2004 in Wales

Incumbents

Prince of Wales - Charles, Prince of Wales
Princess of Wales - vacant
First Minister - Rhodri Morgan

Events

January 6: Inquest opens into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
January 12: Inquest opens into the death of 12-year-old Stuart Cunningham-Jones in a school bus crash in December 2002.
February 23: Former Welsh Secretary Ron Davies announces he is joining the new Forward Wales party led by John Marek.
March 1: The Prince of Wales visits the Vale of Glamorgan and attends a special service in Cowbridge.
March 13: Market town of Cowbridge celebrates the 750th anniversary of its charter.
March 23: National Library of Wales successfully bids for an 18th century Welsh manuscript auctioned in Los Angeles.
April 5: Launch of Katherine Jenkins' first album, Première.
April 28: Wales Trades Union Congress annual conference at Llandudno.
May 28: Technology Wales 2004 at the Celtic Manor Resort, Newport.
May 28: Guardian Hay Festival, annual literary festival, opens at Hay-on-Wye.
May 31: Urdd National Eisteddfod opens at Llangefni.
June 4: Professor Merfyn Jones is named as the new Vice Chancellor of the University of Wales, Bangor.
June 10: As a result of the local elections, there is power sharing in nine councils across Wales, Labour control in eight, Independents in three, and Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives control one each.
June 24: Swansea police arrest twenty people on charges of drug dealing.
July 6: International Musical Eisteddfod opens in Llangollen.
July 14: National Woollen Museum re-opens at Dre-fach Felindre.
July 19: Royal Welsh Show opens at Builth Wells.
July 28: It is announced that the North East Wales Institute of Higher Education, Swansea Institute of Higher Education, Trinity College, Carmarthen and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama will all become part of the University of Wales.
July 30: National Eisteddfod of Wales opens at Tredegar House near Newport.
August 12: Keep Cardiff Tidy campaign wins a special merit award at the Association of Public Service Excellence Awards 2004.
August 26: Festival of History in North Wales opens in Llanfairfechan.
August 28: Bryn Terfel's Faenol Festival opens.
September 7: Kalan Kawa Karim, an Iraqi Kurd, dies after what police take to be a racist attack in Swansea city centre.
October 8: Breconshire Brewery wins the "Champion Beer of Wales" competition in Cardiff.
October 26: Monmouth-based inventor, Andrew Hubert von Staufer, wins the Platinum Award for Design and Gold Award for Leisure at the British Invention Show.
November 2: Flights to Egypt are available for the first time from Cardiff Wales Airport.
November 8: Launch of the Welsh Assembly Government's "free swimming for over-60s" pilot scheme.
November 19: The Wales Children in Need concert is held at Wrexham, starring Bryan Adams.
November 26: Official opening of the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff
December 7: The Stereophonics introduce their new drummer, Argentinian Javier Weyler.

Arts and literature

Awards

National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - Huw Meirion Edwards
National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - Jason Walford Davies
National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - Annes Glyn
Wales Book of the Year:
- English language: Niall Griffiths, Stump
- Welsh language: Jerry Hunter, Llwch Cenhedloedd
The Dylan Thomas Prize, a new £60,000 literary prize, was announced on August 17. The first award will be made in 2006.

Film

Ioan Gruffudd stars as Lancelot in King Arthur.

Broadcasting

May 3: New community radio station, WHAM! RADIO 1449, launched in Blaenavon.
July 16: Filming of a new Doctor Who series begins in Cardiff.
July 28: S4C and the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society sign a deal guaranteeing nation-wide TV coverage of the Royal Welsh Show for the next five years.
October 17: Pobol y Cwm, the Welsh language soap opera, celebrates its thirtieth anniversary by receiving a "Hall of Fame" award from the Royal Television Society.

Sports

June 4: Simon Khan breaks the course record at the Celtic Manor Wales Open golf tournament.
June 24: Joe Calzaghe pulls out of scheduled world title fight against Glen Johnson because of injury.
August Bank Holiday Monday: The 19th World Bog Snorkelling Championships are held at Llanwrtyd Wells.
September 15: Mark Hughes resigns as manager of the Welsh national soccer team after being appointed manager of Blackburn Rovers.
September 16: Wales Rally GB begins in Cardiff.
September 17: Opening of the Paralympics in Athens. Welsh athletes returned home with twelve gold, six silver and nine bronze medals.
October 9: Wales lose 2-0 to England at soccer.
November 12: John Toshack becomes the new Wales soccer manager.
November 20: Wales Rugby Union side lose 25-26 to New Zealand at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff.
December 6: Tanni Grey-Thompson becomes the BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year 2004 (50th anniversary of the award).

Births

Deaths

January 22 - Islwyn Ffowc Elis, author
February 21 - John Charles, legendary footballer
April 18 - Geraint Howells, politician
April 25 - Eirug Wyn, author
June 2 - Alun Richards, novelist
July 14 - Rhys Thomas, rugby player
July 17 - Sir Julian Hodge, banker
September 10 - Glyn Owen, actor
September 15 - Sue Noake, athletics official
October 13 - Bernice Rubens, novelist
November 28 - Jonah Jones, author