Y Ffair

The land of smiles

Caravans and low loaders would start arriving on the Monday and they would assemble the rides and stalls through the week. Talk at school would be of nothing else. The arrival of the funfair was one of the entertainment highlights of the year in Brynamman.

The family that ran it owned a parcel of land at the bottom of Station Road near the Cenotaph and came back once or twice a year to set up their attractions. These included a variety of rides – chair-o-planes, waltzers and bumper cars, and a selection of stalls such as air rifle ranges, hook-a-duck and a coconut shy.

Visits to aunties and grandparents in the week before the funfair would see them pressing a hot shilling piece into my hand accompanied by a slobbery kiss and the exhortation to go and enjoy myself.

On the Friday or Saturday evening of the fair we would get dressed in our best clothes, and with hair carefully combed, my father would walk me down to the ground. I only ever went with my father as my mother was not a fan of the noisy, smelly sensations offered by the travellers.

Just going out in the twilight was an event in itself. We could hear the music from the top of the hill as we set out and the atmosphere thickened as we got closer. Down through Heol-y-Gelynen, past the Aelwyd and the Public Hall and onto Station Road; joining others as they walked past Laria’s petrol station, the Chemist and Getta’s sweet shop to cross the road before the bend by the Co-op.

The fair was laid out in a large open space that had a dusty ‘compo’ and chipping floor and was surrounded by looming trees. The area had been transformed with brightly painted wooden signs and hundreds of multicoloured light bulbs, and the contrast with the normally austere surroundings made it all the more magical. It became an oasis of light and colour in a usually dark, drab corner of the village.

The clatter of the rides was thrilling and tinny pop music blared out from each, creating an overlapping cacophony. We would try everything, making the most of this brief, colourful opportunity for excitement. There were hot dogs, candy floss, toffee apples and popcorn to choose from and the exotic smells from these added to the heady air.