A blue plaque to commemorate one of the pioneers of cinema in Wales has been unveiled in Pembroke’s Main Street

The plaque, the first in Pembroke, honours William Haggar, who achieved international success with his ground-breaking moving pictures.

The cinematographer and film pioneer was the father of William Haggar Jnr who, with his wife Jenny Linden, had acted in many of the silent movies made by his father and it was he who took over the cinema in Main Street, Pembroke in the late 1930s (previously Pembroke Cinema).

The cinema and ballroom was a popular venue in Pembroke up until its closure in 1984. It was run by the Haggar family throughout this period.

“Anyone brought up in Pembroke from the 1930s until the 1980s will have special memories as it was such a big part of life in Pembroke,” said archaeologist Beth Dureau who has been working with William’s great granddaughter, and author Vicki Haggar to gain the town’s first blue plaque.

The cinema was later run by William Jnr’s brother Walter and his son Leonard, and finally by Len’s son John Haggar.

“As Phil Carradice said today (Wednesday) when he unveiled the plaque, it is long overdue. It was also fitting that March 4th would have been Leonard Haggar’s birthday, and he always referred to the cinema as ’the show’ and he certainly would have been very proud of today’s event,” continued Beth.

“The idea for the plaque came about as I was working on the archaeological dig based in Pembroke castle in 2018. I met various people who were very interested in local history and related projects; there was lots of discussion about various plaques in the area and it struck me that Pembroke didn’t have a blue plaque despite the fact that we have many people who have gone on to do great things.

“I asked why Pembroke didn’t have one and someone said - ‘it just takes someone to organise it’, so I decided then that I would, and it was obvious to me that the ideal one to start with should be William Haggar. Since I knew Vicki Haggar, William Haggar’s great granddaughter, I approached her and she was very enthusiastic.

“We decided to commemorate the building rather than William Haggar as it holds so many fond memories for Pembroke people.”

Having approached the current owners of the building and getting their permission and support Beth then had to apply for planning permission and raise the funds.

Several coffee mornings in Pembroke were held where people gave very generously, with the Town Council also giving a donation as well as members and friends of the Haggar family.

“The plaque was made by Ned Heywood, it is excellent quality and made to the same specification as those commissioned by English Heritage - he assures me it will last 1,000 years and not deteriorate in any way!” explained Beth.

“It has been a real pleasure to be involved with the project as it has been met with such enthusiasm by everyone and I have heard some lovely stories as everyone has a story to tell about Haggars, including Phil Carradice, author and radio presenter, who carried out the unveiling and is a local boy,” she added.