Date / Time: 12 April
Venues: National Waterfront Museum Swansea, Swansea City Centre and the Hafod-Morfa Copperworks
Info: Visitors are invited to meet the Man Engine – the moving, steaming, mechanical miner – as he visits the city once known as ‘Copperopolis’.
Visitors can watch as the giant puppet ‘collects’ copper ore from the National Waterfront Museum and parades it through Swansea City Centre before presenting it to John Henry Vivian at the Hafod-Morfa Copperworks, where a dramatic after-dark fire and light show awaits.
National Waterfront Museum
Time: 11am – 1.15pm
Price: FREE
Swansea City Centre
Time: 2.15pm – 3pm
Price: FREE
Hafod-Morfa Copperworks
Time: 6.30pm – 9.30pm
Gates open at 6.30 with music and entertainment, information, inter-activities marquee, food stalls and rides. Music from The Moriston Rugby Male voice choir, and Andrew Mackay and Carole Etherton singing folk songs about Swansea’s history. And dancing from The Men of Sweyn’s Ey. Come and strike your own Copperworks coin, find out more about the history of the site.
At 7.30, the puppeteers start their preparations with a number of interesting sideshows the Ostreme Players perform a pageant depicting a day in the life of a copper worker overseen by Captain David Morgan and John Henry Vivian. Look out for a lady called Becca Pee as you explore the site and wait for dusk to fall and the pyrotechnics to start.
The event outside the National Waterfront Museum and the City Centre are free and un-ticketed. Tickets for the tour finale at the Hafod-Morfa Copperworks can be booked here…
Running Order:
6.30pm – 9.30pm: The Man Engine Smelts Copper at Hafod-Morfa Copperworks
The Man Engine arrives at the works to hand the copper ore to John Henry Vivian for smelting in a spectacular after-dark fire and light show that you really don’t want to miss.
6.30pm
Gates open with with music and entertainment, information, inter-activities marquee, food stalls and rides.
Music from 6.30 to 7.30 includes:
A rousing performance by Morriston RFC Male Choir, singing a set of traditional Welsh favourites, some of which would have been familiar to nineteenth century miners and copper workers.
Andrew McKay and Carole Etherton, have a growing reputation not only as performers but also as writers of songs. They will be singing their songs from 6.45pm, the choruses are easy to follow, and they do like it when people join in.
Men of Sweyn’s Ey will be performing ‘Y Gaseg Eira’, one of the very few Welsh Morris dances.
7.30pm
The story of forging a nation continues at 7.30pm with a pageant of copper workers.
7.50pm
Watcyn Wyn, who worked underground in a coal-mine at 8 years of age before going on to be a poet, teacher and preacher, arrives at 7.50pm and make his way through the crowds, with the copper workers, pushing the carts containing the materials needed to smelt the copper ore.
8.25pm
John Henry Vivian, the owner of Hafod-Morfa Copperworks, comes to see the copper ore for himself at 8.25pm, and at 8.30pm The Man Engine inches forward to begin the smelting process in a spectacular after-dark fire and light show.
9.15pm
The finale ends at 9.15pm with The Man Engine standing tall and proud, providing plenty of opportunities for people to take a selfie with Britain’s biggest mechanical puppet.
Man Engine – At Penzance 2017
