Llangunllo
LLANGUNLLO
Pronounced in Borders fashion ‘Langunthlow’ by its residents, this comparatively remote village takes its name from the ‘Llan’ or church of St.Cynllo, a 5th-century princeling-turned-saint alleged by some to have been a grandson of Coel Hen, or ‘Old King Coel’. There are only 6 other churches dedicated to him, three in Radnorshire and three in Ceredigion. The church here was said to have had the oldest tower in Wales, but was completely rebuilt in 1878-96.
In area one of the biggest in Wales, the parish of Llangunllo includes great stretches of upland pasture and moorland, including Beacon Hill, the source of the River Lugg which flows through the village before continuing to eventually join the Wye at Lugwardine near Hereford. Glyndwr’s Way long-distance footpath also passes through the parish.
Though the parish includes many scattered farmsteads, some of considerable age, most of its inhabitants live in the unassuming valley-bottom village clustered around the church, the well-kept war memorial and the famous Greyhound Inn. Many tales are told about this pub, kept by Bill Matheson from 1959 until the day of his death, aged nearly 93, in 2006: then closed for a time, it now has new owners, and re-opening is expected during 2010. There is also still a working railway station on the beautiful Central Wales Line, though this is over a mile from the village centre, allegedly in order to be nearer the now-vanished gentlemen’s shooting lodge on Beacon Hill. The railway is literally a life-line in hard winters, when the road to the village can sometimes be blocked by snow.
The village hall is well-used for all manner of purposes, and Llangunllo’s hardy inhabitants, who include both long-established local families and ‘people from off’, generally get along very well together. They are well known both for their friendliness and their independent spirit.
