Poetry from South Wales and the Rhondda Valley
My name is Thomas Phelps and these days I am Welsh Poet, I have been writing my own brand of humorous poetry and some of which is thought provoking for over 25 years. It all started as a hobby and a way to write down my own thoughts, memories and experiences and with the self-publication of my first book (finding a publisher, now that’s another story in its own right!) it has become a small business of its own.
My poems on valleys are largely based in The Rhondda in the South Wales Valleys, but you will probably find many similarities to your life as many are simply life observations. Rhondda poetry, sometimes called anglo-welsh poetry as it is written in English but about Wales and Welsh life, humorous poetry has been very important to me for the past 25 years.
Since retirement I have found the time to concentrate on becoming a Welsh Poet and have published a book of my Humorous Poetry and record an audio CD of my poems. These are now available to purchase via this website.
I perform my poetry at numerous local venues around the South Wales Valleys and am happy to receive invitations from a 30 mile radius as generally I do not charge.
My book is entitled “Poems about Valley life above the Pits and after the Pits” – just in case you’re not aware “Pits” are coal mines, and this industry was a massive employer in the Rhondda Valley, one of the valleys where I used to work, soon after it was discovered that we had some of the best steam coal available. The result of this discovery was a huge influx of people to work in the pits, houses built, seamingly quite precariously on the sloping valley walls, and all of the necessary supporting industries; doctors, hospitals, supermarkets, children’s parks, pubs and not forgetting the churches.
This created very close nit communities as not only were they physically close due to the amount of housing built quickly in a relatively small area, the culture bred community spirit, and not forgetting the inherent danger in working miles underground with limited air, potentially poisonous gasses, large machinery and no light! Accidents were common place and fatalities all too common too, hence the need for doctors, hospitals, churches and pubs or working men’s clubs as they were predominantly called.
My poetry book contains 34 poems on wide and varied themes, like “The Supermarket Trolley” dedicated to “..all men who have gone shopping with their wives...”, “The Hook and Wheel” which is a poem about a childhood memory of mine and a game I used to play with. The poem “They Would Do It Again” is about the “real work” the coal miners did and how proud they were to be earning money and coming home tired and dirty. Dangerous, yes, but the choice for many was unemployment, and that was far more painful to contemplate.
I have also created audio CD’s of 18 of my poems performed by me, so if you’d prefer to listen than read then please order one of these.
If you’d like to arrange for a personal reading of his poetry from the South Wales Valleys or to discuss his book in more detail then please complete the form below and Tom will get back to you as soon as possible.
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[E] contact@thomas-phelps.co.uk
