This article celebrates everything about the 2025 National Eisteddfod held in Isycoed, Wrexham from 2-9 August. It covers standout performances, competition results, notable awardees, and the most unforgettable moments, along with the broader impact on Welsh language, local community, economy, and especially younger generations.
Highlights: Performances, Competitions, Themes
A week of artistic feast unfolded across Isycoed, Wrexham, filled with music, poetry, visual arts, dance, theatre and much more, underpinned by strong themes of identity and language.
Maes B, the late-night music arena requiring extra admission, featured a wide range of acts: Adwaith, Band Pres Llareggub, Bwncath, Buddug, Dadleoli, Fleur De Lys, Gwilym, Glain Rhys, Mellt, Mared, Pys Melyn, Swnami, Taran, Tara Bandito, Tew Tew Tennau, and Y Cledrau. Their performances kept the nights alive with energy, attracting many younger visitors and promoting contemporary Welsh music.
On Sunday 3 August, Dafydd Iwan performed on the main stage for the final time, marking the culmination of a record since 1965 of him performing at every National Eisteddfod. The sense of history and emotion was palpable among thousands gathered.
Competitions spanned brass bands, visual arts, Cerdd Dant, music, dance, folk, science and technology, recitation, literature, theatre, and the Maes D (“Dysgwyr”, for Welsh-learners) sections. Some of the major awards:
Chairing of the Bard: won by Tudur Hallam, a retired university professor, who had previously won the Chair. His winning poem described receiving his diagnosis of untreatable cancer at Glangwili Hospital. There were 15 entries, the highest number since 1989.
Crowning of the Bard: awarded to Owain Rhys from Cardiff, who submitted under the pen name ‘Llif 2’. His poems dealt with living with his mother, who was suffering from dementia. The prize accompanied by £750 in cash.
Gold Medals from Y Lle Celf (the art & design exhibition):
- Fine Art → Gareth Griffith, who had been exhibiting since the 1970s, for his five submitted paintings.
- Architecture → Manalo & White, a London-based practice, for their conversion of St Mary’s Church, Bangor, into an arts and performance space.
- Craft & Design → Verity Pulford, from near Ruthin, for her colourful glass models of bird skulls.
Science and Technology Medal: awarded to Dewi Bryn Jones, known as a pioneer of language and speech technologies for the Welsh language.
Composer’s Medal: won by Sarah Lianne Lewis.
The theme was unabashedly centred on Welsh language and culture. From the organizers (Llinos Roberts as chairwoman, Mark Lewis Jones as honorary president) to all competitions being in Welsh, to translation services at the Maes, everything emphasized Cymraeg.
Role of the Eisteddfod in Preserving and Promoting Cymraeg (Welsh Language)
This festival was more than celebrations and awards: it acted as a strong platform for safeguarding the Welsh language and promoting it among learners, newcomers, and especially youth.
Since 1950, all competitions and activities at the National Eisteddfod must be held in Welsh. That rule continues. Around 6,000 competitors took part in 2025, all using Welsh in competition.
Maes D (for Dysgwyr) offered music, talks, drama, story sessions, and entertainment specifically catered to learners, including competitions. The Pentref Dysgu Cymraeg was a very popular area. Learner-friendly programmes were designed to be welcoming to new speakers.
Business Wales and Big Ideas Wales organized a week-long programme from 2-9 August, with workshops, panels, competitions (stands 415-416) on digital innovation, youth enterprise, all stressing the role of the Welsh language in business. One guest was Shoned Owen, who had built a product line from a mobile spray tan service. This showed that business innovation and Welsh language go hand in hand.
Welsh-language TV channel S4C provided over 170 hours of coverage across its platforms between 2-9 August, with presenters like Heledd Cynwal, Tudur Owen, Nia Roberts, Lloyd Lewis, Eleri Sion, Trystan Ellis-Morris, Elin Fflur. The broadcast included morning, afternoon, and evening programmes from the Maes and the Pavilion, displaying competitions and live performances.
Economic and Social Impacts on the Local Community of Wrexham
Beyond the art and culture, the 2025 Eisteddfod left significant marks on Wrexham’s economy, infrastructure, community engagement, and social fabric.
The event was estimated to bring up to £16 million into Wrexham’s economy. Roughly 150,000 visitors were expected to attend during the week. Thousands did attend; many for the first time, others returning for additional days.
Wrexham County Borough Council committed £300,000 towards funding the event. In July 2025, the Welsh Government provided a £200,000 grant to help locals on lower incomes attend. These measures aimed to reduce financial barriers.
The Maes was set on agricultural land in Isycoed, near Ridley Wood Road and near the industrial estate. It included a 1,500-seat pavilion, performance spaces, stalls, temporary Gorsedd circle, and translation centre. Because of its rural location and distance to the nearest railway station (without intervention, a two-hour walk), a free shuttle bus ran from Wrexham General station and from Wrexham bus station between 8 am and midnight. The T3 TrawsCymru also served the site.
Grassroots projects were set up after the 2023 announcement to promote Welsh language and culture locally, in an area where only about 12% of residents speak Welsh. The Gorsedd proclamation ceremony in April 2024 in Wrexham involved 500 residents alongside Gorsedd members, with a procession via Coleg Cambria Yale.
