Matthew Rhys introduces Jimmy Fallon to Mari Lwyd

Stephen Price

Matthew Rhys has flown the flag for Wales during an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, introducing American audiences to some of Wales’ most beloved traditions.

The Emmy award-winning actor, who was born in Cardiff, joined Fallon, whose talk show is one of the USA’s most-watched programmes, to discuss his ‘creepy’ role in the series The Beast in Me and how he drew inspiration from The Silence of the Lambs for his role in the show.

As well as giving Fallon an inside scoop on the Netflix drama, which is currently riding high in the streaming giant’s top ten, he also took time to discuss some of the Welsh traditions he’s introduced to his partner, Keri Russell, who he met while the two starred in hit TV show, The Americans.

After discussing Keri, Fallon asks: “Is there any Welsh traditions that you’ve kind of brought into the family, the relationship?”

To which Matthew replies: “Some might say too much!”

Referring to Saint David’s Day, he continues: “Well, March the first is the ‘Welsh Saint Patty’s Day’, so I usually insist that we eat kind of lamb and leeks and things like that. We have a leek eating competition. We wear daffodils.

With tongue in cheek, he adds: “You know, I insist that the children have coal in their Christmas stockings, which is a luxury item in Wales. Um, there’s that one.”

On to one of Wales’ most beloved traditions, he shared: “But the Welsh have a tradition, it’s a very old tradition, of carving lovespoons for their loved ones or their betrothed. So I carved Keri a lovespoon for one of her big birthdays.”

After this, Jimmy asked Matthew if there were any traditions involving livestock, to which he answered: “Well, sadly, you have to wait till one of the animals dies. But on New Year’s Eve it’s called in Welsh ‘the Fari Lwyd’ or ‘the Grey Mary’, where a horse’s head is draped with a cloak.

“And then a group of people will wassail, they go wassailing from from house to house, singing outside and asking to be let in and kind of be given kind of, you know, wine and food, basically.

Jimmy asks: “So people are walking around holding a horse’s head?”

“On the first of January, yes. A dead horse’s head with a white cape. Usually there’s ribbons and bells that go with it. And there are small groups of people. Look, you know, television and electricity were late getting to us, so this was a major form of entertainment. And you go up and you ring the doorbell. You ring the doorbell…

“The Welsh have a bold statement in that we sort of pretend that we invented rap, because it’s basically what it is, the Druidic tradition of hammering staves and kind of doing, you know, rap battles basically. It’s where it originated.

“You would sing a verse, and then someone on the other side of the door would sing a verse back as to why they shouldn’t let you in. Then you’d sing another verse, like, you should let us in because this song is so great. Give us some, you know, some Christmas merriment…

“You basically convince the person on the other side of the door to let you in and feed and drink.”

After flying the flag for Welsh culture, Matthew Rhys told Jimmy more about his role in one of this year’s most highly anticipated thrillers, The Beast In Me.

The tense thriller sees Matthew Rhys and Claire Danes playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse in the new eight-episode drama from creator Gabe Rotter, who previously worked on The X-Files.

Danes plays Aggie Wiggs, a grieving writer; Rhys plays Nile Jarvis, her new neighbor and possible murderer. But who is the monster? And who’s the bad neighbour? That’s another story.

The Beast in Me focuses on acclaimed author Aggie Wiggs (Danes), who has receded from public life since the tragic death of her young son, finding herself unable to write and a ghost of her former self.

Danes’ character finds an unlikely subject for a new book when the house next door is bought by Nile Jarvis (Rhys), a famed and formidable real estate mogul who was once the prime suspect in his wife’s disappearance.

At once horrified and fascinated by this man, Aggie finds herself compulsively hunting for the truth – chasing his demons while fleeing her own in a game of cat and mouse that might turn deadly.

November is shaping up to be a busy month for Matthew Rhys, as he is set to take to the stage to play Richard Burton to raise funds for Welsh National Theatre.

The Welsh actor is set to return to the London stage for the first time in 21 years to play Richard Burton at The Old Vic. The iconic venue has ties to the late star’s early success and has been added as an extra date to the Welsh run of Playing Burton to meet popular demand.

The performances will run in Welsh theatres from 16 to 28 November 2025, including Cardigan, Wrexham, Cardiff, Aberystwyth, Bangor, and Swansea, and culminate at Bethel Chapel Café in Burton’s birthplace of Pontrhydyfen.

The acclaimed one-man play is being revived to mark the centenary since Richard Burton’s birth, raising funds for Michael Sheen’s new Welsh National Theatre

The Beast in Me is currently streaming on Netflix