‘Proud Writing with Norena Shopland’ – Creative Writing Workshop

Proud Writing with Norena Shopland is a creative workshop using stories from the past to provide inspiration for creative interpretation. Focussing on LGBTQ+ events and lives in and around Ystradgynlais, you’ll look at different ways to consider those stories. Participants will have the opportunity to turn these real-life stories into fiction, non-fiction, poetry/lyrics, or art for a dedicated publication.

Respected LGBTQ+ historian Norena Shopland is the author of works such as Forbidden Lives: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Stories from Wales. She has worked on numerous heritage projects collecting, curating and consulting on, with organisations including Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museums Wales and the National Library of Wales amongst others. Norena was featured on the Wales Pinc List (an annual list compiled by Wales Online of the most influential LGBTQ+ people in Wales) from 2019-2024, as well as being highlighted as one of Wales’s most influential gay women during Lesbian Visibility Week in 2021.

Join us for this inclusive workshop to celebrate PRIDE month from 3-6pm, followed by a screening of film festival shorts from The IRIS prize at 7pm.

Cost: £5-£10 (Pay What You Can) for the workshop and the films.

IRIS Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival Shorts: Comedy Central – 4 short films

The joys of owning a mobile phone in rural mid-Wales, the mayhem caused by a misplaced nipple, one secret too much for an old-fashioned Italian father and an unexpected musical about a Bald Guy in Norway are here for you to enjoy. This wonderful collection of stories from the Iris Prize archive demonstrates that humour can be found in LGBTQ+ stories when you least expect it.

Follow the link for more details on each film.

Total Running Time: Approx 50 minutes