Cultural highlights 2025: The best of Welsh stage, screen and audio

Rhys John Edwards

Mammoth

Mike Bubbins’ BBC sitcom Mammoth returned for its second series in December and, thankfully, continued to make the most of its surreal premise.

The show, which follows a 1970s PE teacher who wakes up in the modern day after being frozen in an avalanche, could easily have become a one-joke sitcom.

Instead, Bubbins and his co-writers, Paul Doolan and Luke Mason, deftly sidestep that fate at every turn.

The key to its success lies not only in the fresh and inventive ways Mammoth collides with the modern world, but in the character’s underlying desire to belong within it, rather than reject it outright.

Bubbins’ magnetic charisma elevates the show, bolstered by a strong supporting cast, including the ever-reliable Sian Gibson and sitcom legend Joseph Marcell.

With only seven episodes across two series, Mammoth clearly favours quality over quantity – commendable enough, though I’m hoping that should a third series be commissioned, it’ll come with an extra helping.

The Guest

The Guest was a fast-paced, gleefully preposterous BBC One drama, inspired by 90s thrillers like The Hand That Rocks the Cradle and Single White Female.

It followed cleaner Ria (played by a captivating Gabrielle Creevy), whose life is turned upside down after being drawn into the world of the wealthy and enigmatic Fran (the always-excellent Eve Myles).

Written by Matthew Barry, the four-part drama packed its short run with suspense, dark humour and jaw-dropping twists. Few dramas this year were this much fun.

All Change at Llanfair PG

All Change at Llanfair PG was a one-off BBC Radio 4 play by Neil Williams that aired back in April.

Packed with pitch-perfect gags, warm comic characters and genuine emotional weight, it starred Siw Hughes as Enid, a widow who seeks solace at the train station where her late husband once worked as an announcer.

When his unconventional recordings are replaced by a monotonous alternative, Enid, alongside café workers Cadi (Angharad Phillips) and Wend (Lisa Zahra), hatches a plan to restore him to the tannoy.

The end result is touching, funny and, at times, a strikingly authentic portrayal of grief. You can still catch the play on BBC Sounds.

Mothercover

Another audio standout was Fflur Dafydd’s audio drama series Mothercover, which aired on BBC Radio 4 back in August.

Featuring an eclectic cast that included Remy Beasley, Alexandra Roach and Sacha Dhawan, it followed a young mother recruited by MI5 to spy on another mum at her local baby group.

Bringing espionage to Aberystwyth, the series was as witty as it was thrilling – and also remains available on BBC Sounds.

Hot Chicks

Rebecca Jade Hammond’s new play Hot Chicks (Swansea Grand Theatre) tackled county lines exploitation with sharp humour and harrowing realism.

Subverting assumptions around gender and power, the production explored how presumed trust can be weaponised to devastating effect.

Strong, naturalistic performances from Londiwe Mthembu and Izzi McCormack John grounded the play, whilst Rachel Redford’s portrayal of emotional coercion was quietly horrifying – an aspect of the play that was a masterclass in both writing and acting.

Hammond also confronted this subject without sanctimony, balancing darkness with moments of light to communicate its message with honesty and integrity.

Port Talbot Gotta Banksy

Port Talbot Gotta Banksy played at the Sherman Theatre in May. Writers Paul Jenkins and Tracy Harris transformed more than 150 hours of local interviews into a vibrant piece of verbatim theatre – and this was, undoubtedly, my favourite production of the year.

With a versatile ensemble and minimalist but effective staging, it captured the humour, tension and pride surrounding the community’s response to Banksy’s mural.

It offered not only competing interpretations of the artwork but a rich, nuanced portrait of the community of Port Talbot itself.

No Man’s Land

And in October at the Park and Dare Theatre there was No Man’s Land by Rachel Trezise, which delivered a physically charged meditation on trauma and arrested development.

Anchored by a breathtaking performance from Kyle Stead – probably the finest stage acting I’ve seen this year – the production was also enhanced by a pre-recorded chorus of voices which haunted the space.

Dealing with sexual abuse and PTSD, the piece was unsurprisingly challenging, but it was handled with such care, that the lasting effect was powerful and cathartic – a piece of theatre that stays with its audience far beyond the curtain call.