Dai the Dap sings a daffy Welsh rap Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Dai the Dap sits with his Karaoke machine and starts singing "My hen laid a haddock...". He's trying to sing the first line of the Welsh National Anthem. What is the proper first line - which also includes the title of the Anthem?

Answer: Mae hen wlad fy nhadau

"Hen Wlad fy Nhadau" was written in 1856 by Evan James from Pontypridd. The tune, known as "Glan Rhondda" (the banks of the Rhondda - the valley in which Pontypridd is located) was written by his son, James James.

The song is always sung in Welsh, and no formal translation into English is used. However, a literal translation into English would read something like this;

"The old land of my fathers is very dear to me,
The land of poets and singers, renowned and respected people;
Our manly warriors, gallant patriots that they are,
Shed their blood for Freedom.

Country, Country, I am a strong advocate for my country.
Whilst the sea remains as a wall to my pure, beloved land,
Long may the old language endure."

There are two (and in some accounts three) more verses, but they are rarely sung.

Phonetically, the first line would be pronounced

"My hen oo-lard vurr n-hard eye" - which is where the slightly scurrilous "My hen laid a haddock" version comes from!

2. Dai the Dap is singing along to one of his all time favourites, immortalized by one of Pontypridd's most famous sons, Mr Thomas Woodward - or Sir Tom Jones as he's now known. But why is Dai asking Delilah to forgive him, before they come to break down the door?

Answer: Because he just couldn't take any more

"Delilah" was released as a single by Tom Jones in 1968. It reached number two in the UK charts, and number 15 in the US. It did, however, get to the top of the charts in both Germany and Switzerland!

It is probably best known today as a football terrace song adopted by Stoke City fans - I have absolutely no idea why this is so, and if there are any Stoke City fans out there who can enlighten me, I'd be delighted to add the explanation for this!

3. Dai the Dap sees a lady with a huge great big blonde head of hair appearing on his screen. The first lines of her most famous song appear - and Dai starts singing along to "Total Eclipse of the Heart". Which well coiffed Welsh chanteuse is he singing along with?

Answer: Bonnie Tyler

Born as Gaynor Hopkins in Skewen, near Neath, in 1951, Bonnie Tyler is best known for her husky voice, and her string of 70's and 80's hits.

If "Total Eclipse of the Heart" didn't get you singing along, what about "It's a Heartache", "Holding out for a Hero" or "Lost in France" - all big hits for Bonnie on both sides of the Atlantic.

4. Dai the Dap sings along with "Keep the Home Fires Burning" - an early composition from a Welsh composer, singer and actor. As an actor, this gentleman appeared in two Hitchcock silent movies, before moving to Hollywood. Who is Dai singing along with now?

Answer: Ivor Novello

Ivor Novello was born in Cardiff as David Ivor Davies in 1893. His childhood home is just a short walk from the city centre, and a plaque commemorates his birthplace, "Llwyn-yr-Eos" (Nightingale Grove) in Cowbridge Road East. If you walk past the Millennium Stadium, then cross the bridge over the River Taff, you'll come to the house in another 400 yards or so.

He was a prolific writer of songs and musicals up to the end of the First World War, after which he pursued a career as a film performer in the UK and in Hollywood for some 20 years. He returned to writing musicals after this, before dying at the age of 58.

He was openly homosexual (quite a rarity in those times) and had a long relationship with the poet, Siegfried Sassoon. He was imprisoned during the Second World War for the misuse of petrol coupons, a serious offence in those austere times.

5. Dai the Dap sings along with Cerys Matthews as she rasps out "Road Rage". With which Welsh band was Ms Matthews singing when "Road Rage" (from the Number One album, "International Velvet") hit the charts in 1998?

Answer: Catatonia

Catatonia had their roots in the Welsh language rock scene before turning to the English language for greater commercial success in the mid 1990's.

The band officially split in 2001, and since then, Cerys Matthews has released a couple of solo language songs - though her biggest "claim to fame" since the turn of the century will have been her appearance on "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!".

