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Bard Boy
Bard Boy is the humorous story of Edward’s journey from innocent Welsh valleys boy to potential leader of the newly rejuvenated and technologically manipulative Druid Movement.
When his fanatical Methodist grandmother proclaims Edward as the reincarnation of the founder of the Druids, will their ruthless spin doctor seize on this unexpected public relations gift, and accept Edward into the very heart of the organisation? Or will he denounce him as a fraud? Will Edward's sudden emergence from total obscurity be hailed as the Second Coming? Will it be sufficient to divert public attention away from the suspicious mass drowning of the Wales Assembly Government? Will Edward's visions help win the Druids the forthcoming election? Or would the role of a martyr to the cause suit young Edward better?
Either way, there’s a Methodist hit man coming for him…
When his fanatical Methodist grandmother proclaims Edward as the reincarnation of the founder of the Druids, will their ruthless spin doctor seize on this unexpected public relations gift, and accept Edward into the very heart of the organisation? Or will he denounce him as a fraud? Will Edward's sudden emergence from total obscurity be hailed as the Second Coming? Will it be sufficient to divert public attention away from the suspicious mass drowning of the Wales Assembly Government? Will Edward's visions help win the Druids the forthcoming election? Or would the role of a martyr to the cause suit young Edward better?
Either way, there’s a Methodist hit man coming for him…
279 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2013
4 people want to read
About the author
Nigel Holloway
9 books1 followerMusician, singer, actor, sound engineer and video editor, ex-computer consultant, ex-maths lecturer and ex-radio presenter, Nigel lives and writes in Cardiff in Wales.
Until recently, he concentrated mainly on writing for the theatre, and to date, thirteen of his plays have been published, with performances taking place as far afield as Australia - and Hull. A number of his shorter plays have also been made into audio recordings, and are available to download from his website at:
www.off-the-wall-plays.co.uk
More recently, he has spent his time writing novels: his first, a historic fiction called The damning of Henry Morgan, is a story of intrigue, adventure, politics and betrayal, set in the late seventeenth century.
The second novel, also a historic fiction, is called Scartato, and tells the story of a flawed violin and the various lives it touches over the centuries.
His third novel, Second Death, tells the story of a possible future in which death can be treated as a disease, and the moral dilemmas facing Hamish McAllister, the man who made this greatest of all breakthroughs in medical science.
The fourth novel is a socio/political satire based on a future where a corrupt Druid movement takes over the government of Wales. Bard Boy is the story of Edward, a naive young boy from the Welsh Valleys who claims to be the reincarnated founder of the Welsh bardic tradition.
He has also written the second instalment in the Hamish McAllister Chronicles, entitled Hamish Redux.
The third novel in the Hamish McAllister Chronicles, entitled Such Heights Of Evil, was published in April 2015.
All Nigel’s novels are available from Amazon Kindle.
He is currently editing the fourth Hamish McAllister novel, currently entitled Murdering the Messiah - as well as composing the music for a retelling of John Gay’s seminal work, The Beggar’s Opera – this time as a rock opera.
Until recently, he concentrated mainly on writing for the theatre, and to date, thirteen of his plays have been published, with performances taking place as far afield as Australia - and Hull. A number of his shorter plays have also been made into audio recordings, and are available to download from his website at:
www.off-the-wall-plays.co.uk
More recently, he has spent his time writing novels: his first, a historic fiction called The damning of Henry Morgan, is a story of intrigue, adventure, politics and betrayal, set in the late seventeenth century.
The second novel, also a historic fiction, is called Scartato, and tells the story of a flawed violin and the various lives it touches over the centuries.
His third novel, Second Death, tells the story of a possible future in which death can be treated as a disease, and the moral dilemmas facing Hamish McAllister, the man who made this greatest of all breakthroughs in medical science.
The fourth novel is a socio/political satire based on a future where a corrupt Druid movement takes over the government of Wales. Bard Boy is the story of Edward, a naive young boy from the Welsh Valleys who claims to be the reincarnated founder of the Welsh bardic tradition.
He has also written the second instalment in the Hamish McAllister Chronicles, entitled Hamish Redux.
The third novel in the Hamish McAllister Chronicles, entitled Such Heights Of Evil, was published in April 2015.
All Nigel’s novels are available from Amazon Kindle.
He is currently editing the fourth Hamish McAllister novel, currently entitled Murdering the Messiah - as well as composing the music for a retelling of John Gay’s seminal work, The Beggar’s Opera – this time as a rock opera.
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August 12, 2016
Author's note:
Where did the original idea for this book come from?
It started as an entry for a competition to write a piece which reflected modern Welsh life. As a Welsh author living in Wales, it would seem obvious that I would be able to create such a piece without any real difficulty. My problem was that my view of Welsh life didn't seem to tally with anyone else's! In fact, it still seems that this inconsistency remains true. The truth is, that I still find it hard to take the culture and political life of my native country seriously, despite my very best efforts.
