Literary councillor loses illness fight (From Penarth Times)

Literary councillor loses illness fight

DINAS Powys resident and county councillor Robin Reeves has died, aged 59.

Mr Reeves, who lived in Heol-y-Cawl, was known both in the village and throughout Wales as a leading figure. He passed away on Friday, November 2. He had been suffering from cancer.

As a Plaid Cymru member of the Vale Council he played a key role in a very difficult inves-tigation into serious past irregularities.

His commitment to economic development was highlighted by his position as Vice Chairman of the Economic Regeneration and Prosperity Scrutiny Committee of the Vale.

He was enjoyed the countryside, whether walking in the Alps or around Mill Fields and Cwm George, and as a community councillor he demonstrated concerns for the local neighbourhood.

He was a co-editor of the cultural magazine Arcade in the early 1980s, a founding member of the Welsh Union of Writers, a founder of St David's Forum, and a leading figure in the Parliament for Wales campaign.

However, his greatest contribution was as a great editor of the literary journal New Welsh Review. He had a keen eye for good writing and a love for the literatures of Wales that brought out the best in the many new writers he promoted.

In the 1960s he worked in the library of the Financial Times, swiftly becoming Commodities Editor before being posted as one of the paper's early correspondents to Brussels. There he was instrumental in founding the Bureau of Unrepresented Nations.

He later became assistant editor of the Western Mail before leaving to edit the New Welsh Review.

Mr Reeves' funeral will take place at Thornhill Crematorium, Cardiff, tomorrow, Friday, November 9. Donations in his memory may be sent to the Marie Curie Cancer Care Centre, Holme Tower, and the Dinas Powys District Nurses Fund via Robert Tyler, 21a Station Road, Dinas Powys, CF64 4DE.