A BLUE Plaque to commemorate one of the pioneers of cinema in Wales will be erected in Pembroke’s Main street later this year.

The plaque, the first in Pembroke, will honour William Haggar, who achieved international success with his ground-breaking moving pictures.

Haggar’s travelling cinema, or bioscope, was a regular feature in Pembroke Fair until William opened his chain of permanent family run cinemas.

Haggar’s cinema, established by Will Haggar Jnr and his wife Jenny Linden in Pembroke in 1931, later passed to his brother Walter, whose son Leonard made Haggar’s Cinema and Ballroom a popular and much-loved Pembroke venue.

Haggar’s was a regular feature on Main Street for many years, in the building now used by Paddles nightclub, after the cinema closed in 1984.

William’s great granddaughter – and author - Vicki Haggar has been working with archaeologist Beth Dureau to gain the town’s first blue plaque.

Beth said she was taking part in an archaeological dig at Pembroke Castle when she first heard about the proposal.

“A guy in Carmarthen organises blue plaques and I realised we hadn’t got any in Pembroke.

“I hadn’t thought about Haggars, I know Vicky and she was really keen; we wondered why it had never been done before.

“We got permission from Paddles and we held a few coffee mornings to raise funds, along with a generous donation from the Haggar family.

“The hardest bit was whether we needed planning permission, I put the application in, and I got it.”

It is hoped the plaque will be erected this April, with a tea party to celebrate.

Funds raised more than covered the cost of the plaque, with excess funds now been offered for anyone who has any ideas for another blue plaque in Pembroke or Pembroke Dock.