Having been brought up in various parts of South Wales, I couldn't wait to escape from the narrow-minded parochialism of my upbringing, and embrace the wider world of University life in the big city, London. But sadly, there too I was to remain an outsider, instantly branded because of my accent.
'You're Welsh - you must be a Rugby player!'
'Well - no, I'm more into skiing - '
'Then you must be able to sing, Taff!'
'Well - yes, but my name's Nigel - '
It was this inability to fit into a cultural stereotype that lead eventually to the creation of Edward Williams, the young valleys' boy - innocent despite his eighteen years - who dreams of breaking out of the life mapped out for him (selling the Big Issue - eventually having his own dogs, too) and becoming a member of the best club in town - the Druids.
But it was the discovery of a previous Edward Williams (also known as Iolo Morganwg) who lived from 1747 to 1826, that really started me off down the whimsical trail to the new Wales.
Iolo Morganwg was a stonemason from South Wales who left his home to travel to London. He insinuated himself into the ex-patriot Welsh community in the English capital, and then proceeded to deceive them by claiming that he had discovered long-lost poetry and bardic traditions that pre-dated the Romans. And through his production of completely bogus 'lost' poetry, and fabricated documents purporting to describe 'ancient Bardic traditions', he basically made himself the founder of Neo Druidism.
And the fact that his blatant forgeries have left a legacy that still survives today makes his fraudulent activities even more remarkable.
Coupling the idea of the modern Druids as a predatory political movement, masters of spin, propaganda, and mass communications, with the young Edward Williams as a reincarnation of the eponymous founder of modern Druidism was irresistible!
The world young Edward was to inhabit was less difficult; it merely required that the 'old ways' be translated into the modern world - instead of twitching net curtains, it seemed more obvious to use webcams to spy on the neighbours. And if you've ever had the opportunity of walking around Abergavenny on a Saturday night, you'll have no difficulty in recognising the Fenni Girls in their 'hen parties'.
I hope that my poking fun at just about everything Welsh doesn't offend anyone, as it wasn't intended to be malicious - after all, if I wanted to live anywhere else, I would do!
Where did the original idea for this book come from?
It started as an entry for a competition to write a piece which reflected modern Welsh life. As a Welsh author living in Wales, it would seem obvious that I would be able to create such a piece without any real difficulty. My problem was that my view of Welsh life didn't seem to tally with anyone else's! In fact, it still seems that this inconsistency remains true. The truth is, that I still find it hard to take the culture and political life of my native country seriously, despite my very best efforts.
Having been brought up in various parts of South Wales, I couldn't wait to escape from the narrow-minded parochialism of my upbringing, and embrace the wider world of University life in the big city, London. But sadly, there too I was to remain an outsider, instantly branded because of my accent.
'You're Welsh - you must be a Rugby player!'
'Well - no, I'm more into skiing - '
'Then you must be able to sing, Taff!'
'Well - yes, but my name's Nigel - '
It was this inability to fit into a cultural stereotype that lead eventually to the creation of Edward Williams, the young valleys' boy - innocent despite his eighteen years - who dreams of breaking out of the life mapped out for him (selling the Big Issue - eventually having his own dogs, too) and becoming a member of the best club in town - the Druids.
But it was the discovery of a previous Edward Williams (also known as Iolo Morganwg) who lived from 1747 to 1826, that really started me off down the whimsical trail to the new Wales.
Iolo Morganwg was a stonemason from South Wales who left his home to travel to London. He insinuated himself into the ex-patriot Welsh community in the English capital, and then proceeded to deceive them by claiming that he had discovered long-lost poetry and bardic traditions that pre-dated the Romans. And through his production of completely bogus 'lost' poetry, and fabricated documents purporting to describe 'ancient Bardic traditions', he basically made himself the founder of Neo Druidism.
And the fact that his blatant forgeries have left a legacy that still survives today makes his fraudulent activities even more remarkable.
Coupling the idea of the modern Druids as a predatory political movement, masters of spin, propaganda, and mass communications, with the young Edward Williams as a reincarnation of the eponymous founder of modern Druidism was irresistible!
The world young Edward was to inhabit was less difficult; it merely required that the 'old ways' be translated into the modern world - instead of twitching net curtains, it seemed more obvious to use webcams to spy on the neighbours. And if you've ever had the opportunity of walking around Abergavenny on a Saturday night, you'll have no difficulty in recognising the Fenni Girls in their 'hen parties'.
I hope that my poking fun at just about everything Welsh doesn't offend anyone, as it wasn't intended to be malicious - after all, if I wanted to live anywhere else, I would do!
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