David John Jones (18 October 1943 – 4 March 2022), known as Dai Jones Llanilar, was a Welsh language television presenter, singer and radio broadcaster.

Early life

David John Jones was born in Holloway,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

, to a family of

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

farmers. He moved to Wales at the age of three and was brought up by his uncle and aunt on their dairy farm in Brynchwith,

Llangwyryfon Llangwyryfon is a village and Community (Wales), community in the county of Ceredigion, Wales. It lies on the B4576 about 8 miles to the south and east of Aberystwyth. The village lies in the valley of the Afon Wyre, River Wyre and contains the r ...

. He went to school at Llangwyryfon and Ysgol Dinas, Aberystwyth and started working on the farm at 15 years old. Jones said that he deliberately failed his 11-plus exam to avoid going to grammar school because he had heard that there was a lot of homework. At a young age, Jones was an active member of the chapel, and also the Eisteddfod and Young Farmers clubs which gave him an upbringing in Welsh culture and traditions. In 2004, Jones became the President of the Welsh Black Cattle Society in its centenary year 2004–2005.

Career

Jones, known as Dai Jones Llanilar, was best known for presenting tv shows on

S4C S4C (, ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru'', meaning ''Channel Four Wales'') is a Welsh language free-to-air public broadcast television channel. Launched on 1 November 1982, it was the first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speakin ...

, such as ''

Cefn Gwlad ''Cefn Gwlad'' is a Welsh television series about the countryside and particularly (but not exclusively) farming in Wales. It is broadcast in Welsh. Hosted by Dai Jones (''"Llanilar"'') until 2020, it looks at rural life in Wales, and sometime ...

'', made by

ITV Cymru Wales ITV Cymru Wales is the ITV franchise for Wales. The new separate licence began on 1 January 2014, replacing the long-serving dual franchise region ITV Wales & West serving Wales and the West of England, which had previously used the branding " ...

, which documents the lives of farming families. He hosted this show since it began in 1982. He was also the main presenter of The Royal Welsh Show when it is held annually at the end of July. He was already well known on TV as the presenter of the family quiz show ''Siôn a Siân'' which he presented from 1971 to 1987. He also hosted a weekly musical requests programme on

BBC Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio station owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and BBC Sounds. The station broadcasts general factual and entertainment pro ...

. Jones was an accomplished tenor and won the blue riband prize at the

National Eisteddfod of Wales 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. Competito ...

in 1970. He also released recordings with the Welsh recording label Cambrian. As a well-known figure in Wales, Jones was regularly lampooned in the Welsh satirical cartoon series ''

Cnex Cnex is an animated programme on the Welsh channel S4C. Overview The show was written by Paul Lewis and Keith Rees. Cnex animates Welsh celebrities including, Bryn Terfel, Glyn Wise, Rhodri Morgan, Charlotte Church, Gavin Henson, Dai Jones, Iol ...

''. He published his autobiography in 1997, entitled ''Fi Dai Sy' 'Ma''. It was translated into English by Lyn Ebeneser and published as ''Dai and let live'' in 2004. In December 2020, Jones announced his retirement from television and radio, after a career of over 50 years.

Personal life

Jones was married to Olwen and had a son, John. He died on 4 March 2022, at the age of 78, and his funeral was attended by some 600 people.

Awards

Jones won a

BAFTA Cymru BAFTA Cymru (or BAFTA in Wales) is the Welsh branch of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) and was founded in 1987.2000 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2000 for the United Kingdom and New Zealand were announced on 31 December 1999, to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 2000. The ''Honours list'' is a list of people who have been awarded one of the various or ...

, he was awarded the MBE "for services to Entertainment in Wales".

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Dai 1943 births 2022 deaths Members of the Order of the British Empire People from Holloway, London Welsh farmers Welsh television presenters Welsh-language singers Welsh-language television presenters