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Boathouse At Laugharne

Dylan Thomas moved to the Boathouse at Laugharne in 1949. The house was purchased for the family by Margaret Taylor, wife of the famous Oxford historian A.J.P. Taylor. The Thomas's had been living in a cabin at the bottom of A.J.P. Taylor's garden. The noise of children, and the arguments between Dylan and his wife Caitlin eventually exhausted Taylor's patience. Elizabeth, however, inspite of rows with Caitlin, remained sympathetic, and used her own money to buy the Boathouse for the poet.

The Boathouse today is preserved as a museum to Dylan Thomas, and appears as it would have done when he and his family lived there. A short film tells the story of his life, and recordings of his poems, spoken by Dylan himself, play in the living room. There is a small shop, and a tea room.

When I visited the Boathouse I sat on the terrace, looking out over the beautiful Taf estuary, and read the following lines from Poem On His Birthday:

 

 

In the mustardseed sun,

By full tilt river and switchback sea

Where the cormorants scud,

In his house on stilts high above beaks

And palavers of birds

This sandgrain day in the bent bay's grave

He celebrates and spurns

His driftwood thirty-fifth wind turned age;

Herons spire and spear.

 

Close to the Boathouse, on the lane running above, the study shed where Dylan worked has also been preserved.

 

 

 

Study Shed

Opening Times: The Boathouse is open daily. Up to Easter weekend it is open 10.30am - 3.30pm. From Easter weekend it is open 10am - 5.30pm. The boathouse is closed over Christmas.

Directions: Take the M4 and then the A40 to St Clears, and then take the A4066 to Laugharne. I suggest parking on the sea front next to the castle, and then walking along the coast path to the Boathouse. This path would, for short sections, be difficult for those with mobility problems. Click here for an interactive map centred on Laugharne.

Access: the Boathouse can only be reached via steep steps and is not suitable for wheelchair users. The study shed can only be reached via a sloping path, which once again might be difficult for those in wheelchairs.

Contact:

phone: 01994 427429

web site: http://www.dylanthomasboathouse.com/english/index_e.html