On Saturday Phil Okwedy entertained visitors to the museum with tales from his book ‘Wil and the Welsh Black cattle’ - wonderful tales of family feuds, murderous actions, magic and romance, set in West Wales.
Phil described how he found that stories, particularly folk tales, are embedded in the landscape, and the book originated from a mysterious meeting he’d had while walking near Moylegrove in Pembrokeshire.
And this developed into a set of stories when he was reminded about how the drovers moved their cattle, so his stories are linked as they move through the landscape.
It was while travelling giving public performances of his folk tales that Phil met Peter Stevenson, an illustrator, and a wonderful collaboration was born, with Peter doing all the illustrations in this delightful little book.
Peter Stevenson had travelled to the Appalacian Mountains in North Carolina, USA, where he found links to Welsh culture dating back to the Welsh who emigrated in the 17th and 18th centuries and the modern cowboys – similar to a Welsh drover.
Peter told a tale of Three Bears...not quite the Golidlocks variety – who got their comeuppance with the arrival of a skunk!
His tale was illustrated on a ’Crankie’ – the simplest of ’moving pictures’ which originated from Wales.
It would be a great thing to make for yourself – http://www.thecrankiefactory.com/348971240.
The book is for sale at the Museum and will also be on sale at the Tenby Christmas Fair (December 14 to 16) at the De Valence.