PREVIEW

Seventeen-year-old performing arts student Erin Morgan has been appointed the new town crier for Tenby in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Her studies are certainly going to be useful “I can be loud when I want to be and when I need to be” Erin explains.

This is a historic moment for the picturesque Welsh seaside town. Erin is not only the youngest person to hold the position, but she is also Tenby's first female town crier. Additionally, there are only an estimated 20 female town criers in the UK, making her appointment exceptionally unique. Erin shares, “I just feel a lot of pride as I am part of something that is so rare.”

“Being 17 and being a town crier is an experience. I’m still in college, so there has to be a lot of balance between my Town Crier role and what I have to do in college. So it’s a lot trying to figure all that out and move it all around to work.” Erin hopes to “inspire other people my age, or younger, or just a little bit closer, to maybe apply for town crier or something within their town council or within their local community.”

The position of town crier for Tenby had been vacant since 2022, following the retirement of the previous town crier after 30 years of service. Erin recalls, that when applying for the role via email, she told her parents, “I definitely want to do this,” and they were extremely supportive. Her friends find it amazing, with “a lot of banter!”

Erin made her debut as a town crier at the Tenby D-Day memorial service. “There’s been a really positive response since my debut, and I really didn’t expect the kind of response that I’ve had,” she says.

Historically, town criers enforced the law, including patrolling the streets at night. However, Erin clarifies, that she “won’t be arresting people at night!”

"I'm most looking forward to being able to bring something to the community, such as making announcements and telling people things that are going on in town that they wouldn’t normally know about."

"I’m hoping my role will give people a new idea of what a town crier is. I feel like when people think of town criers, they think of very traditional, very olden days, and I hope seeing me as a young person they can see a change in that."