Aneirin Talfan Davies

{{Short description|Welsh poet, broadcaster and critic (1909–1980)}}

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Aneirin Talfan Davies OBE, (11 May 1909 – 14 July 1980){{Cite DWB |id=s12-DAVI-TAL-1909 |title=Davies, Aneirin Talfan (1909–1980), poet, literary critic, broadcaster and publisher |first=Alan |last=Llwyd |author-link=Alan Llwyd |access-date=2 October 2019}} was a Welsh poet, broadcaster and literary critic.

Talfan Davies was brought up in Gorseinon. During the 1930s Davies worked in London as a pharmacist before returning to Wales and settling in Swansea. He was the brother of Sir Alun Talfan Davies QC, with whom he founded the publishing company, Llyfrau'r Dryw (later succeeded by {{ill|Christopher Davies (publisher)|lt=Christopher Davies|cy|Gwasg Christopher Davies}}). Aneirin Talfan Davies, who was known by the bardic name of Aneurin ap Talfan, also founded the Welsh language periodicals, Heddiw ({{Langx|en|Today}}) and Barn ({{Lang|en|Opinion}}). He was Head of Programmes Wales at the BBC and produced broadcasts of early works by Dylan Thomas. Following Thomas's death, he wrote a critical study of Thomas as a religious poet. He also translated the poetry of Christina Rossetti into Welsh, and edited the letters of the artist and poet David Jones, whose influence can be discerned throughout his work.{{cite book|editor-last=Davies|editor-first=John |author-link =John Davies (historian)|title=The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales|publisher=University of Wales Press|year=2008|location=Cardiff|pages=196 & 1975|isbn = 978-0-7083-1953-6}}

He wrote an anonymous satire in the Western Mail (under the pen name of Theomemphus), to which he was a frequent contributor, following Bishop Glyn Simon's attack on the workings of the Electoral College of the Church in Wales (1961). He was a prominent Anglican and Christian themes characterised much of his writing. He was a regular worshipper at Eglwys Dewi Sant in Cardiff and at Llandaff Cathedral.

His son, Geraint Talfan Davies was Controller of BBC Wales from 1990 to 2000, co-founder of Glas Cymru (a predecessor of the now Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water), co-founder of the Institute of Welsh Affairs, and Chairman of the Welsh National Opera.{{cite web|url=http://www.dwrcymru.com/English/Company/index.asp |title=Company information |publisher=Dŵr Cymru Cyf |year=2009 |accessdate=24 July 2009 |work=Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water website |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517172134/http://www.dwrcymru.com/English/Company/index.asp |archivedate=17 May 2008 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.dwrcymru.com/English/Company/Glascymru/Directors/index.asp |title=Directors |publisher=Dŵr Cymru Cyf |year=2009 |accessdate=24 July 2009 |work=Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water website |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080829174751/http://www.dwrcymru.com/English/Company/Glascymru/Directors/index.asp |archivedate=29 August 2008 }}