, two special-educational needs schools are there: Heronsbridge School which is linked with Brynteg Comprehensive School and at the back of Bridgend College. It is for students of primary and secondary school ages with severe learning disabilities. Another school, Ysgol Bryn Castell, offers education for Key Stage 1–4 students with moderate to severe learning disabilities; it is linked with Bryntirion Comprehensive School and has opened up a satellite unit at Cynffig Comprehensive School, a few miles west of Bridgend.

Bridgend College Bridgend College ( cy, Coleg Penybont) is a further education college based in Bridgend, Wales. Founded in 1928 as the Bridgend Mining and Technical Institute, the college today has four campuses in Bridgend, Pencoed, Queens Road and Maesteg. T ...

is the town's

further education Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is education in addition to that received at secondary school, that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. I ...

and

higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...

provider; it primarily offers vocational courses and

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

s. It attracts school-leavers from as far as Swansea and Cardiff. It offers a range of higher-education courses such as

Postgraduate Certificate in Education The Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE/PGCertEd) is a one- or two-year higher education course in England, Wales and Northern Ireland which provides training in order to allow graduates to become teachers within maintained schools. In ...

Higher National Certificate A Higher National Certificate (HNC), part of the Higher Nationals suite of qualifications, is a higher education/further education qualification in the United Kingdom. Overview In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the HNC is a BTEC qualificatio ...

, and

Higher National Diploma Higher National Diploma (HND), part of the Higher Nationals suite of qualifications, is an academic higher education qualification in the United Kingdom and various other countries. They were first introduced in England and Wales in 1920 alongsi ...

in various subjects and master's programmes at its Queens Road campus on Bridgend Industrial Estate. These are mainly franchised from th
University of South Wales
The Pencoed Campus has a focus on sport, animal care, and horticulture, and Maesteg Campus offers more community-based programmes. Bridgend College has its own residence for students aged 16+ with learning difficulties and physical disabilities who come to the college from all over Wales.

Health

Since the closure and redevelopment of Bridgend General Hospital in the 1990s, acute-care and accident and emergency services have been provided by the

Princess of Wales Hospital The Princess of Wales Hospital ( cy, Ysbyty Tywysoges Cymru) is a district general hospital in Bridgend, Wales. It is managed by Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. History The hospital was commissioned to replace the aging Bridgend Gene ...

. GP's surgeries are scattered throughout the town, as are dentists. There is also a large

psychiatric hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociative ...

Glanrhyd Hospital Glanrhyd Hospital is a psychiatric hospital in Pen-y-fai near Bridgend in Wales. It is managed by the Cwm Taf University Health Board. History The hospital, which was designed by William Martin and John Henry Chamberlain in the Gothic Revival ...

, near Pen-y-fai.

Culture

Nightlife

Several pubs, restaurants and a nightclub are located within the town centre. In December 2008, Bridgend Council introduced its first alcohol-free zone, restricting the consumption of alcohol to pubs, clubs, and other licensed premises in the town centre to help address alcohol-related issues.

CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...

is in operation throughout the town centre, and usually

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

have a presence of some form. Since July 2007, the streets of Bridgend are also patrolled on Friday and Saturday evenings by Street Pastors, an inter-denominational church response to urban problems, engaging with people on the streets.

Music

Funeral for a Friend Funeral for a Friend are a Welsh post-hardcore band from Bridgend, formed in 2001 and currently consists of Matthew Davies-Kreye (lead vocals), Kris Coombs-Roberts (guitar, backing vocals), Gavin Burrough (guitar, backing vocals), Darran Smith ...

and

Jayce Lewis Jason Charles Lewis known professionally as Jayce Lewis (born 29 September 1984) is a Welsh musician from Bridgend, South Wales. In 2009 his self-produced single titled "Icon" (also included on EMI Records' ''Smash Hits 2009'' compilation) achi ...

have both received mainstream and commercial recognition, while rock/metal act Bullet for My Valentine contributed to the meteoric uprising in the mid-2000s

metal music Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock and acid rock, heavy metal bands developed a ...

industry. Along with

Those Damn Crows Those Damn Crows are a Welsh rock band formed in 2014 in Bridgend, Wales. The band quickly started building a loyal following and gaining traction through appearances at the likes of Steelhouse Festival, and receiving airplay on BBC Radio Wales ...