6. Dai the Dap likes nothing better than going to the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff to watch a rugby match, and singing along with the crowd to the hymn "Cwm Rhondda". However, this hymn is more popularly known by the first words of its chorus. What is this well known "alternative" title?

Answer: Bread of Heaven

"Cwm Rhondda" is the Welsh name for the Rhondda Valley, the south east Wales valley famed for its coal mines and choirs.

Although the tune has many different words sung to it in both English and Welsh, the version popularized by Welsh rugby crowds is sung as follows;

"Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty;
Hold me with thy powerful hand:
Bread of heaven,
Feed me now and ever more." (or "Till I want no more")...

7. Dai the Dap has been asked to sing at his niece, Angharad's, birthday party. Like an increasing amount of youngsters in Wales these days, Angharad is taught through the medium of the Welsh language, and therefore has asked her uncle Dai to sing "Happy Birthday" to her in Welsh. What is the first line that Dai sings?

Answer: Penblwydd Hapus i ti

"Happy Birthday" in Welsh is "Penblwydd Hapus". This is pronounced "Pen - blue- with harp- peace". Try it out - there you go, you can speak a bit of Welsh now!

The song is sung to the same tune as the English version, and in this instance, would go like this;

"Penblwydd Hapus i ti
Penblwydd Hapus i ti
Penblwydd Hapus i Angharad
Penblwydd Hapus i ti".

Most of my extended family is bilingual, so every time there's a birthday, we have to have both versions of the same song in English and in Welsh. It's probably the first bit of Welsh that non Welsh speakers who know our family learn therefore!

8. One of Dai the Dap's favourite all time Welsh actors is Richard Burton. Although not known as a singer, Burton surprisingly turned to song in the film "Paint your Wagon", and even more surprisingly, had a huge hit with the song "Wand'rin' Star" from the film. Is this true or false?

Answer: False

Of course it wasn't Richard Burton, who never sang in any films. It was Lee Marvin - who, apart from in "Paint your Wagon", never sang in any other films either. However unlikely a singer he was though, Lee Marvin's single kept the Beatles' "Let It Be" at number two in the UK charts in 1970.

9. One of Dai the Dap's favourite Welsh sing-along songs is "A Design for Life" - but which Welsh rock band gave us this classic?

Answer: Manic Street Preachers

The Manic Street Preachers are James Dean Bradfield (vocals, guitars), Nicky Wire (bass guitar) and Sean Moore (drums). The original singer was Richey Edwards, who went missing in 1995, and was declared "presumed deceased" in November of 1998.

Their first number one UK single hit was, "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next", though they have had well over a dozen top ten hits. "A Design for Life" was their first major hit without Edwards in the group, and is regarded by many cognoscenti as a "working class anthem".

10. Dai the Dap's final croon on the karaoke is a singalong version of "Mercy", the first major hit for a young Welsh singer christened Aimee Ann. This singer's first album, "Rockferry", was a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic - but how is she better known?

Answer: Duffy

Aimee Ann Duffy was born in North Wales in 1984. A Welsh speaker, she made her name initially as a singer in the Welsh language, reaching the final of "Wawffactor!", the Welsh equivalent of "Pop Idol", in 2003.

Soon afterwards, she started recording material in English, and her first album was released in 2008. "Rockferry" became the fourth bestselling album in the world in 2008, peaking at number four in the US Billboard charts, and reaching nuumber one in 11 countries.

In 2009, Duffy had a special variety of the Welsh national flower, the Daffodil, named after her - appropriately enough, it's called the Duffydil!

I hope you enjoyed singing along with the Dai the Dap - watch out for him popping up in another quiz soon !

Source: Author huw27

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor CellarDoor before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Dai the Dap likes nothing better than to sing along to a Welsh "classic". Enjoy a sing along with him - and score some fun points in the "Land of Song"! All answers easy if you Google them.

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