Famous Welsh places

Merthyr has discovered fame in politics, activity and industry

A south Wales valleys town is named among the worst places in the united kingdom to live by a tv programme.

Merthyr Tydfil ended up being labelled the 10 worst spots, with Hackney, Salford, Nottingham and Easington, County Durham for a Channel 4 show broadcast on Tuesday.

The programme rated cities on five groups - crime, knowledge, employment, environment and lifestyle - and cited Merthyr's large number of benefit claimants as a main cause for its inclusion in the list.

Local politicians have labeled the programme - known as ideal and Worst Places to call home in the UK - "crass". One stated the programme seems to "glorify wealthy leafy suburbia ahead of working-class areas, which have aided contour a nation". Therefore, in what ways has actually Merthyr has actually aided shape the nation and, indeed, the planet?

In no particular order, the BBC Wales news web site finds 10 things for Merthyr to shout about.

1. The Osmonds The 1970s American family act has its own roots in Merthyr. The household left the town in 1868 and satisfied in Utah. Previously in 2010, Donny Osmond returned to south Wales in a bid to locate his family's Merthyr origins.

2. Keir Hardie Scotsman James Keir Hardie became among the first MPs for the fledgling Labour celebration when he ended up being chosen in Merthyr Tydfil in 1900. He represented the chair until his demise in 1915.

C5 lovers nevertheless come back to the car's Merthyr birthplace

3. Dic Penderyn initially from Aberavon, Dic Penderyn (or Richard Lewis) is permanently associated with Merthyr considering their part in city's uprising in 1831. After unrest broke on among the city's professional employees, the 23-year-old ended up being found guilty of stabbing a soldier and had been sent to the gallows in Cardiff. He became a folk hero among the working-class then promising in newly-industrialised south Wales.

4. Boxers While a few famous Welsh sportsmen including footballer Mark Pembridge and rugby star Robert Sidoli hail from town, Merthyr's claim to wearing popularity rests having its champion boxers. Brit and European welterweight champ Eddie Thomas, tragic bantamweight Johnny Owen who had been killed inside ring-in 1980 and world featherweight champion Howard Winstone were all from Merthyr.

The Hoover factory stays a significant employer into the town

5. Julien MacDonald The 33-year-old Merthyr-born fashion designer has worked for some around the globe's top style homes including Givenchy and Chanel after starting knitting cardigans for their family members. The previous student of Cyfarthfa senior school has dresses some of the earth's most famous ladies including Kylie Minogue.

6. Industrial heritage Merthyr is one of the cradles for the commercial revolution. Iron works very first arrived in the eighteenth century to make use of the area's plentiful natural sources. Less than 100 years later the city ended up being among the planet's biggest metal manufacturers as it's populace boomed. In 1804, society's very first railroad locomotive, developed by Cornish engineer Richard Trevithick pulled 10 a lot of metal on a newly-constructed tramway. Coal then followed, however the town started its lengthy decrease as an industrial powerhouse when you look at the many years after World War One.