Hywel Gwynfryn
Heledd Cynwal looks back at the successful career of one of Welsh broadcasting's longstanding presenters in a special edition of Cofio.
The broadcaster will remember some of the highlights of his career with the help of archive footage. Of all the big names he has met, one interview stands out from the rest, when he spent two minutes in the company of boxing champion Cassius Clay, better known as Muhammad Ali.
"I met him in 1966, as he prepared for his fight against Henry Cooper," says Hywel. "I will never forget those two minutes I had with him," he adds as he recalls the event when he presented a collection of TH Parry-Williams' poems to the world boxing champion.
Hywel has, and continues to enjoy a successful career, but he reveals it was a misunderstanding that led to his first broadcasting job.
"I was working at The Borough Arms in Cardiff, when the crew from the programme Heddiw came in, Nan Davies and Ifor Rees among them. Nan and I got talking and she asked what I was doing in the capital. I explained I was hoping to become a drama teacher. It was obvious, or so I thought, that they were interested in that, because they invited me over to the studio for an interview," says Hywel.
"But I had misunderstood, because when I arrived at the studio I realised it was an interview for a presenting job on the Heddiw programme. They were looking for someone to partner Owen Edwards, the lead reporter."
Hywel pays tribute to the late Owen Edwards, who died in August 2010. He remembers two pieces of advice he gave him which have stayed with him throughout his career.
"The first advice he gave me was to forget about the camera and think you're talking to a family. He said if you can remember that, then you will look more natural. The second thing he told me was that listening is important. 'Don't rush to ask the questions,' he told me. 'Listen first, and then ask the next question,'" remembers Hywel.
We enjoy an archive clip of him spinning discs on the first ever Welsh pop music radio programme in 1968, with his unique presenting style. There are also several clips from a variety of TV programmes including the popular 'Rhaglen Hywel Gwynfryn' where he would interact and joke with the audience.
Following the programme at 21:35, there's a chance to enjoy an archive edition of Rhaglen Hywel Gwynfryn first broadcast in the early 1980s, where Hywel will be discussing fears and phobias with his audience and special guests.