, they have all received national and international chart success. Several smaller venues in and around the town centre, including The New Angel Inn, The Railway Inn, Barracudas and Sapphires, host a number of open-mic nights.

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...

played to a 15,000 crowd at

Brewery Field Dunraven Brewery Field ( cy, Cae'r Bragdy Dunraven) is an 8,000 (1,100 seated) capacity sports stadium in Bridgend, Wales. It is the home ground of the rugby union team Bridgend Ravens. Bridgend Athletic RFC often use the ground for their ho ...

stadium in the town in 2006. The Recreation Centre has hosted acts such as

Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer A ...

and

Bring Me the Horizon Bring Me the Horizon (often abbreviated as BMTH) are a British rock band formed in Sheffield in 2004. The group consists of lead vocalist Oliver Sykes, guitarist Lee Malia, bassist Matt Kean, drummer Matt Nicholls and keyboardist Jordan Fis ...

Eisteddfodau

Bridgend hosted the

in 1948. Bridgend County hosted the Urdd Gobaith Cymru National Eisteddfod in 2017.

Media

Bridgend has its own commercial radio station:

106.3 Bridge FM Bridge FM is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Bridgend County Borough and the surrounding areas. It is owned and operated by Nation Broadcasting and broadcasts on 106.3 FM from studios at the St Hilary transmitter in the Val ...

, and is the location of Internet-based radio station Celtica radio. The main local

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...

is ''The Glamorgan Gazette'', although a free newspaper, ''The Recorder'', has increased its circulation in recent times. ''Around Town'' magazine is the free local lifestyle magazine for Bridgend.

Twinning

Bridgend has twinning arrangements with: *

Langenau Langenau is a town in the district of Alb-Donau in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It is situated 14 km northeast of Ulm. Transport Langenau is located directly on the Autobahn A7 and near the A8 Public transport is guaranteed by the Don ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Villenave-d'Ornon Villenave d’Ornon (; Gascon: ''Vilanava d’Ornon'') is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is the fourth-largest suburb of the city of Bordeaux, and is located to its south side. Thus, it is ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Talks held to twin Bridgend with the city of

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...

between 2004 and 2009 sparked debate.

Sport

Rugby union

Bridgend Ravens

(formally Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union which formed in 1878 and play in the

Welsh Premier Division The Welsh Premier Division, () known for sponsorship reasons as the Indigo Group Premiership, (''Uwch Gynghrair grŵp indigo'') is a rugby union league in Wales first implemented by the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) for the 1990–91 season. Compe ...

. They play their home matches at the

, which has been their home on and off since 1920. The club have been Welsh champions five times and have won the WRU Challenge Cup on two occasions, whilst also winning the

WRU Division One West The Welsh Rugby Union Division One West (also called the SWALEC Division One West for sponsorship reasons) is a rugby union league in Wales first implemented for the 1995/96 season. The league was formed in 2006 when the WRU divided the old Divisi ...

league in 2011 and numerous sevens competitions over the course of their existence. They have also played against international teams, New Zealand won on their visit in 1978, but Bridgend have beaten Italy, Western Samoa and Australia. The club has also hosted international matches at women and age grade. Bridgend Athletic

Bridgend Athletic RFC Bridgend Athletic RFC are a Wales, Welsh rugby union club based in Bridgend in South Wales. They are members of the Welsh Rugby Union playing in the National League Division 1 West and are a feeder club for the Ospreys (rugby union), Ospreys. Hi ...

