It was with great sadness that we heard of the death of Hywel Francis

It was with great sadness that we heard of the death of Hywel Francis. Born in Onllwyn in the Dulais Valley, the son of Dai Francis, leader of the miners strike in the 1970s. Hywel Francis was one of the founders of the South Wales Miners' Library and Bevan Foundation. He served Aberavon at Westminster until 2015 and at the time of his death was Emeritus Professor and Strategic Adviser on Archives, Widening Access and Regional Policy at Swansea University.

Robat Gruffudd of Y Lolfa said: “Y Lolfa had the privilege of publishing Stories of Solidarity, Hywel Francis’ last book. Hywel was a man of great ability and principle and a distinguished academic, as well as being a campaigner for the miners and the rights of the working class.”