With the death of Frank Vickery yesterday at the age of 67 after a short illness, Wales hasn’t just lost one of its most prolific playwrights, we've also lost one of the most perceptive observers of the characters, humour and wit of the south Wales Valleys.

The son of a Rhondda miner, Frank left school at 15. He worked in various jobs, whilst acting and writing in his spare time. His first play, written at the age of just 21, was After I’m Gone, and won the Howard De Walden trophy in the British Final Festival of One-Act Plays.

In a long writing career, Frank wrote for theatre, radio and television, but he was most famous for his 30 plays. He ascribed his popularity to being able to pick up the music—the rhythm of how people spoke—and in this, he was phenomenally successful. Frank captured the recognisable and realistic personality of the communities where he was born and raised. That is why Valleys communities took him to their heart, his plays often forming the mainstay of theatres like the Coliseum in Aberdare.

Frank was also not averse to treading the boards, reaching out to new audiences with his show-stealing pantomime dames. Frank did so much for the Valleys and the arts during his life. While his infectious on-screen presence will be sorely missed, his humour will live on through his comprehensive collection of outstanding plays.