Cara Fi

Cara Fi (Love Me) is a Welsh romantic comedy-drama series that first broadcast in November 2014 on S4C, and was later made available on the BBC iPlayer. The eight-part series was created by Sarah Dollard.[1] In 2015 the show was nominated for the BAFTA Cymru awards for costume design and for original music.[2]

Cara Fi
Also known asLove Me
Genreromantic comedy, drama
Created bySarah Dollard
Written by
Directed by
  • Gareth Bryn
  • Andy Newbery
Starring
ComposerRichard James
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageWelsh
No. of series1
No. of episodes8
Production
Executive producers
ProducerLaura Cotton
Production locationsPembrokeshire, Wales
Running time48 minutes
Production companyTouchpaper Wales
Release
Original networkS4C
Original release9 November (2014-11-09) –
28 December 2014 (2014-12-28)

Plot

When a sleepy seaside village in Wales runs out of women, the locals try to turn things around by advertising their single men on the side of milk cartons leaving the dairy. Each episode focuses on a new woman arriving in the village to be set up with a local man.[3][4][5]

The milk scheme is the brainchild of pub landlady Nancy Hopkins (Christine Pritchard), whose chief goal is to find a wife for her son, Will (Iwan John), so he won't move away from Tretarw. Unbeknownst to Nancy, Will is gay.

The series kicks off as Nancy's daughter, newly-single Nina (Rhian Jones), moves back to the village with her own daughter Lee (Saran Morgan). Nancy is determined to reunite Nina with her high-school sweetheart, pub chef Vic Reed (Steffan Rhodri). Much to Nancy's irritation, Nina instead hits it off with the nerdy, earnest local doctor, Brian (Gareth Pierce).[1]

Main cast
  • Christine Pritchard as Nancy Hopkins, pub landlady
  • Rhian Jones as Nina Hopkins, Nancy's daughter
  • Saran Morgan as Lee Rees-Hopkins, Nina's daughter
  • Iwan John as Will Hopkins, Nancy's son
  • Steffan Rhodri as Vic Reed, pub chef
  • Gareth Pierce as Brian Phelps, local GP
  • Gwydion Rhys as Dai Jones
  • Gaynor Morgan Rees as Betty Jones

Episode list

Series 1 (2014)
Episode Title Directed by Written by Original airdate
1"Alys"Gareth BrynSarah Dollard9 November 2014 (2014-11-09)
Pub landlady Nancy Hopkins sets out to save her ailing village by advertising local single men on the side of every milk carton leaving the dairy.
2"Sali"Gareth BrynSarah Dollard16 November 2014 (2014-11-16)
Nancy’s plan to repopulate her dying village looks as if it’s succeeding when Sali comes to town, apparently looking for love. Unfortunately, Sali is under the misapprehension that the milk scheme is actually a reality TV show.
3"Manon"Gareth BrynPete McTighe23 November 2014 (2014-11-23)
4"Violet"Gareth BrynUnknown30 November 2014 (2014-11-30)
Guest starring Lisa Jên Brown as Violet.
5"Carys"Andy NewberyUnknown7 December 2014 (2014-12-07)
6"Delyth"Andy NewberyLlinos Mai14 December 2014 (2014-12-14)
Guest starring Rebecca Harries as Delyth, Ioan Hefin as Aled and Gareth Milton as Dan.
7"Megan"Andy NewberySarah Dollard21 December 2014 (2014-12-21)
Guest starring Lowri Walton as Megan Gartside.
8"Sion"Andy NewberyPete McTighe28 December 2014 (2014-12-28)
Guest starring Rhys ap William as Sion Lawson and Lowri Walton as Megan Gartside.

Production

Cara Fi is set in the fictional Pembrokeshire village of Tretarw, but the plight of the area - an increase in holiday homes and an exodus of young people - is a very real problem faced by villages in rural Wales.[4] Series producer Laura Cotton, who grew up in the area, said that the subject matter of the show was very close to her heart. "I wanted to come back and make it here, where I'm from, and show what an amazing, beautiful place it is", she said. "We were very aware of what is happening to small towns and villages, like my home town of Trefin, where most of the houses are now owned by holidaymakers".[5]

Filming on Cara Fi began near Cardiff in March 2014, with the location shoot moving to Little Haven in Pembrokeshire in April.[3] The shoot took place in and around The Swan Inn, renamed Yr Angor for the show. The owner of The Swan Inn, Paul Morris, said that the Cara Fi cast and crew had been welcome visitors to Little Haven, bringing a boost to the local economy.[5]

Steffan Rhodri, best known for roles in Gavin & Stacey and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, said the quality of the show's script is what attracted him to the part: "What's so often missing from Welsh comedy is a genuine wit, and this has it".[5]

The Welsh language series, produced by Touchpaper Television, began screening on S4C in November 2014, with English subtitles, and subsequently became available on the BBC iPlayer.

See also

References
  1. Jones, Wendy (3 November 2014). "Win a romantic break inspired by new S4C series Cara Fi". Daily Post. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
  2. "BAFTA Home Page". 22 May 2014.
  3. "Little Haven is star of new S4C show". Milford and West Wales Mercury. 2 April 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  4. "Brand new romantic comedy drama on S4C". Tenby Observer. 7 November 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  5. "Fall in love with Little Haven in new S4C rom-com". Western Telegraph. 9 November 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
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