Main content
Sorry, this episode is not currently available

Rugby legend Gareth Edwards and wife Maureen travel by foot, motorboat and canoe to see for themselves the lost canals they knew as children around Swansea and Neath.

Rugby legend Gareth Edwards and his wife, and childhood sweetheart, Maureen reach the final leg of their round-Wales adventure by canal. And the conclusion of their beautiful but bumpy journey through the most spectacular scenery Wales has to offer has a personal connection for them both. This pair of narrowboat novices grew up at opposite ends of the same street in the village of Gwaun-cae-Gurwen, a few miles from Neath. As children, they would play in the areas by the derelict canals but knew very little of them and their history. Today, though the canals are virtually impassable, they have been cleaned up. Gareth and Maureen discover no fewer than three canals on their doorstep: the Swansea Canal and the Neath and Tennant Canals. The canals reveal a story of industry that once dominated the area, canals being constructed to get coal and iron to the docks. But now there is a plan afoot to give them a new lease of life. Teams of dedicated volunteers are working on the old canals, hoping to restore and reopen them. Gareth and Maureen can鈥檛 help but be impressed when they take to the water by motorboat and even canoe to get a sense of what the canals will be like when they reopen.

29 minutes

Last on

Fri 9 Aug 2024 01:30

Credits

Role Contributor
Executive Producer Tim Green
Producer Steve Freer

Broadcasts