Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. November 2020 marks the centenary of the birth of Elaine Morgan. Elaine, born into a mining family, achieved the truly remarkable during a long, varied and glittering career. She won a scholarship to Oxford University, a phenomenal achievement for a miner's daughter in the 1930s. After graduation, Elaine worked for the WEA, and then married Morien, who had fought against the fascists in Spain. Three sons were raised from the family home in Mountain Ash, as Elaine embarked on a career as a writer for the BBC. She wrote acclaimed adaptations of—amongst others—How Green was my Valley, The Life and Times of Lloyd George, and Testament of Youth. For the latter, she won a Writer of the Year award, to go with numerous BAFTAs, Writers' Guild Awards, and even the odd international trophy. Elaine also developed and promoted the revolutionary aquatic ape theory, publishing many books on the subject and winning prizes for her contribution to scientific knowledge. In her 80s, Elaine took on a new challenge as an award-winning columnist for the Western Mail.

Elaine died in 2013. Seven years on, there is a new biography of Elaine, recently written by local historian Dr Daryl Leeworthy, and plans to erect a statue in her honour in Mountain Ash, in the heart of the Valleys whose communities she captured so vividly. As journalist Carolyn Hitt observed, Elaine changed the world from her desk in Mountain Ash.