was reformed in 1972, after the Bridgend Youth team members in that year wanted to form a senior team so they didn't have to go their separate ways into senior rugby, hence the formation of the club which had previously existed up to 1939. The club become full members of the Welsh Rugby Union in 1983. The club were promoted from Division 5 Central in 2001, were WRU Division Four East Champions in 2002, were then promoted from Division 3 to WRU Division Two West in 2003 through the league organisation and were promoted to Division 1 in 2004. They have suffered relegation from that league once, but bounced back in 2009, winning WRU Division Two West. They play in

. Bridgend Sports Bridgend Sports Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Bridgend. Formed in 1938 by Victor Blick, the team survived the cessation of club rugby in Wales between 1939 and 1945, during the Second World War. There have been in existence at least two other clubs in Bridgend throughout the club's history providing local competition. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and play in the

WRU Division Four South East The Welsh Rugby Union Division Four South East (also called the SWALEC Division Three South East for sponsorship reasons) is a rugby union league in Wales. Competition There are 12 clubs in the WRU Division Three South East. During the course of ...

. They won the

Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy The Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy (also known as the Glamorgan County High Motive Silver Ball Trophy) is a Welsh rugby union competition open to all non-premier Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) clubs playing in the Glamorgan , HQ = ...

on three successive years between 1979 and 1981, and were champions of

WRU Division Five South Central The Welsh Rugby Union Division Five South Central (also called the SWALEC Division Five South Central for sponsorship reasons) is a rugby union league in Wales first implemented for the 1995/96 season. Competition format and sponsorship Competi ...

in 2010. Celtic Warriors The Celtic Warriors, formed in 2003, are a defunct regional rugby union team that was mainly based at the Brewery Field in Bridgend. When regional rugby was enforced by the

Welsh Rugby Union The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU; cy, Undeb Rygbi Cymru) is the Sports governing body, governing body of rugby union in the country of Wales, recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby. The WRU is responsible for the running ...

, Bridgend RFC and Pontypridd RFC, who were both professional clubs at the time, merged to create the Celtic Warriors as one of the five new regional rugby teams in Wales. However, they were dissolved after one season due to financial problems that had plagued the club. Pontypridd RFC had sold their share of the region early on due to their own financial difficulties, with the remaining share which had been owned by Bridgend RFC, being sold off to the Welsh Rugby Union at the end of the season. This led to the winding up of the Celtic Warriors region by the WRU, as there was not enough money to keep the region afloat. There were high points for the region: 10,000 turned up to watch them face European champions-in-waiting

London Wasps Wasps Rugby Football Club is a professional rugby union team. They last played in Premiership Rugby, the top division of English rugby until being suspended on 12 October 2022. On 17 October 2022 the club entered administration, resulting in r ...

and even beat the Wasps 9–14 at Adam's Park a week earlier. The team finished 4th out of 12 in the

Celtic League The Celtic League is a pan-Celtic organisation, founded in 1961, that aims to promote modern Celtic identity and culture in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man – referred to as the Celtic nations; it places part ...

in their only season of existence. Ospreys Rugby The

Ospreys The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

were formed in 2003 after the merger of Neath RFC and Swansea RFC, which took place after the Welsh Rugby Union forced through regional rugby as the top level of Welsh rugby. Bridgend became part of this region following the demise of the Celtic Warriors. Although the Ospreys play their home matches at the

Liberty Stadium The Swansea.com Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Swansea.com; formerly Liberty Stadium) is an all-seated sports stadium and conferencing venue located in the Landore area of Swansea, Wales. The stadium opened in 2005 and was named the Liberty Stadium. It ...

in Swansea, since 2010 they have played their home Anglo-Welsh Cup home games at the Brewery Field, which is normally two games a season.

