On 4 July 2024, the oral history film, Remembering France was launched at Wales’ oldest cinema in Brynmawr.
Welsh female football fans in crowd at Euro 2016. Dr Penny Miles, Expo’r Wal Goch project
This oral history project celebrates both Wales’ historic semi-final run in Euro 2016 and its female fans. Drawing on 16 oral history interviews conducted with female fans who went to France in 2016, the film explores less-oft shared tales of motherhood, female protagonism & footballing expertise, alongside fan experiences of tournament firsts and Welsh nationhood. Keeping a record of Wales’ re-emergence onto the international footballing scene in its successful 2016 campaign, was an important push factor behind this project.
More than 30 theatre goers were present at this historic cinema for the launch, from fans to those working in the football industry and Welsh sporting heritage. The event was covered by Welsh language daily magazine programme, Heno, which aired on 15 July. For some attendees, it brought back their own memories of France;
“For Toulouse, it brought back the sheer magic of that evening. The setting, the weather, happy atmosphere vs the edgy nature of Lens (a complete juxtaposition) and the disbelief in the quality of the performance. I cried tears of happy disbelief that night. My old man and I for on the metro to where we were staying and the French people saw our shirts and applauded us! I welled up again at that, what that respect meant. Brilliant!” (Gareth)
For those who took part in the project, it also meant a lot;
‘We are smiling and crying and so, so emotional! It’s a beautiful reminder of a (probably) once in a lifetime, wonderful experience. THANK YOU so much. You have captured a momentous historical event in the world’s conscious recognition of Cymru and shown how proud we are of Wales.’ (Llinos)
Based on the feedback from those who came and took part, we are planning to fund some more FREE screenings in the Autumn/Winter:
- Cardiff film screening, Grange Pavilion. Wed, Nov 6, 6:45 PM
- Wrexham film screening, Tŷ Pawb. Fri, Nov 8, 7:00 PM
- Swansea fim screening, Elysium Gallery & Bar. Thu, Jan 23, 7:00 PM.
This film has been made possible through the support of the following organisations: Gŵyl Wal Goch, the Football Museum Wales, Sporting Heritage and the University of Bath.
The screenings are part of the ESRC Festival of Social Science 2024 and are made possible thanks to funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), which is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
For any further information about the project or for access to the online version of the film, please email Dr Penny Miles via [email protected] or via X/Twitter @pennymiles31
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