NHS 70th Anniversary

2015 (running time 05.15) A Film by David Garner

2015 (running time 05.15) A Film by David Garner

As part of our #NHS70 / #GIGCYMRU70 celebrations, we are showcasing a short film made by David Garner that examines the origins of the NHS through its prime instigator Aneurin Bevan. 

Between the stammer and le mot juste
 
The only two remaining speeches by Aneurin Bevan were sourced and then reconfigured into twenty-five segments, in order to emphasise the significance and stress the importance of the NHS and the need for a just society in the narrative. 

 
This reconfigured audio was then broadcast on Llangynidr mountain, the place where Bevan would practice reading poetry aloud, in order to help counteract his stammer. It is known that Bevan would frequently climb the mountain with a stool and books, in order to overcome his speech impediment. In being broadcast at this location, the speech comes into conflict with the wind, which is common in the weather here but is also suggestive of political conflict.
 
The mass of short-lived cotton sedge flowers is a visible indicator of the weather conditions, and also acts as Bevan’s audience. Similarly, the book at the top of the column of books seated on the stool is exposed to and controlled by the wind, often resembling the fluctuating pattern of Bevan’s speech. 
 
Although these words were delivered over sixty years ago, they are as relevant and critical today in their expression of the need for a fairer society.
 
View the film online – it is free to view on 5^th July 2018, after that date, please contact David directly and he will supply you with a password.

Email David at: davidgarnerargoed@gmail.com