Football

Bridgend had two

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

teams, Bridgend Town A.F.C., and a Bridgend suburb side

Bryntirion Athletic F.C. Bryntirion Athletic F.C. ( cy, Clwb Pêl Droed Athletaidd Bryntirion) was a Welsh football league system, Welsh football team from the Bridgend suburb of Bryntirion. In 2013, they merged with local rivals Bridgend Town A.F.C., Bridgend Town to ...

that played in the

Welsh Football League First Division The Welsh Football League Division One, known as the Nathanielcars.co.uk Welsh League First Division for sponsorship reasons, was a football league in South Wales. It formed the top division of the Welsh Football League and the second level of t ...

. Bridgend Town AFC from 2009 played at The Brewery Field (The Football Club purchased The Brewery Field in 2009) as the club sold its ground at Coychurch Road ground due to works in conjunction with the new Asda store. In 2013, the two clubs joined to form

Pen-y-Bont F.C. Penybont Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Penybont) is a Wales, Welsh football (soccer), football club that plays in the Cymru Premier. The current club was formed in 2013, following the merger of Bridgend Town F.C., Bridgend Town and Brynti ...

who, following promotion in 2019, play in the

Cymru Premier The Cymru Premier, known as the JD Cymru Premier for sponsorship reasons, is the national football league of Wales. It has both professional and semi-professional status clubs and is at the top of the Welsh football league system. Prior to 200 ...

, the top level of Welsh football. They are currently managed by Rhys Griffiths. Schools football in Bridgend is governed by the

Bridgend Schools FA The Bridgend Schools Football Association ( cy, Cymdeithas Bêl-droed yn ysgol Pen-y-Bont) (BSFA) is the governing body of association football in schools in Bridgend, Wales. The association has the ultimate responsibility for the control and dev ...

. Bridgend's geographical position means South Wales rivals

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

and

Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...

pick up support from the town.

Rugby league

Bridgend was home to

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...

rugby league team the

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

, who were based at the

, home of

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

club,

Bridgend RFC Bridgend Ravens ( cy, Cigfrain Pen-y-bont) (formerly Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales. They currently play in the Welsh Premier Division and are a feeder club to the Ospreys regional team ...

. This side was considered by a few to be a replacement for the Celtic Warriors rugby union side after their controversial disbanding in 2004 but also built up a loyal following in their own right. The Crusaders' application for a Super League

licence A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

was granted by the

Rugby Football League The Rugby Football League is the governing body for professional rugby league in England, and until 1995 for the whole British Isles. The name Rugby Football League previously also referred to the main league competition run by the organisati ...

on 22 July 2008. The decision elevated the club from National League One to compete in

Super League XIV The 2009 Super League season (known as the Engage Super League XIV for sponsorship reasons) is the 14th season of rugby league since the Super League format was introduced in 1996. Fourteen teams competed for the Minor Premiership over 27 rounds ...

from 2009. For the 2010 Super League season, Crusaders initially announced they would play at Newport's

Rodney Parade Rodney Parade is a stadium in the city of Newport, South Wales, owned and operated by the Welsh Rugby Union. It is located on the east bank of the River Usk in Newport city centre. The ground is on Rodney Road, a short walk from the city's cen ...

ground for two seasons. However, in the run up to the new season the Celtic Crusaders franchise was sold by owner Leighton Samuel to

Wrexham Football Club Wrexham Association Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Wrecsam) is a Welsh professional association football club based in Wrexham, Wales. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Formed ...

parent company, Wrexham Village Ltd and the side moved to

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...

, playing home fixtures at

The Racecourse Ground The Racecourse Ground ( cy, Y Cae Ras) is a football stadium in Wrexham, Wales. It is the home of Wrexham A.F.C. It is the world's oldest international football stadium that still hosts international matches, having hosted Wales' first home i ...

. Bridgend's second rugby league side is the

Bridgend Blue Bulls The Blue Bulls (known as Bridgend Blue Bulls RLFC between 2003 and 2012) are a rugby league side based in Pyle, Wales. They play in the Welsh Premier of the Rugby League Conference. They are the most successful amateur rugby league team in Wale ...

