S01E17 Steffan Alun, Welsh speaker - From Abertawe (Swansea), Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Blwyddyn Newydd Dda! The first episode in 2023 took your host to the Land of Song on the British isles - Wales. Steffan, more often in his Welsh tongue, is a Radio host, TV presenter and household name in his native Wales. Steffan also performs throughout the UK in English, a language he only became fluent in his teens.

The Swansea native's love for his culture and his langue is evident throughout this interview.

Steffan shared how he thinks in Welsh, how his skills at translating between the English and the Welsh languages help him deal with occasional glitches on stage and why he is fed up with lazy jokes about the Welsh language. So fed up is he that he wrote a whole show mocking the English language - those lazy "jokes" are not about Welsh but simply about a language you don't know.

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Follow Steffan on twitter, Instagram or join his Facebook group

Steffan's Rats in Boilersuits: The Torchwood Podcast

Follow your host Kuan-wen on Instagram and Twitter

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Kuan-wen mentioned a set from the Welsh comedian Rhod Gilbert and the Welsh singer Browen Lewis.

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For any comments or suggestions, please contact us on Instagram or email comedywithanaccent@gmail.com

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Episode timeline

00:50 Intro

02:09 Rhod Gilbert’s comedy portrayal of Cardiff

02:51 Growing up copying the Received Pronunciation accent; English fluency only in his teens

07:48 Thinking in Welsh; mastery over English as second language

11:09 Occasional glitches

12:55 Autism and accents

15:04 When the comic forgets a specific English word

16:33 Translating skills (The Welsh Language Act 1993)

18:59 An example of a glitch

20:57 Just admit you forget the word

22:53 Tougher gigs to perform to Welsh audience

30:28 Less stereotypes and more nuances for home crowds?

32:28 Audience shouted Sheepshagger

34:04 Accessibility to home culture and mother tongue

39:23 First show at Edinburgh Fringe Festival was secretly about languages

45:00 Battles to save the Welsh language

46:16 What is a microwave in Welsh?

46:53 Steffan’s social media and podcast

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Podcast intro music by @Taigenkawabe