Brian Blessed aids rural recovery

26 October 2001

The actor and adventurer, Brian Blessed, new President of the Council for National Parks ⁽¹⁾ , has made his first "official" visit to the Brecon Beacons National Park to help the rural recovery effort.

Brian Blessed met members of the Brecon Beacons Park Society ⁽²⁾ over an excellent dinner at the Dragon Hotel in Crickhowell, which, which like all hotels, accommodation providers, pubs and hostels has been struck hard by Foot and Mouth Disease.

John Sansom, Secretary of the Park Society said, "We were all greatly impressed by Brian Blessed's enormous commitment to the ever more urgent need to conserve our countryside and reinstate the biodiversity lost over recent years. He's a big man, with a big heart and a great sense of mission. The National Parks' movement is incredibly lucky to have him on board."

Brian Blessed also visited pioneering initiatives that are creating wealth in the National Park in a way that enhances and respects the environment. "The Brecon Beacons are the lungs of Wales. The Beacons and the Black Mountains to the west are so beautiful, so mystical", he said.

Brian, who has twice tried to climb Everest , was shocked to see the damage Foot and Mouth disease has caused to local businesses, like the Llangorse Climbing and Riding Centre, which he visited.

He also visited The Kitchen Garden Project in Ffrwdgrech near Brecon, which has received funding from the Environment Development Fund ⁽³⁾ . The project produces organic vegetables in a restored Victorian walled garden and sells them locally Keeping food local cuts down on the transport and pollution problems that are getting worse with increasing amounts of food travelling long distances from plough to plate.

Brian Blessed also visited another Environment Development Fund supported initiative, the Brecknock Cheviot Society. The Society is developing new marketing opportunities for Welsh lamb and has won a contract with Marks and Spencer to supply branded lamb for its stores.

A member of the Brecknock Cheviot Society explained: "a livestock market isn’t just for selling animals. It’s a social get-together. Welsh upland farmers are too isolated otherwise, especially now, when we are losing a local economy." Lynwen Morgan, the local CWYSI co-ordinator ⁽⁴⁾ added that strengthening the local economy, for example through the re-opening of local abattoirs, was vital to the future of the rural community.

Brian Blessed's last stop was at a National Trust-owned farm in Ystradfellte which joined the Tir Gofal ⁽⁵⁾ scheme last year. The National Trust Estate Manager, Phil Park said, "Particularly in the uplands, we need to protect the cultural landscape". Agri-environment schemes can provide farmers with valuable assistance to move towards stewarding the landscape in ways that are kind to the environment.

Brian Blessed said: "Outside London, vast parts of the countryside have been at a standstill. The Brecon Beacons are being very brave. The Foot and Mouth crisis is an interval in its history. But it is a time of hope. People are starting to get together and help each other. I think we are definitely going to make it".

Notes for Editors
1  CNP is the national charity that works to protect and enhance the National Parks of England and Wales and areas that merit National Park status, and promote understanding and quiet enjoyment of them for the benefit of all. Brian Blessed, the famous actor and adventurer, became CNP’s President in July 2001.
2  The Brecon Beacons Park Society is an independent charity that aims to be the eyes, ears and mouthpiece of both residents and all those visitors who enjoy the Park by lobbying, campaigning and organising events.
3  The Environment Development is a £3m fund set up by the National Assembly for Wales to test-bed initiatives that contribute to sustainable development. The three National Parks in Wales are administering the fund in their areas. In the Brecon Beacons, the Fund is known as the Sustainability Challenge Fund. For further information on the Fund administered by the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority, contact Barbara Anglezarke on 01874 624437.
4  CWYSI is a not-for-profit organisation that has been set up to help farmers through a period of change, and to help farmers make links with existing funds and systems.
5  Tir Gofal is the all-Wales agri-environment scheme. It provides financial assistance for farmers to manage their farms sustainably.

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