, one of the UK's most successful amateur clubs having won two UK national amateur titles in four years and Welsh Champions five years in succession. The Bulls played at Coychurch Road but following the announcement about the setting up of the Celtic Crusaders they were invited to play at the Brewery Field by the owner Leighton Samuel. One year on they were refused permission to continue playing at the Brewery Field in the middle of the season. They were then aided by Porthcawl RFC and staged the remaining 2006 home games at the Porthcawl ground. Subsequently, Porthcawl RFC have become their regular home and have even staged an amateur rugby league international there during 2008 (Wales v Ireland).

Other sports

Bridgend has local

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

clubs including Bridgend Town CC and Great Western CC, a men's and women's

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

club,

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

courses, and

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

and

bowls Bowls, also known as lawn bowls or lawn bowling, is a sport in which the objective is to roll biased balls so that they stop close to a smaller ball called a "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a bowling green, which may be flat (for "flat-gre ...

facilities at the local club, the Bridgend Lawn Tennis and Bowls Association.

Notable people

:''See :People from Bridgend and :People from Bridgend County Borough'' *

Aneurin Barnard Aneurin Barnard (; ; born 8 May 1987) is a Welsh actor and musician. He is known for playing Davey in ''Hunky Dory'', Claude in '' The Truth About Emanuel'', Bobby Willis in '' Cilla'', Tim in ''Thirteen'', King Richard III in '' The White Quee ...

(actor) *

Gerald Battrick Gerald Battrick (27 May 1947 – 26 November 1998) was a Welsh tennis player who reached as high as No. 3 in Britain (and world No. 53), winning at least 6 titles. Personal life Gerald Battrick was born on 27 May 1947 in Bridgend, Glamorgan, wh ...

(tennis player) * Jonathan Brown (footballer) *

Downtown Julie Brown Julie Dorne Brown, better known as Downtown Julie Brown, is an English-born actress, television personality, SiriusXM DJ and former MTV VJ. Brown is best known as the host of the television music show ''Club MTV'', which ran from 1987 until 19 ...

(actress) *

Steve Brace Stephen "Steve" Brace (born 7 July 1961, in Bridgend) is a former long-distance runner from Wales, who represented Great Britain in the men's marathon at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics. He finished in 27th (2:17:49) and in 60th (2:23.28) place ...

(Olympic marathon runner) *

Paul Burston Paul Burston is a Welsh journalist and author. He worked for the London gay policing group GALOP and was an activist with ACT UP before moving into journalism. He edited, for some years, the LGBT section of '' Time Out'' and founded the Polar ...

(author and journalist) *

Lee Byrne Lee Byrne (born 1 June 1980) is a Welsh former professional rugby union and rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. Club career Byrne started his career playing rugby union for Bridgend Athletic RFC; and Tondu RFC, as a full ...

(rugby player) *

(cyclist) *

Peter Cottrell Peter James Cottrell (born 1964 ) is a Welsh soldier, sailor, writer, educator and revisionist military historian of the Irish War of Independence and Irish Civil War. Career Cottrell is the author of the best-selling military history ''The ...

(historian and writer) *

Mika Chunuonsee Mika Chunuonsee ( th, มิก้า ชูนวลศรี; ; born 26 March 1989) is a professional association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football)#Full-back, right back or a Defender (association football)#C ...

(footballer) * Danie Centric (singer) * Matt Crowell (footballer) * Aled Davies (Paralympian) *

Deddie Davies Deddie Davies (born Gillian Nancy Davies, 2 March 1938 – 21 December 2016) was a Welsh people, Welsh character actress. Biography Davies was born in Bridgend, Wales. She trained at Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, RADA and is most familiar to ...

(actor) * Rhys Davies (European Tour golfer) *

Rhys Day Rhys Day (born 31 August 1982) is a Welsh former professional footballer who last played as a central defender for Conference North side Hyde. He was capped several times for the Wales under-21 team and played for Blackpool, Mansfield Town, A ...

