He was presented with the award during a dinner at Morgans Hotel, Swansea on Thursday, 12 July 2012, which was held as part of this year’s Cyfrwng Conference at Swansea University.

John Hefin is highly respected due to his enormous body of work for BBC Wales over many decades. During his period as Head of Drama, he was responsible for the production of outstanding programmes such as Bus to Bosworth, Life and Times of David Lloyd George, Tough Trade as well as the unforgettable film, Grand Slam.

John Hefin is probably best known as the creator and chief instigator of the hugely popular soap opera, Pobol y Cwm. Pobol y Cwm was his creation in the early seventies along with author Gwenlyn Parry, and the series won a BAFTA Cymru award.

John Hefin said: ‘‘It is an honour to receive the Cyfrwng award and a privelige to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Emyr Humphreys, Merêd, Gwyn Thomas, Dave Berry, Peter Stead, Owen Edwards, Elan Closs Stephens and Marc Evans. It’s wonderful to be acknowledged by both the media industry and academic world.’’

Picture: S4C Chief Executive, Ian Jones presenting John Hefin with the award