David Parry-Jones (25 September 1933 – 10 April 2017) was a Welsh sports commentator, TV current affairs presenter and writer. He presented '' BBC Wales Today'' for many years and was a rugby analyst for BBC Radio 5. He was the author of books on the sport of rugby; including several on the history of rugby in Wales.

Life and career

Parry-Jones was born in

Pontypridd Pontypridd ( , ), Colloquialism, colloquially referred to as ''Ponty'', is a town and a Community (Wales), community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Wales, approximately 10 miles north west of Cardiff city centre. Geography Pontypridd comprises the ...

on 25 September 1933. In 1952, after attending school in Cardiff, he went up to

Merton College, Oxford Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 126 ...

, where he read Classics and captained the Greyhounds rugby union and Authentics and college cricket teams. After completing his

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

, in 1959 he took up journalism and went on to become one of the BBC's best-known rugby commentators, most notably for his description of

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

's famous win over the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...

in 1972. He was more familiar to television viewers as a regular presenter of the nightly regional news programme ''Wales Today'', which he hosted during the 1960s and 1970s. Parry-Jones was the long-term partner of the broadcaster Beti George and lived in Cardiff. From 2009 he suffered from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

, and Beti George raised awareness of the condition through the Welsh media. In 2013

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 ...

showed a programme about the disease, ''Un o Bob Tri'' ("One in Every Three"), and Beti George presented a programme, ''The Dreaded Disease – David's Story'', on

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 February 2017, BBC One Wales produced a documentary, ''Beti and David: Lost for Words'', that followed the couple over a number of months, and looked at the challenges and frustrations faced by carers in Wales. Parry-Jones died on 10 April 2017, at a

hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life b ...

Penarth Penarth ( , ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, approximately south of Cardiff city centre on the west shore of the Severn Estuary at the southern end of Cardiff Bay. Penarth is a Seaside resort#Brit ...

. "Veteran BBC broadcaster David Parry-Jones dies aged 83", BBC News, 10 April 2017
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Selected works

*''The Dawes Decades: John Dawes and the Third Golden Era of Welsh Rugby'' (2006) *''The Gwilliam Seasons: John Gwilliam and the Second Golden Era of Welsh Rugby'' (2003) *''Prince Gwyn: Gwyn Nicholls and the First Golden Era of Welsh Rugby'' (1999) *''Action Replay – A Media Memoir'' (1993) *''The Rugby Clubs of Wales'' (1989) *''Rugby Remembered: From the Pages of the Illustrated London News'' (1988) *''Out of the Ruck'' (1986) *''Boots, Balls and Banter: Collection of Rugby Stories'' (1980)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parry Jones, David 1933 births 2017 deaths Welsh sports broadcasters Welsh rugby union commentators Welsh sportswriters People from Pontypridd Alumni of Merton College, Oxford Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in Wales