James Kitchener Davis

James Kitchener Davies (1902–1952) spent most of his life teaching Welsh in the Rhondda. He first attracted public attention as a dramatist as the National Eisteddfod of 1934 with his controversial play Cwm Glo, which dealt with the social consequences of the Depression in the mining valleys of South Wales. Considered by the Eisteddfod adjudicators to be morally offensive and unsuitable for performance, Cwm Glo’s fierce criticism of capitalist values was nevertheless a revolutionary work in both political and theatrical terms. This biography looks at this significant cultural and political figure of the second quarter of the 20th century. Examined is his versatility as an author whose talents encompassed poetry, drama, and essay; his notoriety gained from the controversial play Cwm Glo; his promotion of the cause of Plaid Cymru; and his Swn y Gwynt sy’n Chwythu.