1999 in Wales

Incumbents

• Prince of Wales – Charles
• Princess of Wales – vacant
• First Secretary - Alun Michael
• Secretary of State for Wales
• *Alun Michael
• *Paul Murphy
• Archbishop of Wales
• *Alwyn Rice Jones, Bishop of St Asaph
• *Rowan Williams, Bishop of Monmouth
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales
• *Dafydd Rowlands
• *Meirion Evans

  Events

• January
• *Protesting farmers blockade the north Wales headquarters of supermarket chain Iceland.
• *Opening of the St David's Hotel in Cardiff Bay, Wales's first 5-star hotel.
• February - Outbreak of meningitis in the Pontypridd area.
• March - West Wales and the Valleys is designated an Objective 1 region within the European Community.
• 6 May - 1999 National Assembly for Wales election, the first to be held.
• 10 May - The Queen attends a gala concert in Cardiff Bay to celebrate the opening of the Welsh Assembly.
• 12 May - The National Assembly for Wales meets in Cardiff for its first session.
• 19 May - Probably the last pit pony to work in the U.K. is retired in the South Wales coalfield, 'Robbie' at Pant y Gasseg drift mine, near Pontypool.
• June - Eight children in north Wales are taken ill with E. coli poisoning.
• 27 June - The Clydach murders: four members of the same family are found bludgeoned to death.
• July - Bryncelyn Brewery begins brewing.
• December - Hyder cuts 1000 jobs after being forced to make cuts in their charges for electricity and water.
• 19 December - Charlotte Church makes her debut as a television actress in Heartbeat.
• Main construction work on Cardiff Bay Barrage completed.

  Arts and literature

• Cysgod y Cryman by Islwyn Ffowc Elis is voted the most significant Welsh language book of the 20th century.
• Sir Harry Secombe suffers a second stroke, which forces him to give up his television career.
• Mary Hopkin joins The Chieftains on their UK tour.
• Dick Francis: A Racing Life, an unauthorised biography, suggests that his books were substantially written by his wife Mary.
• Painter Kyffin Williams is knighted for his services to the arts.
• September - Swansea Grand Theatre becomes the base for the Ballet Russe company.

  Awards

• Cardiff Singer of the World - Anja Harteros
• Glyndŵr Award - Gillian Clarke
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - Gwenallt Lloyd Ifan
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - Ifor ap Glyn
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - Sonia Edwards
• Wales Book of the Year:
• *English language: Emyr Humphreys - The Gift of a Daughter
• *Welsh language: R. M. Jones - Ysbryd y Cwlwm: Delwedd y Genedl yn ein Llenyddiaeth
• Gwobr Goffa Daniel Owen - Ann Pierce Jones - Fflamio

  New books

English language

• Richard Booth - My Kingdom of Books
• Paul Ferris - Infidelity
• Patrick Hannan - The Welsh Illusion
• Craig Thomas - Slipping into Shadow

  Welsh language

• Grahame Davies - Sefyll yn y Bwlch
• Mair Wynn Hughes - Hen Ŵr y Môr

  New drama

• Greg Cullen - Paul Robeson Knew My Father

  Music

• Gillian Elisa - Haul ar Nos Hir
• Gorky's Zygotic Mynci - Spanish Dance Troupe
• Karl Jenkins - The Armed Man: a Mass for Peace

  Film

• Catherine Zeta-Jones co-stars in Entrapment.

  Welsh-language films

• Cymer Dy Siâr
• Porc Pei
• Solomon a Gaenor, starring Ioan Gruffudd

  Broadcasting

• May - Huw Edwards begins presenting the BBC Six O'Clock News.

  Welsh-language television

• Y Palmant Aur
• Yno o hyd
• Tri Tenor - Gala concert with performances by Welsh tenors Gwyn Hughes Jones, Rhys Meirion and Timothy Richards
• Catrin Finch
• Ponteifi

  English-language television

• Sea of Troubles
• House of the Future
• Barry Welsh is Coming
• Belonging
• The Big Picture

  Sport

• Football
• *UWIC Inter Cardiff are Welsh Cup winners after beating Carmarthen Town on penalties.
• *Barry Town win their fourth successive League of Wales title.
• *Winners of the three divisions in the Welsh Football League are: Ton Pentre, Penrhiwceiber Rangers & Caerleon.
• *Flexsys Cefn Druids are champions of the Cymru Alliance.
• *AFC Llwydcoed and Garden Village are promoted to the Welsh Football League.
• Rugby
• *The Rugby Union World Cup is hosted by Wales, with the final being held at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, on 6 November. The winning team is Australia.
• Snooker
• *Mark Williams wins the Welsh Open tournament in Cardiff.
• *Mark Williams wins the UK Championship for the first time, defeating Matthew Stevens in an all-Welsh final.

  Births

• 23 June - Cai Evans, rugby player
• 15 October - Ben Woodburn, footballer

  Deaths

• 3 February - Alfred Janes, artist, 87
• 8 February - Meredith Edwards, actor, 81
• 16 February - Don Hayward, Wales and British Lions international rugby player, 73
• 17 February - John Lansdown, computer graphics pioneer, 70
• 11 April - Alan Evans, darts player, 49
• 6 May - Johnny Morris, television presenter, 82
• 11 May - Robert Thomas, sculptor, 72
• 5 September - Ivor Roberts, former TWW presenter, 74
• 22 September - Clive Jenkins, trade union leader, 73
• 24 October - Howard Griffiths, screenwriter, 64
• 15 November - Sir Harry Llewellyn, equestrian champion, 88
• 27 November - Ernest Zobole, artist, 72
• 6 December - Gwyn Jones, writer, 92
• 19 December - Desmond Llewelyn, actor, 85
• 23 December - Eirene White, politician, 90