Alex Jones has spoken candidly on how the Welsh language and her home town of Ammanford helped her get to where she is today. The Welsh presenter has been a familiar face on BBC's The One Show for 12 years.
In a special series on S4C, the Ammanford-born star makes an emotional return to her home town where she learns about the history of the language, her family and the current situation of the language today. During Stori'r Iaith, which will see other Welsh stars look at their relationship with the Welsh language, Alex speaks of how important her Welsh background was to her, especially now living in London.
During the programme, she says: "It’s really odd because some people don’t understand anything about the Welsh language. Some people at work think it's funny that I speak this completely different language. At the start, people would look at me as if I had two heads whenever I’d be talking Welsh over the phone and stuff.
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She adds: "I remember my first time on the programme as if it was yesterday. I’ll be honest, there was not much time to think about anything - there was so much pressure. And no one could believe that someone with such a strong accent would be sitting on that sofa. By now, people from across Britain will tell me how much they love the the accent they hear nearly every night at 7pm."
While explaining how she felt more aware of the fact that she is a Welsh person living outside of Wales, she said that although her three children were born in London where they are now being raised, she had no doubt that she would speak Welsh with them.
She says: "There was no question that when I had the kids I would speak with them in Welsh. Having said that, because Charlie, my husband, speaks English, when we are all together, the language is English, but then I still speak Welsh.
"Charlie is very supportive of that, and he reads Welsh stories to Ted at bedtime, but deep down he knows that I feel there is a lot more effort needed in order to give the boys any kind of Welsh foundation if we stay here for the next few years."
She later adds: "I think what I worry most about is that the children will turn to me one day and say: ‘Oh mum, why do you keep going on in Welsh? What’s the point?’ And I hope I’ll be able to offer answers to them and tell them this is why it’s important. These are your roots, this is your history, and that’s why you are going to talk in Welsh."
During the programme, Alex also expresses her love for Ammanford. During her visit she got to discover the golden age of the Welsh language during the Industrial Revolution, as well as her own family history. With the number of Welsh speakers decreasing in counties such as Carmarthenshire, according to the recent findings of Census 2021, the presenter said that a lot had changed in her home town.
She says: "Ammanford is home. Of course, some things have changed but I think it’s a lovely area, where Welsh could be heard all the time and naturally on the street. When I was growing up, everybody knew each other - it’s a very close knit community.
"I don’t think many people speak Welsh in Ammanford as much as they used to. But I believe that sense of Welshness here is just as important, as well as the history and culture of Ammanford are still important to the people that live here. I think they’ve just lost the confidence to speak Welsh. That is actually quite sad."
She noted that it was her home town that helped her on her journey to becoming a presenter on The One Show. She says: "It’s made me realise how fragile the language is but also how lucky I am to have had my education in Welsh, and I think we all take advantage of the language.
"Even though I have moved from Wales now, Welsh is still a big part of who I am. I think in regards to foundation, being brought up in Ammanford, has helped me get to where I am today because it was such a small community, everyone enjoyed a chat and enjoy a conversation, and I believe that that is my job in reality. The ability to talk to people on any level."
Alex Jones is on Stori'r Iaith on S4C on Wednesday, February 22 at 9pm. Catch The One Show on BBC One weeknights at 7pm
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