On the 14th of September at the 78th annual Emmy Awards show, Welsh actor Matthew Rhys made Emmy history, becoming the first person to win two leading acting prizes in a single night. The Welshman, born in the Welsh capital of uk/local/cardiff/">Cardiff, won the awards for his roles in the suprnatural comedy television show Widow’s Bay and the psychological thriller mini-series The Beast in Me. While on stage to accept his second award of the night, Rhys dedicated this history making moment to the “great and good people of Wales”.
Emmy Award History Maker
The 51-year-old actor who made history at the 78th Emmy Award show started his career in 1997, but before this he was on stage from a very early age, as he stared on the huge Los Angeles stage while accepting the second award the actor received. Born in Cardiff, Matthew made his early on stage appearances in school musicals, a notable role he played in his youth was Elvis. This lead him to apply for and get accepted into the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art located in London. Leaving Wales, he made appearances in the BBC police series Backup and was included in House of America while attending the prestigious academy.
The Welshman did not forget his roots however, going back to Cardiff to act in a Welsh speaking film named Bydd yn Wrol, translated into English as Be Brave, where he won Best Actor at the Welsh version of the BAFTA Awards (Bafta Cymru).
Tribute to Wales
Matthew took the Emmy Award show stage and paid tribute to the small but might nation of Wales, stating that
“We are a small but mighty nation. This is incredible. Diolch yn fawr iawn”.
This acknowledgement of Wales as a nation on what is arguably the biggest stage in movie and television is one that carries true care and pride. Especially when Wales does not get that much attention outside of the UK, this is a love letter to his home country and Welsh people everywhere, whether they be in Wales, Australia, the US, South Korea etc, we all feel that pride and love within his acknowledgment.
