Our Welsh Chapel Dream

On the picturesque Llyn Peninsula in North Wales in the seaside town of Pwllheli sits one very large, derelict chapel, which has been bought by an intrepid couple.

Master potter Keith Brymer Jones has been gracing the nations screens since 2015 as a Judge on Channel 4’s The Great Pottery Throw Down and partner Marj Hogarth is a seasoned actor and textile designer. Together they plan to move wholesale to Wales, turning their 19th century grade II listed chapel into a home and working pottery studio, while keeping the main chapel hall as an event space to retain this local landmark at the heart of the community.

Built in 1862, Capel Salem is split across two buildings, the main chapel hall, and its adjoining Sunday School Annex. The upstairs hall in the Sunday School is where Keith will house his pottery studio. On the ground floor below is where Keith and Marj will transform the collection of 11 odd, shaped rooms into their large living quarters with separate guest accommodation.

The Chapels main hall will be a community space for the town. Keith and Marj’s vision is to create an open plan area, which will also house an industrial kitchen on wheels, so they can serve up an a la carte menu of community events in the town of Pwllheli.

This four-part series showcases the highs and lows that come with buying an historic building and making it into their forever home. There is planning permission to overcome, pews to be removed, rot to be ripped out and a community to be won over. We are with Keith and Marj every step of the way in their new life chapter, as they try to overcome an infestation of pigeons, attempt to learn the Welsh language, be accepted by the local community and tackle the ever-growing wood eating fungus that has flourished in the 14 years the chapel was left empty.