Memorable Moments & Notable Awardees
Some moments stood out above others for their emotion, novelty, or historical weight. The people behind the awards showed passion, courage, and artistry.
Tudur Hallam won the 2025 Chair, designing a poem after being diagnosed with untreatable cancer. The Chair itself was designed by Gafyn Owen and Sean Nelson, incorporating local Wrexham features: the arches of Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, the red seat referencing Wrexham Football Club, and a top section related to the club’s stadium.
Owain Rhys won the Crown with poems under the pen-name Llif 2, writing about caring for a mother with dementia. The crown comes with a £750 cash prize.
Gold Medal winners included Gareth Griffith in Fine Art, Manalo & White in Architecture, and Verity Pulford in Craft & Design.
Dewi Bryn Jones won the Science and Technology Medal for pioneering work in speech and language technologies for Welsh, signaling how the festival embraces future-oriented fields.
The long-time performer Dafydd Iwan closed out his unparalleled run of appearing at every National Eisteddfod since 1965 with a final main-stage performance. For the first time, a Muslim service in Welsh (Jummah) was held on the Maes in Wrecsam.
Impact on Younger Generations & the Future of Welsh Culture
The festival did more than entertain it planted seeds for sustaining Welsh language and culture for years to come.
Areas like Maes D and the Pentref Dysgu Cymraeg offered welcoming spaces for learners: music, drama, story sessions, competitions. This exposure contributes to growing confidence among young or mid-life learners to use Cymraeg in art, performance, social life.
Exhibits and programmes through Business Wales and Big Ideas Wales let young entrepreneurs and innovators see real-world possibilities for business in Welsh. Role models like Shoned Owen showed how local startups can scale.
With S4C providing 170+ hours of coverage, thousands who could not attend physically were able to see choirs, competitions, and performances. Presenters roaming the Maes featured contestants and artists, reaching households across Wales and beyond. Such visibility can inspire younger people to write, sing, paint, and compose.
Integration & Balance: Arts, Community & Broader Interests
The Eisteddfod does not exist in isolation; it interacts with entertainment, commerce, leisure, and community arts to form a broader living culture.
Stalls, workshops, performances, visual art exhibitions, the Pavilion, and communal singing all created shared spaces where people could watch, learn, and participate. Visual artists, poets, theatre groups—all mingled.
Community arts keep people coming together in vibrant ways, and some attendees—looking for side-leisure experiences—also check out entertainment listings including best UK online casinos, especially when these display fair terms, though the arts remain the main draw. The festival ensured that ancillary entertainment and workshops did not overshadow the core culture but complemented it.
Many honoured in the Gorsedd (with Green Robes and Blue Robes) came from across Wales and locally: Elan Mai Nefydd, Wrexham; Glesni Llwyd Carter, Wrexham; Lili Mai Jones, Wrexham; others from Anglesey, Flintshire, Powys, Gwynedd, Ceredigion. This diversity both underscores the reach of Welsh culture and gives aspiring young people in those communities heroes and figures to emulate.
Challenges and Considerations
Even great festivals come with complex trade-offs, and this one was no exception.
Because the Maes was on rural agricultural land, some visitors faced difficulties. Without the shuttle bus and TrawsCymru services, reaching the site from railway stations would require up to a two-hour walk. Ensuring reliable transport was essential.
Although only 12% of residents in Wrexham speak Welsh, measures were taken to encourage greater participation. However, long-term growth in local Welsh speakers requires sustained support beyond festival week.
Despite generous grants (e.g., £200,000), cost remains a barrier for some. Ticketing, side fees like Maes B extra admission, and travel costs all impact who can fully participate. Ensuring those from lower income backgrounds are not excluded is a key consideration.
Legacy & Moving Forward
The effects of Eisteddfod 2025 will linger well into the future: for artists, learners, the Welsh-speaking community, and Wrexham itself.
Commemorative moments—like Dafydd Iwan’s final performance, Tudur Hallam’s Chair victory, Owain Rhys’s Crown—reinforce that Welsh literature, music, and traditions continue to matter deeply. These stories will be retold, taught, and build identity for new generations.
The success in drawing up to £16 million and 150,000 visitors demonstrates Wrexham (and North Wales) can host large-scale arts festivals. Local services, transport, and hospitality gained experience. This builds credibility for future events and investments.
Young artists and poets saw peers being awarded, saw new role models, and saw contemporary expressions of Welsh culture merging with science, technology, and business. The visibility of winners like Sarah Lianne Lewis, Verity Pulford, and Dewi Bryn Jones shows the mix of tradition and innovation.
Final Thoughts
The National Eisteddfod 2025 in Wrexham: Language, Music & Tradition on Full Show was not merely a festival—it was a cultural milestone. From historic performances to heartfelt awardees, from economic boost to community transformation, everything combined to reaffirm the strength of Welsh language and art. For Wrexham, for Welsh learners, and for seasoned artists, it offered a week of inspiration and a chance to witness tradition and modernity weaving together. The echoes of this festival will carry well beyond 9 August, resonating in future poems, songs, startups, and conversations—ensuring Cymraeg, and Welsh culture, continue to thrive.