Gavin and Stacey star Joanna Page is the latest celebrity recruit to the growing We Love Swansea campaign.
The acclaimed Swansea-born actress has thrown her weight behind the We Love Swansea crusade to turn people on to the charms of Wales’s own city by the bay.
The aim is to highlight the city’s virtues as a great place for shopping and leisure and as a fantastic place to live and work and it is backed by Swansea BID – Business Improvement District – while one of its organisers is Ian Kirkpatrick, the manager of the Quadrant Shopping Centre.
Joanna, who was head girl of Mynyddbach School before going on to graduate from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, is a big fan of her home city and its charms and recently sang its praises in the Daily Telegraph.
She has followed that up by signing up to the We Love Swansea campaign along with Strictly Come Dancing ane One Show star Alex Jones and Swansea City hot-shot Scott Sinclair.
Joanna said: “I am always proud to tell people that I’m from Swansea. It’s a great place to live and work.
“It has everything. It’s by the seaside with wonderful beaches and beautiful countryside but it’s also a busy and exciting town. There’s something for everyone and the people are so friendly and welcoming.
“Swansea has so much going for it – lovely scenery, great places to eat and drink and some serious shopping at the Quadrant Centre where I often go with my mum when I’m home.
“You also have to go to Swansea Market and take home some fresh cockles, mussels and laver bread. There’s nothing like fresh cockles from the market with some vinegar, salt and pepper.”
Joanna, who is the face of high street chemist’s Superdrug, regularly visits the Quadrant Centre store with her mum and Ian Kirkpatricvk said: “We’re thrilled that Joanna has joined us in getting behind Swansea.
“She’s a wonderful ambassador for the city and she has always been quick to sing its praises.
“She told the Daily Telegraph that the first thing she does when she gets home is smile and Joanna has such a lovely smile.”
Joanna has also said that Swansea has ‘everything’ and is a big fan of two of its culinary delicacies as well – as well as the cockles she loves Joe’s ice-cream, especially the fudge nut sundae.
She has now joined other celebrities such as One Show and Strictly Come Dancing star Alex Jones and Swansea City’s star striker Scott Sinclair in extolling the city’s charms.
Sinclair, 22, boyfriend of Coronation Street actress Helen Flanagan, who plays Rosie Webster in the soap, said: “Swansea is a great place to live and work and I am very proud to be part of the city’s fantastic football club.
“Obviously I don’t come from the area originally but I have found it to be a very warm and welcoming place and I am really enjoying living here. Swansea is the most beautifully-located club in the Premier League.’’
The One Show’s Alex Jones, from Ammanford, said Swansea was a very special place with warm, witty and welcoming people and she added: “Swansea deserves credit for the way it has developed into an attractive and vibrant city with a real sense of buzz and energy.”
Ian Kirkpatrick is delighted at the way some of the area’s best-known people were prepared to back the city and he said: “Swansea really is a jewel of a place with something for everyone.
“It’s in such a fabulous setting and at the Quadrant Centre, we like to think we play our own part in making the city a fun, lively and vibrant place.
“With so many great shops, places to eat and things to do, we have launched a campaign which champions the city and reminds both residents and visitors of everything which is on offer.”
