Portmeirion, Wales
Posted By auntie on September 24, 2019
1 mile; Portmeirion, Wales, UK
This is the place that the old “Prisoner” TV show was filmed. It was quite surreal. I did a quick little walk around in the surrounding woods, and found a dog cemetery that made me cry. What a cool place!
Bust
In case you’ve never heard of it, The Prisoner was a very weird short-lived series that, well, imma outsource this to Wikipedia:
The Prisoner is a 1967 British avant-garde social science fiction television series about an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village, where his captors try to find out why he abruptly resigned from his job. It was created by Patrick McGoohan and George Markstein, with McGoohan playing the lead role of Number Six. Episode plots have elements of science fiction, allegory, and psychological drama, as well as spy fiction.
I will also admit that I know WAY more about this series and its star than strictly necessary, thanks to a podcast called “A Degree Absolute.” If you have any interest in learning way more than necessary yourself, do give it a listen.
Giant Chess Board
Astonishing Place
[Ed. Note: That photo above is not from some sort of promotional material, it is just a snap I took on my phone. This place is so photogenic!]
Portmeirion itself, as you might imagine, also has a fascinating history. Take it away, Wikipedia…
Portmeirion is a tourist village in Gwynedd, North Wales. It was designed and built by Sir Clough Williams-Ellis between 1925 and 1975 in the style of an Italian village, and is now owned by a charitable trust. The village is located in the community of Penrhyndeudraeth, on the estuary of the River Dwyryd, 2 miles (3.2 km) south east of Porthmadog, and 1 mile (1.6 km) from Minffordd railway station. Portmeirion has served as the location for numerous films and television shows, most famously as “The Village” in the 1960s television show The Prisoner.
I encourage you to visit that particular Wikipedia link, as there’s a lot more info there.
Cool Signage
There is a very short trail that goes into the woods surrounding the village where you’ll find all of those places. I didn’t know what the “Dancing Tree” was, and never saw anything that I would have considered a “Dancing Tree.”
There’s also a tram that will take you into the woods, too.
Dog Cemetery
Honestly, I cried several times while reading the tombstones in this dog cemetery. This dog, coincidentally, was named Elsa (which is my mom’s name).
You can find out more about Portmeirion from this tourism website. They even have a hotel, so you could stay there if you wanted. And a massive beach. Just watch out for “Rover.” As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.
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