Rhodri Llwyd Morgan is passionate about history - and that's why he loves presenting fascinating items about our country's past in the new S4C series, Darn Bach o Hanes (A Small Piece of History).
Rhodri, 40, is Ceredigion County Council's Assistant Director of Education and Community Services in his day-to-day job, but S4C viewers will see him on a Sinclair C5 vehicle on the programme on Monday, 30 January.
For some, Rhodri will be more familiar as a member of the 1990s indie rock group, Cerrig Melys, but he has as much passion for history as he does for the music scene.
"I have had a keen interest in history since I was a child, largely thanks to my father, who has a huge interest and enthusiasm for our country's history and heritage. So when I was given the opportunity to take part in this series, it was an offer I couldn't refuse!" said Rhodri, brought up in Beulah, Newcastle Emlyn and now living in Llandre near Aberystwyth.
"The series looks at fascinating stories about people and places in our country by looking at the history of different objects. Behind these items we discover personal stories, which in turn shed light on particular areas of our country, Wales's national history and in some cases, world history," explains Rhodri.
Rhodri joins a presentation team that includes Dewi Prysor, Lisa Gwilym, Rhys Mwyn and Gwenan Schiavone.
Other stories in the series include a look at some of the meteorites which have fallen to the ground in Wales. He discovers that there is a direct link between the meteorites which fell in the Beddgelert and Brynsiencyn areas and space research conducted at NASA centres in the USA. In the series, he also looks at the history of Ruthin Gaol and an intriguing letter Winston Churchill wrote to a Welshman from the Port Talbot area.
Rhodri read History at university and went on to complete a PhD which looked at how different medieval authors interpreted the history of our country. But presenting history on a television programme provided a different challenge altogether.
Rhodri, who specialises in culture, lifelong learning and the Welsh language at the Ceredigion Education Department, said, "It has been a great experience filming for the series. I've learnt a great deal about history and subject areas that were previously a total mystery to me. I've come to appreciate anew how much our understanding of history is enriched not only by discovering more about these personal treasures but by hearing the views of witty and knowledgeable contributors."
