Portmeirion as a town, is a tourist village located in the community of Penrhyndeudraeth, on the estuary of the River Dwyryd, south-east of Porthmadog, in Gwynedd, North Wales. It was once the film set for the 1966-67 British cult surreal spy drama TV series “The Prisoner,” which starred Patrick McGoohan.  At the time, to prevent tourists from visiting whilst filming for the series, its location was not revealed until the credits of the final episode. Since then, many a tourist and famous guest has visited or stayed.

However, Portmeirion pottery which is sold in the gift shop has nothing to do with the village. It was founded in 1960 by Susan Williams-Ellis, daughter of Sir Clough Williams-Ellis, who took over a small pottery in Stoke-on-Trent, in Staffordshire. Previously as a potter, Susan had been commissioning designs to sell at the gift shop in Portmeirion Village. Portmeirion pottery’s  most recognised range is the Botanic Garden range launched in 1972.

• Unfortunately, like many small companies in any industry, the Portmeirion Potteries was purchased in 2009 by a larger conglomerate, this one being the Royal Worcester and Spode factories.

For similar examples to this, see my Porcelain page.

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