Poet with cancer during wins National Eisteddfod Chair in Wrexham

A poet who was diagnosed with cancer during last year’s National Eisteddfod has been awarded one of the event’s most prestigious prizes.

Tudur Hallam was presented with the Eisteddfod Chair for his poem about receiving the news of his illness.

“I believe writing can be a great help to people,” he said.

He said the initial shock of his diagnosis prevented him from writing “in his mother tongue” for many months, adding: “In January I had some sad news that the treatment which was supposed to buy me some time had not worked at all and, in that anguish, I certainly began to write and the poem just flowed out to me.

“I was in two minds whether to present the poem to the competition, because I didn’t know at that time if I’d be here in August. I wasn’t sure how much time I had.”

In an emotional ceremony on Friday afternoon, the pavilion rose to its feet to applaud the father-of-three as the Archdruid, the head of the Gorsedd of the Bards, greeted him.

Tudur’s brother, Gwion Hallam, also addressed the pavilion with a heartfelt poem.

This is the second time Tudur Hallam has received the award, following his success in the competition at the Blaenau Gwent and Valleys National Eisteddfod in 2010.

After the ceremony, Mr Hallam, a retired Swansea University professor, said the experience was “exhilarating”.

“I feel happy, proud that I competed,” he said.

“I’m glad I’ve created something positive out of a very difficult situation.”

The audience in the pavilion heard that 15 poets competed this year – the highest number since 1989 – and the judges said it was an “exceptionally strong” competition.

This year’s task was to compose an awdl, a long poem, or a collection of poems, on the theme of dinas (city).

In his adjudication, Peredur Lynch said he “was completely deceived” by the opening of Mr Hallam’s poem, which was cheerful and made reference to the girls’ school football team in Carmarthenshire which he coaches.

“I must admit my instinctive reaction was something like: ‘Very entertaining, but it takes more than a light-hearted cywydd (couplet) like this to win the National Chair’.

“And then, in an instant, I felt a punch in the gut… without any preparation, we are summoned as readers by the poet from the middle of a football field to Glangwili Hospital, where he receives a diagnosis of bone cancer and metastatic cancer in the liver.

“I was deceived, and life is a deceiver. On a football field full of challenge and bravado one day; our world turned upside down the next.”

• Additional reporting by Eben Leonard