Abse, Dannie

Dannie Abse (b.1923) was born in Cardiff and studied Medicine at Cardiff, King's College and Westminster Hospital. A poet, novelist, playwright, he has also published diaries and autobiography. He has published eleven volumes of poetry including a Collected Poems.

Abse, Joan

Joan Abse (1926 - 2005)  was an art historian whose books included a much acclaimed biography John Ruskin, the Passionate Moralist, and The Art Galleries of Britain and Ireland. She collaborated with Dannie Abse in editing Voices in the Gallery (Tate Gallery).

Ackerman, John

John Ackerman (1934 - 2004) was born in Maesteg and educated at the Universities of London and Wales. He was for many years a lecturer in English, first in Barry and then in London.

Adams, Hugh

Hugh Adams has written and published extensively on the visual arts for over thirty years. Art critic for The Guardian, he was head of Critical and Theoretical Studies at Humberside University and first director of the Mostyn Art Gallery. At present he is chair of Cywaicth Cymru and a member of steering committees for the commissioning of art in the new buildings of the Welsh Assembly and Wales exhibition as the Venice Biennale.

Aithie, Patricia

Photographer, writer and painter, Patricia Aithie has twenty-five years experience of living and travelling in the Middle East and beyond.  She has previously published the landmark photography and travel book, ’Yemen, Jewel of Arabia’.

Allan, Laurence

A considerable figure on the drama scene in Wales in the eighties and nineties, Lawrence Allan has written eighteen plays in the past fourteen years. Inspired by the gritty, lively and often comic street life of his home town Pontypridd, he says, "I love it. It's my home, and I hope that my plays are firmly rooted there, and at the same time absolutely universal, so that the themes and situations they explore are meaningful to people irrespective of who they are or where they are from." He is currently working on commissions for the BBC and for Made in Wales theatre company.

Allison, John

John Allison is the assistant editor of Opera magazine, and contributes music criticism to the Financial Times.

Alston, David

David Alston is a respected art critic and former curator of the Lowry Gallery and Keeper of Art at the National Museum of Wales. His criticism,catalogue essays and reviews are numerous and appear in a wide range of publications. He is currently the senior Arts Officer at the Arts Council of Wales.

Andrews, Leighton

Leighton Andrews runs a political consultancy at Westminster and in Cardiff. He has previously worked in public affairs at the BBC and Shelter.

Anstey, Sandra

Sandra Anstey is Officer for English at the WJEC National Language Unit of Wales, and author of a doctoral thesis on R.S. Thomas's poetry.