AN Amman Valley man has won a special prize at the National Eisteddfod.

Alun Ffred Jones, from Brynaman but now living in Dyffryn Nantlle, was presented with the Daniel Owen Memorial Prize at the Pafiliwn Mawr stage of the Llŷn ac Eifionydd National Eisteddfod on Tuesday, August 8.

The brother of singer Dafydd Iwan, Alun Ffred and nine other entrants, were tasked with creating a novel of no less than 50,000 words which had a strong storyline.

Alun’s creation was Gwynt y Dwyrain under the pen name Gerddi Gleision. It is a detective novel with themes of the Welsh way of life.

The competition was judged by Mared Lewis, Dewi Prysor and Sioned Wiliam.

Sioned said of the winning novel: “And finally, we reach Gwynt y Dwyrain by Gerddi Gleision. This is an extremely readable detective novel that manages to create an intense atmosphere without being too dependent on stereotypes.

“It discusses major themes, the decline of the Welsh way of life, the alienation and isolation of the countryside and the grief that often lurks beneath the surface of society.

“The dialogue is witty and full of memorable phrases. The author succeeds in creating a rich picture of a character or scene in subtle sentences.

“This is Welsh Noir at its best and most original. Detective Idwal Davies likes to quote (TH) Parry-Williams and he can name every one of Eyri’s mountains but he’s also quite at home drinking ‘tramp tea’ on a council house estate.

“Idwal sees the evil at work in the world too clearly to be a happy man, but he has a huge love for his upbringing and the tenacity that sustains him on a daily basis skilfully pushes him towards a poignant end.

“This is an excellent novel that entertains whilst asking important questions about our contemporary life.

"And I’m delighted to announce that the three of us are unanimous in our decision that Gwynt y Dwyrain by Gerddi Gleision fully deserves the 2023 Daniel Owen Memorial Prize.”

Alun Ffred was awarded the Daniel Owen Memorial Medal and £5,000 which was donated by Williams Homes and Grŵp Cynefin.

He was born in Brynaman, grew up in Llanuwchllyn and now lives in Dyffryn Nantlle.

He had a varied career as a teacher in Flintshire, TV presenter and producer and Member for Arfon and Minister for Heritage in the National Assembly. He was also a councillor and the Leader of Cyngor Gwynedd.

He became interested in the world of theatre from his days performing with the Aelwyd in Llanuwchllyn, at Ysgol y Berwyn, Bala and the University in Bangor.

He and the late Mei Jones were created the radio and television series, C'mon Midffild, and he wrote the popular book, Rhagor o Hanesion C'mon Midffild.

He produced and directed series on S4C such as Deryn, Pengelli and Talcen Caled and films such as Cylch Gwaed and Plant y Tonnau.

Gwynt y Dwyrain is available to buy in bookshops across Wales.