From the Senedd to the Roofs

Disgrifiad Saesneg / English Description

Ben Wildsmith is a Nation.Cymru columnist, writing about politics and rugby twice a week. From the Senedd to the Roofs pulls together another year of his imaginative and irreverent journalism.

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Bywgraffiad yr Awdur / Author Biography

Ben Wildsmith is a Nation.Cymru columnist, writing about politics and rugby twice a week. A Hay Festival Writer at Work, he has also published short fiction and poetry. He lives in Rhondda Fach with his wife, Susie, and a mounting sense of dread. From the Senedd to the Roofs is his second collection of his columns. The first, Flags & Bones, was published by Cambria Books in 2023.

Adolygiad y Cyhoeddwr / Publisher Review

These are missives of hope, bewilderment, anger and grief. Horses run amok down Picadilly, First Ministers come and go, and royalty continues to perplex in this raucous almanac of world events as viewed from Wales. Whether writing about the loss of a client in his work with the homeless, the loss of one his favourite songwriters Shane MacGowan, or the loss of lives through poor political decisions, Wildsmith brings sharp observation, empathy and dark humour to bear in a quest to make sense of it all. From Vaughan Gething and Andrew RT Davies to Donald Trump and Warren Gatland, nobody is spared from scrutiny. Review quotes: ‘Wildsmith’s words are a fierce current, carrying readers through the peaks and valleys of Welsh life with humour and unflinching honesty. From the Senedd to the Roofs is a panoramic sweep of a nation’s soul, each column a snapshot as raw as a coastal gale and as warm as a crowded pub on a winter’s night. This is Wales laid bare – irreverent, indomitable, and endlessly compelling.’ – Adam Price ‘Eloquently speaking truth to power with caustic wit and a grasp on politics in Wales and globally, Ben Wildsmith’s writing is essential to an understanding of the dysfunction that seems endemic in politics.’ – Iwan Bala ‘From the Senedd to the Roofs is a thoughtful, principled and witty collection of columns for Nation.Cymru from 2023-2024. Wildsmith manages to do something very few writers achieve; readers can laugh out loud and simultaneously feel a heaviness in the chest. Thought-provoking and entertaining, he skilfully engages readers in a wide range of issues relevant to the good people of Cymru. So much so, I even read the ones about rugby. No mean feat.’ – Abeer Ameer ‘Ben Wildsmith’s anarchic wit conceals a talent for coruscating analysis and a refreshing capacity for highlighting some of the political truths the mainstream press prefers to ignore. And even if the combined shit-show of UK politics and Welsh rugby didn’t push you to the brink of despair these past two years, any columnist who opens a piece with the image of Boris Johnson as a rutting mutt being forcibly removed from the trouser leg of the body politic deserves a readership of millions. A second volume of Ben’s columns from Nation.Cymru is not only the perfect stocking-filler, but a must for anyone in need of reassurance that things are at least as bad as they appear.’ – Richard Gwyn A quote from the Foreword: ‘Often when you read an opinion piece or a newspaper leader article written by someone you tend to agree with, you follow the writer’s train of thought, and know where he or she will lead you. This can lead to boredom. Ben is different. You could bet more than you can afford and be sure that any one of his columns will take you on an excursion whose byways you couldn’t have predicted in advance. That, of course, is what makes them compelling. Originality makes columns come alive. Otherwise they’re too short to make an impact. Ben’s are always long enough and lively enough to grab our attention.’ – Martin Shipton Praise for Flags & Bones: ‘Ben’s pen is a spike on which he skewers the empty, self-regarding, and never-to-be-enlightened heads of those who have power. Their ridiculous preening, their moral squalor, their sheer worst-of-us-ness is exposed and explored with a lacerating, caustic wit. Nurture your fury, and let Ben Wildsmith put some fun into it.’ – Niall Griffiths ‘Flags & Bones is a terrific book: an omnium gatherum of Wildsmith’s wit, eloquence and righteous state of the nation anger. His writing is fresh, furious and very, very funny. In Ben Wildsmith Welsh political writing has found – for good or ill (or do I mean good and ill?) – the commentator it deserves.’ – Patrick McGuinness ‘As a fellow writer I’d have to say that Ben is enviably good, forever upping his game and delivering high-octane opinion set within coruscating prose. Sharp, yes, but compassionate too, caring about unfairness much as he does about the words that shine brilliantly through.’ – Jon Gower