Posted on Monday 23rd April 2012
Wales Grand Slam captain Sam Warburton and Leigh Halfpenny will be among the stars out at Taste of Tonyrefail on Sunday, April 29
Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s exciting new summer event Taste of Tonyrefail promises to be a truly star-studded event.
Wales Grand Slam captain Sam Warburton and team mates Jamie Roberts and Leigh Halfpenny will be among those at Ty’n-y-Bryn Park, Tonyrefail, on Sunday, April 29.
Top celebrity chef Gino D’Acampo will also be cooking up some tasty treats and meeting his fans while X-Factor contestants Tom Richards, John Adams and Lucie Jones will be performing on stage!
Italian chef Gino is making a welcome return to the county borough on Sunday, April 29, fresh from his appearance at last year’s Big Welsh Bite, held at Ynysangharad War Memorial Park, Pontypridd,.
Taste of Tonyrefail is a FREE family fun day and it will be your chance to rub shoulders with the celebrities on the day. It will go ahead, whatever the weather, with events switching to Tonyrefail Leisure Centre in the event of bad weather.
Taste of Tonyrefail aims to bring the whole community together. As well as special celebrity guests throughout the day, other attractions include Food and Craft stalls, cookery demonstrations, arena shows such as dancing dogs, live sheep show, live music and children’s entertainment including a funfair and inflatables.
The event will also include an It’s A Knockout competition, based on the popular BBC TV series, which ran from 1966 to 1988, and promises all of the ‘giggles and gunge’ that was featured on the long-running show.
Those taking part will compete in eight different activities, with prizes and trophies being presented to the winning teams. All monies raised will go to the Rhondda Cynon Taf Mayor’s Charity Appeal.
TV favourite Gino was crowned ‘King of the Jungle’ in the popular ITV series ‘I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here’ in 2009. His first television appearance was many years earlier on UKTV Food channel’s Great Food Live before he became a regular guest on BBC’s Saturday Kitchen.
He now stars on BBC’s Ready Steady Cook and ITV’s This Morning as well as appearing as a guest on many other television shows, including Celebrity Juice.
Sam Warburton, Jamie Roberts and Leigh Halfpenny were all part of Wales’s successful Six Nations campaign earlier this year, under coach Warren Gatland, which saw them win the Grand Slam title once again.
Lucie Jones amazed the judges on X-Factor in 2009 with her audition piece, Whitney Houston’s ‘I Will Always Love You.’ She went on to work with mentor Danni Minogue, reaching the finals stages of the contest before losing the head-to-head battle with John and Edward (Jedward).
Tom Richards made it through to the judges houses stage of X-Factor in series seven, performing at the home of Danni Minogue in Australia, performing the Robbie Williams hit ‘Feel.’
John Adams wowed the judges at the auditions stages of last year’s X-Factor with his rendition of Damien Rice’s ‘Cannonball’ and went on to become a popular contestant on the show.
Christian Hanagan, Head of Strategy, PR and Tourism at Rhondda Cynon Taf Council, said: “We are delighted to announce Gino’s return for Taste Of Tonyrefail. He was a bit hit at our Big Welsh Bite and am certain he will be just as popular this time around, helping us to put on a great, free, family event that celebrates local life and supports good causes locally.
“We are also delighted to welcome the other celebrity guests to Rhondda Cynon Taf. Taste Of Tonyrefail is the latest in our 2012 events programme, organised to bring communities together, celebrate life in Rhondda Cynon Taf and provide a much-needed boost to the local economy by showcasing our county borough as a great place in which to live, work and invest.
“Gino’s arrival will be just a few months before we welcome pop star Olly Murs and other soon-to-be-announced household names to Ponty’s Big Weekend.
“The fact we are securing such big names for our events shows the effort that is going into raising the profile of Rhondda Cynon Taf as a great place to live, work and visit, attracting visitors from further afield to support local businesses and our tourism industry.”
Taste of Tonyrefail takes place at Ty’n-y-Bryn Park, Tonyrefail, on Sunday, April 29. Gates will be open from 11am until 5pm. Admission is free.
There will be ample parking available on the day at Tonyrefail Comprehensive School.
For more information or to enter It’s A Knockout, call 01443 424123, email events@rctcbc.gov.uk or visit www.rctcbc.gov.uk/tasteoftonyrefail|