(footballer) * Ryan Day (snooker player) * Leondre Devries (rapper) * Mark Donovan (actor) *

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 ...

(journalist and newsreader) *

Rhian Edwards Rhian O'Sullivan ( née Edwards; 20 January 1981) is a Welsh female professional darts player who plays in events of the World Darts Federation (WDF). Darts career O'Sullivan was a quarter finalist in the 2009 Women's World Masters. She qualifi ...

(poet) * David Emanuel (fashion designer) *

Scott Gibbs Ian Scott Gibbs (born 23 January 1971), also known by the nickname of "Car Crash", is a Welsh former rugby footballer who has represented Wales and the Lions in rugby union and Wales and Great Britain in rugby league. Noted feats included his pe ...

(rugby player) *

Ray Giles Raymond Giles (born 15 January 1961) is a former Welsh and Aberavon RFC and Cardiff RFC rugby union player. Career He started his club career playing Kenfig Hill RFC until 1983, when he moved to Aberavon RFC, for whom he scored 11 points. Betwee ...

(rugby player) * Michael Hall (rugby player) *

(rugby player) *

Robert Howley Robert Howley (born 13 October 1970) is a Welsh former rugby union player and coach. As a player, he won 59 caps for Wales, 22 of them as captain. He was part of the Wales coaching team for many years. He is currently a coaching consultant for th ...

(rugby player) *

Jonathan Humphreys Jonathan Matthews Humphreys (born 27 February 1969) is a former Wales international rugby union player. He is now an Assistant Coach for Wales. Rugby Union career Playing career Amateur career Humphreys played for Kenfig Hill RFC and Cardiff ...

(rugby player) *

(rugby player) * Marc Jenkins (Olympic triathlete) *

Alex Jones Alexander Emerick Jones (born February 11, 1974) is an American far-right and alt-right radio show host and prominent conspiracy theorist. He hosts ''The Alex Jones Show'' from Austin, Texas, which the Genesis Communications Network broadcas ...

(cricketer) *

Carwyn Jones Carwyn Howell Jones (born 21 March 1967) is a Welsh politician who served as First Minister of Wales and Leader of Welsh Labour from 2009 to 2018. He served as Counsel General for Wales from 2007 to 2009. Jones served as the Member of the S ...

(politician,

First Minister of Wales , insignia = First Minister of Wales logo.png , insigniasize = 120px , insigniacaption = Logo , flag = Flag of Wales.svg , flagsize = 120px , flagborder = yes , flagcaption = Flag of Wales , image = File:Mark Drakeford (cropped).jpg , ...

) *

Ruth Jones Ruth Alexandra Elisabeth Jones (born 22 September 1966) is a Welsh actress, comedian, writer and producer. She co-wrote and co-starred in the award-winning BBC sitcom ''Gavin & Stacey'' (2007–2010, 2019). Jones has also appeared in various ...

(actress) *

Amanda Levete Amanda Jane Levete CBE, RA (17 November 1955) explores the transformation of space through her numerous buildings and furniture pieces. Levete enjoys creating the unexpected, and exploring the utilization of opposition. Levete is known for the ...

(architect) *

(musician/producer) *

(rugby player) * Sean McCarthy (footballer) *

Howard Marks Dennis Howard Marks (13 August 1945 – 10 April 2016) was a Welsh drug smuggler and author who achieved notoriety as an international cannabis smuggler through high-profile court cases. At his peak he claimed to have been smuggling consignmen ...

(drug smuggler and author) * William Morgan (physician, physicist and statistician) * Sir

Morien Morgan Sir Morien Bedford Morgan Order of the Bath, CB Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (20 December 1912 – 4 April 1978), was a noted Welsh aeronautical engineer, sometimes known as "the Father of Concorde". He spent most of his career at the Royal ...

(aeronautical engineer) *

Josh Navidi Josh Navidi (born 30 December 1990) is a Welsh international rugby union player who plays for the Cardiff Rugby, Wales and British and Irish Lions. He has previously captained Wales U20. Personal life Navidi's father is Iranian and his mother ...

