Moving tribute to tragic WW1 poet, Hedd Wyn (360 VR) - BBC Cymru Fyw

Subscribe and 🔔 to the BBC 👉

Watch the BBC first on iPlayer 👉 Experience in 360° the stunning scenery that inspired iconic Welsh poet Hedd Wyn.

This film marks the centenary of the death of Hedd Wyn, one of the most iconic figures in Welsh literature. He was killed at the battle of Passchendaele on 31 July 1917. Six weeks later one of his poem’s, dispatched from the Western Front, won the prestigious chair prize at the National Eisteddfod of Wales.

The film throws the spotlight on Hedd Wyn’s beloved ‘Ysgwrn’, a humble hill farm in the foothills of Snowdonia. The landscape remains largely unchanged and the pervading sense of peace lies in stark contrast to the carnage of the battlefield.

This is the scenery that inspired Hedd Wyn, this is the world he so reluctantly left behind and this is your turn to tread in his footsteps.

The tribute to Hedd Wyn features the poem 'Englynion Coffa Hedd Wyn', written by his friend and fellow poet R Williams Parry in 1924, and more recently translated into English by American poet Louis Flint Ceci.

The words are read by actor Julian Lewis Jones and the soundtrack was specially composed by Cian Ciarán, of Super Furry Animals.

The film is designed to be viewed through a VR headset with headphones to fully immerse the viewer in the world it evokes. Tilt your phone, or on desktop drag your mouse, and turn on your sound to experience it best.

‘Englynion Coffa Hedd Wyn’ by R Williams Parry

English translation by Louis Flint Ceci

Poem read by Julian Lewis Jones

Director of VR photography - Peter Boyd Maclean

Music - Cian Ciarán

Production Co-ordinatior - Eleri McAuliffe

Producer - Catherine Robinson

Exec Producer - Nia Davies

Thanks to Snowdonia National Park

#bbc