No sex please - we're Welsh!

I read today with great mirth the story of the Aberystwyth sex shop which has been forced to close due to lack of custom. This is bucking the trend on an Olympian level by modern standards. Why Aberystwyth residents should be any more prudish than others is not clear but it does remind me of a famous occasion in its not too distant past. It was in the Aberystwyth area that Led Zepellin produced their lesser known third album which was unfairly panned by the critics. Panned because it was a brief foray from their staple hard rock in to the softer folk music then coming out of California. Jimmy Page cited the growing influence of acts such as Crosby, Stills and Nash as well as the Incredible String Band and the stellar folk guitar of Bert Jansch. The presence of Led Zepellin in Mid Wales culminated in a live show at the King's Hall in Aberystwyth in January 1973. The singer Robert Plant described the atmosphere as being unlike anything else he had ever seen. The 800 audience remained seated throughout and clapped respectfully after each song - not exactly the Filmore East! Perhaps there remains something restrained in the psyche of the Mid-Wales residents. The third Led Zepellin album was recorded and written at Robert Plant's cottage, Bron Yr Aur, just outside Aberdovey. That part of the world is hauntigly beautiful and has inspired a thousand legends. Perhaps Aberystwyth has managed to hang on to the sensibilities which have elsewhere been lost in the advent of the "me generation". Maybe it is a product of the Chapel-going Welsh culture. Either way, its good to know that places like this still exist and remain true to their ideals. That is admirable in a town renowned for a large student population. None of that smut round here if you please! For the record, the sex shop was part of a chain with 14 branches elsewhere in the UK. Long live the independent spirit..