Plas Tanygraig, Beddgelert

button_lang_frenchPlas Tanygraig, Beddgelert

beddgelert_paul_mccartney_plas_tanygraigThis house was built in 1851 and named after its location at the foot of a cliff. Tanygraig means “below the rock”. Paul and Linda McCartney once stayed here (see below). The building is now Plas Tan y Graig guesthouse (Tan y Graig is an alternative spelling used since 1861).

When Plas Tanygraig was sold in 1863, it was described as having 10 bedrooms, three parlours and two “WaterClosets”, among other features. By 1900, Mrs Ellis was letting “comfortable apartments” here to tourists and cyclists, and had set aside a room for bicycle storage.

The next occupants were businessman George Rudd and his wife. He supervised a couple of local estates and sold coal, petrol and Welsh oak furniture. He also provided timber haulage, using steam traction engines.

The couple lost their son William in the First World War. William, named on Beddgelert war memorial, was a Captain in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers. He died, aged 29, in the closing days of the first Battle of the Somme in November 1916. Initially his parents were told he was missing. When his death was eventually confirmed, George suffered a stroke. He never fully recovered and died at home, aged 56, in June 1917.

After the Second World War, Alfred Bestall – illustrator and writer of Rupert Bear children’s stories – sometimes stayed at Plas Tanygraig to vacate his nearby cottage for visiting friends or family.

In the early 1980s, Paul McCartney – a former member of The Beatles – travelled to Beddgelert with his family to meet Alfred. The McCartneys stayed at Plas Tanygraig, probably on Alfred’s recommendation. After meeting Alfred, Paul wrote and produced Rupert and the Frog Song, a short animated film inspired by one of Alfred’s illustrations. His song for the film, We All Stand Together, was a hit single record.

The photo, courtesy of Elaine Roberts, shows the McCartneys and Alfred Bestall (wearing glasses) at Plas Tanygraig, along with the building’s owners at the time.

With thanks to Elaine Roberts and Mark Pocock

Postcode: LL55 4LT    View Location Map

Website of Plas Tan y Graig