Restoration cash fight resumes

Cardigan Castle dates back to the 12th Century

Three historical buildings from across Wales have been picked to compete for a multimillion pound boost in this year's BBC Two Restoration series.

The Miner's Institute in Newbridge, south Wales, the old workhouse at Llanfyllin in Powys and Cardigan Castle have made the shortlist.

Last year, the Victoria Baths in Manchester won £3.5m after winning the live national final.

In all, 21 buildings across the UK have been chosen for the series, which will be presented again by Griff Rhys Jones.

Cardigan Castle, which hosted the first ever National Eisteddfod, was bought by the county council last year, after falling into disrepair.

The castle has been at the centre of battles between Welsh princes and Norman invaders, and was given as a dowry to Catherine of Aragon when she married Henry VIII.

Sue Lewis, who is supporting its bid, said it had been "fantastic" to get the castle back into public ownership, but said a lot of work was still needed.

The youngest of the three Welsh nominations is Newbridge memo

"Any help we can have, be it money or publicity, then it's great," she said.

"By restoring it, and opening it up to public access, it will make it a draw for tourists and put Cardigan on the map - Cardigan deserves that."

The Grade 2-listed Llanfyllin workhouse in Powys was built in 1838.

It is closely linked with memories of poverty and suffering, but local AM Mick Bates said its legacy was worth saving.

"It is part of our heritage - suffering is an important part of it," he said.

He added that it was a good opportunity to invest in the architectural heritage of mid Wales.

I couldn't even have imagined one year ago we would be fortunate enough to be in this position Howard Stone

The youngest of the three nominations in Wales is the Workingman's institute and memorial hall in Newbridge in the south Wales valleys.

Once the centre of the community, it was paid for by the miners themselves from a welfare scheme they set up, but has now become structurally unsound.

It has been taken over in the last year by a restoration team, and chairman Howard Stone said he was still shocked it had made the shortlist.

"If I'm absolutely honest, I'm still reeling from it," he said.

"I couldn't even have imagined one year ago we would be fortunate enough to be in this position."

Last year a Georgian town house, Llanelly House in Llanelli, was voted into the finals of the first Restoration Series, while the othe two Welsh entries were Vaynol Old Hall in Gwynedd and Amlwch Port and Parys Mountain in Anglesey.

The Restoration series will be launched on 8 May.