Draft:London Welsh Male Voice Choir

London Welsh Male Voice Choir (Côr Meibion Cymry Llundain) is a Welsh Male Voice Choir based in London, UK.

The choir in its current form was established in 1961 but traces its history back to the original London Welsh Male Choir that was founded in 1902.

Affectionately known as the "Red Jackets" (by comparison with the 'Green Jackets' of Gwalia Male Choir and the 'Black Jackets' of the London Welsh Rugby Club Choir ), London Welsh Male Voice Choir is the oldest and, traditionally, the largest of the London based Welsh Male Voice Choirs. The choir is currently based at the London Welsh Centre at 157-163 Gray's Inn Road, London. .

The London Welsh Male Voice Choir is a registered charity.

History
The original London Welsh Male Voice Choir (also known as the London Welsh Male Choir) were founded in 1902, conducted by Merlin Morgan.

In 1981, the Choir reached their peak in the UK charts with their album "Songs of the Valleys" which got to number 61 and spent a total of 10 weeks in the Top 100.

The London Welsh Festival of Male Choirs
Beginning in 1969, the London Welsh Male Voice Choir hosted a biennial celebration of male voice choir singing at the Royal Albert Hall in South Kensington, London, UK. For each installment a massed choir was formed of invited international Male Choirs.

The latest and 26th edition of the Festival took place on 13 October 2018. It was conducted by Dr Edward-Rhys Harry with accompaniment by Annabel Thwaite (Piano) and James Hearn (Organ) and featured guest compere Aled Jones. The supporting Band was The Band of the Welsh Guards and there were guest performances by Steffan Morris (Cello), John Ieuan Jones (Baritone) and Llio Evans (Soprano).

Singing at Rugby Matches
The Choir has a long history of performing at rugby matches, particularly those of Wales, many of which have been televised.

Some of their most notable appearances include:
 * The 1999 Wales vs England Five Nations match at Wembley Stadium. They were joined on the pitch on this occasion by Max Boyce and Tom Jones.


 * The 2013 Six Nations Championship match at the Principality Stadium once more against England. The game is famous for the atmosphere generated by the choir and the crowd prior to the match, after the WRU decided the cut the band for the chorus, leaving just the sound of the voices ringing around the stadium. Wales went on to win the game 30 points to 3, denying England both the Championship and Grand Slam in the process, just like they had in 1999.

S4C
The Choir has appeared on the Welsh language broadcaster a number of times on a variety of shows including:

Heno
In December 2016, the choir featured in a report by the magazine show, Heno, about the Christmas Concert for the Wlesh community in London at the Jewin Welsh Chapel near the Barbican in the City of London.

Noson Lawen
The choir appeared on the music show, Noson Lawen, in January 2016 performing an arrangement of the popular Welsh hymn Calon Lân to the melody of The Rose.

=== Jack Dee's Christmas Show 1996 ===

Broadcast on the 21 December 1996, the choir performed the opening song of Jack Dee's Christmas Show. The Christmas Carol 'Deck the Halls' was performed with Jack starting the show stood amongst the choir.

An Evening with Harry Secombe (2000)
The Choir were invited to lead the singing and perform at a special episode of Songs of Praise to celebrate the Welsh actor Sir Harry Secombe.

40th Anniversary Gala Concert (2001)
The Choir were one of five groups to be invited to form part of the choir for the 40th Anniversary celebration of Songs of Praise which took place at the Royal Albert Hall, along with St. Paul's Cathedral Choristers, Royal Choral Society, St. Michael's Singers and Croydon Seventh Day Adventist Gospel Choir.

The Gala was broadcast live on BBC One on 23 September 2001.

=== The Rob Brydon Show 2010 ===

Along with Bryn Terfel and The Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, the choir performed in the 2010 Christmas special of The Rob Brydon Show. The show was broadcast on BBC Two on Thursday 30th December 2010.

Collaborations
Over the years, the choir has collaborated with a number of well known artists both live and in studio recordings.

They have performed live with Take That at Earl's Court in 1995 and Charlotte Church at Brixton Academy on he 2-3 March 1999. The performances with Charlotte Church were recorded and published on DVD and VHS as 'Voice of an Angel: In Concert'. The choir have also provided backing for Charlotte Church on her eponymous album, 'Charlotte Church'.

They have also recorded music with Roxy Music on the song 'Psalm' for their album 'Stranded' and Aled Jones's album 'Higher'.

Notable Members
Bold designates current member
 * Elgan Alderman, journalist
 * John Downing MBE, photographer
 * Haydn James, Conductor and Musical Director of the WRU