(rugby player) *

Mary De la Beche Nicholl Mary De la Beche "Minnie" Nicholl FES (née Dillwyn; 25 June 1839 - 30 October 1922) was a lepidopterist and mountaineer. Family Nicholl was born in Swansea in 1839. She was the daughter of Lewis Llewelyn Dillwyn and Elizabeth (née De la Bech ...

(alpinist, entomologist, traveller) * Alan Phillips (rugby player) * Ben Phillips (rugby player) *

Leeroy Reed Leeroy Reed (born 6 August 1990)) is a Welsh television star and recording artist. He rose to fame in 2012 after appearing in the first episode of the MTV television series '' The Valleys''. Reed has continued to feature in the programme for the ...

(musician) *

Billy Rees William Rees (10 March 1924 – 27 July 1996) was a Welsh professional footballer and Wales international. Career Rees was born in Pwllcarn Terrace, Blaengarw. He had been working as a coal miner while playing amateur football for Carn Rovers ...

(footballer) *

Nathan Stephens Nathan Stephens (born 11 April 1988) is a former Paralympian athlete from Wales competing mainly in category F57-58 throwing events. He was until September 2012 the world record holder in the F57 javelin throw. Life and sports Stephens was born ...

(Paralympian) *

Steve Strange Stephen John Harrington (28 May 1959 – 12 February 2015), known professionally as Steve Strange, was a Welsh singer. From the late 1970s he was a nightclub host and promoter. He became famous as the leader of the new wave synth-pop group ...

(singer) *

Owen Teale Owen Teale (born 20 May 1961) is a Welsh character actor known for his role as Ser Alliser Thorne in the HBO fantasy TV series ''Game of Thrones''. Early life Owen Teale was born on 20 May 1961, in North Cornelly, south Wales, son of Roy and ...

(actor) * Gareth Thomas (rugby player) * Helen Tucker (2008 World Triathlon champion) *

Matthew Tuck Matthew Tuck (born 20 January 1980) is a Welsh musician, best known as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the metal band Bullet for My Valentine. He is also a singer and guitarist in the Supergroup (music), supergroup AxeWound, which was ...

(Singer) *

Bradley Wadlan Bradley Lewis Wadlan (born 14 December 1988) is a Welsh cricketer. Wadlan is a left-handed batsman who bowls slow left-arm orthodox. He was born in Bridgend, Glamorgan. Wadlan made his debut in county cricket for Wales Minor Counties agai ...

(cricketer) *

Rhys Webb Rhys Webb (born 9 December 1988) is a Welsh rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for Ospreys. Born in Bridgend, he is a product of the Ospreys academy and played club rugby for Bridgend RFC and Aberavon RFC before breaking into the re ...

(rugby player) * David Williams (crime writer) * J. J. Williams (rugby player) *

(rugby player)

Bands associated with Bridgend

* Bullet for My Valentine *

* Colours of One *

Hondo Maclean Hondo Maclean was a hardcore punk outfit from Bridgend, Wales. History Taking their name from a character in 1980s cartoon series M.A.S.K., Hondo Maclean emerged from the South Wales hardcore scene to wider recognition, including touring with ...

The Featherz The Featherz (formerly The Feathers) are a Welsh and English band with glam and punk influences (self-styled as "Flock Rock") led by Danie Centric (known as Danie Cox prior to January 2018, born 15 December 1990 in Bridgend) on lead vocals and ...

* The Partisans *

History

Prehistoric and Roman

Norman invasion

Early development

Industrial era

Second World War

After the war

New millennium

Future developments

Politics

Local government

Economy

Shopping

Transport

Education

Health

Culture

Nightlife

Music

Eisteddfodau

Media

Twinning

Sport

Rugby union

Football

Rugby league

Other sports

Notable people

Bands associated with Bridgend

See also

References

External links