Mike Peters playing the opening concert at Urdd National Eisteddfod in Flint today

The Alarm lead singer, Mike Peters, Broadway star Mark Evans and classical duo Richard and Adam are among the stars in the Eisteddfod’s opening concert today, Sunday, 29 May.

The concert showcases top home-grown talent and offers a taste of what’s to come during the Eisteddfod, which lasts from 30 May – 4 June.

Mike Peters who hails from Prestatyn is  best known as the frontman of iconic Welsh rock outfit The Alarm,  their song Deeside captures the spirit and mood of the area at the time Shotton steelworks closure.

The veteran rocker has just finished a tour of the USA and is set to embark on a tour of the UK, he said:

“I can’t think of a better way to finish the tour than coming home to Wales and performing with the talented Cor Cytgan on the Main Stage of the Urdd Eisteddfod in Flint.”

Monday sees the official opening of the Flintshire Urdd National Eisteddfod at the site surrounding Flint High School.

Around 15,000 competitors and an estimated 90,000 visitors will visit the week-long event, enjoying a range of competitions, evening events and family-friendly activities in what is one of Europe’s largest youth festival.

Other Eisteddfod highlights include the festival’s sought-after literary prizes – the chair, awarded to the best poem in strict or free metre and the crown, awarded to the best piece or pieces of prose over 4,000 words.

Both the chairing and crowning ceremonies, along with the majority of competitions, which include singing, folk dancing and reciting, will take place in the Eisteddfod’s 1,800-seater pavilion.

Surrounding the pavilion on the ‘Maes’ are hundreds of stalls and stands offering a variety of activities, including sport, live music and children’s shows.  Visitors to science and technology tent, ‘Y Gwyddonle’ will be able to create a virtual Maes using a Welsh language version of the popular adventure video game, Minecraft, while a food arena and fun fair are also part of the Eisteddfod experience.

During the week, over 200 local schoolchildren will take part in two evening shows, ‘Fflamau Fflint’ (The Flames of Flint), staged at the pavilion on Tuesday, 31 May, and ‘Herspre’ (Welsh version of popular musical Hairspray) staged on Saturday 28 May and Monday, 31 May at St Richard Gwyn Catholic High School in Flint.
Hair and Beauty competitions will be held on the Maes and Great British Bake Off star Beca Lyne-Pirkis will also be on hand to judge the finals of the Urdd cookery competition, which will be held in a purpose-built kitchen.

An Urdd National Eisteddfod bilingual guide app, including a map, list of competitions and activities, travel arrangements and other information, is available to download free.

Google Play   Apple Store

Aled Siôn, Urdd National Eisteddfod Director, says: 

“We have a great group of local volunteers again this year who have worked tirelessly over the last two years raising money and awareness of the Eisteddfod in the area.  They have reached and passed the financial target that we set for them, which is amazing.

“We would also like to thank Flint High School for the use of their sport fields to hold the Eisteddfod – it’s a lovely site, in a location that is hard to miss!  Research has shown that 94% of visitors agree that the Urdd Eisteddfod is a great day out for the whole family and we would encourage anyone that is in two minds to come and experience one of Europe’s largest youth festivals.”

Leader of Flintshire County Council, Cllr Aaron Shotton, added,

“It’s great to have the Urdd Eisteddfod back in our county.  Flintshire County Council has been pleased to offer its support to this prestigious event.

“Congratulations to all those who have worked so hard to make this happen and I wish the event every success. Much work has been underway over many months in local communities to raise funds and young people have also been busy preparing for all the competitions.

“We hope everyone enjoys their visit to the Eisteddfod.”

It’s possible to buy day tickets for the Maes and tickets for the evening shows from the Welcome Centre on the Maes or from the Urdd webiste – urdd.cymru/eisteddfod.  For more information please contact 0845 2571613.