Betsan Powys (born 1965), is a Welsh

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

and former Editor of Programmes for

BBC Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio station owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and BBC Sounds. The station broadcasts general factual and entertainment pro ...

Biography

Powys was born in

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

. A native Welsh speaker after being educated at Ysgol Gyfun Llanhari, Powys joined BBC Wales as a News Trainee in 1989, before joining the newsroom in

as a bilingual, bi-media reporter. Moving to Current Affairs in 1994 she reported undercover, where one investigation required her to pose as one half of a swinging couple in the "Garden of Eden", a West Wales

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. Powys then presented the Welsh language news programme ''Newyddion,'' was chief reporter on the European current affairs series , and joined Huw Edwards to front

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national election specials. Powys was lent for a period to

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

's flagship current affairs programme ''

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,'' during which time she returned to Wales to give birth to her daughter. Her first report for ''Panorama'' was an investigation into the way

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deal with allegations of child abuse, while her first worldwide exclusive occurred when she persuaded the commanding officer of 30

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers () was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689, shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and becam ...

held hostage in

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, to allow her to interview colleagues and friends, agreeing to his condition that the programme would be broadcast only "in the Gaelic tongue." After working for a period at ITV Wales, she returned to BBC Wales as Culture and Media Correspondent, and as a result of presenting '' Week In Week Out'' she won the BT Welsh Journalist of the Year. Powys also presented the Welsh-language version of ''

Mastermind Mastermind, Master Mind or The Mastermind may refer to: Fictional characters * Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde), a fictional supervillain in Marvel Comics, a title also held by his daughters: ** Martinique Jason, the first daughter and successor of the ...

'' on

S4C S4C (, ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru'', meaning ''Channel Four Wales'') is a Welsh language free-to-air public broadcast television channel. Launched on 1 November 1982, it was the first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speakin ...

. From 11 September 2006, Powys replaced the retiring David Williams, and took editorial charge of all BBC Wales' daily political output ahead of the

Welsh Assembly The Senedd ( ; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, Its role is to scrutinise the Welsh Government and legislate on devolve ...

elections in 2007. She resigned from this role in June 2013. Powys is a frequent contributor to Radio Cymru's popular and is regarded as a stalwart of the programme, adding much to its 'flagship' status as the BBC's most prestigious Bangor-produced daily news broadcasts. She was appointed Editor of Programmes (in effect, director) of BBC Radio Cymru in May 2013, taking up her post from July 2013. In June 2018, Powys announced that she would leave the role, with effect from Autumn 2018. Since leaving the BBC, Powys has returned to broadcasting for both television and radio. In December 2019 she joined Dewi Llwyd and Vaughan Roderick as co-presenter for

and

's coverage of the 2019 General Election (''Etholiad 2019''). During the Election campaign Powys also fronted ''The Leaders Lounge'' for

BBC Radio Wales BBC Radio Wales is a Wales, Welsh national radio station owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It began broadcasting on 13 November 1978, replacing the Welsh opt-out service of BBC Radio 4. As of August 2022, the stat ...

. In July 2020, she replaced Llwyd as presenter of , a Welsh-language equivalent to '' Question Time'').

Personal life

Powys lives with Dylan Hammond, a former artist. She lists her hobbies as choral singing, harp music and competing in choral recitation competitions at local and chapel . She is a member of the Gorsedd of the Bards and has adopted the bardic name ''Betsi Treganna''.

References

External links

Betsan's blog – BBC Wales' political editor. I'll be blogging the inside track on Welsh politics.Betsan Powys Welsh Assembly Election blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powys, Betsan 1964 births Living people Welsh-speaking journalists BBC Cymru Wales newsreaders and journalists BBC Radio Wales presenters Welsh bloggers Welsh women bloggers Welsh women journalists Welsh radio presenters Welsh women radio presenters People educated at Ysgol Gyfun Llanhari People educated at Ysgol Tryfan