“My father was a seaman, Cardiff was a seaman’s port… Sometimes we didn’t see him for a year. He was in the Merchant Navy, in the 50s.”
Errol Alexis was born in the West Indies, on the Island of St Vincent, previously a British colony, in 1936. Errol’s father sent for him to come to Britain in 1957, at around 21 years of age.
“I wanted to be a boxer, funny enough…”
“[In school] we had an assembly, we all had to sing the [British] national anthem, in the 50s, it was the British West Indies…The schooling was all administrated by Britain.”
“I asked different people and they put me on the train and I got into Cardiff.”
“I joined the Army [laughs]… In the end, I was called up. We went trained in Maindy Barracks…We were sent to Libya… from Libya to Cyprus as a peacekeeping force to support the Police… We were posted back home, kitted out, a rest, re-trained and they send us to Berlin, this is during the Cold War… [I was] a member of the international guard, we used to guard [Rudolf] Hess…. Well, I was the only Black person there then, but, when you get together you become a family, you all depend on each other, so we [become] a unit… Six years [in the Army].”
“I finished in the Army in the 60s…”
“After a while I had a job on the railway, as the porter in Cardiff General, the end of the 60s… Then I apply for a driving job, I was driving for the railway, then Margaret Thatcher privatised part of that section. A long time, twenty years roughly [worked on railways].”
“I was about 70… A charity [called] ‘Scope’, it’s a nationwide charity, [looks] after disabled people. Twelve years roughly I worked with them…””
I like Wales, you know… You can have two homes… I think they [parents]
made a good choice when he come to Wales.”
“Morwr oedd fy nhad, porthladd morwyr oedd Caerdydd... weithiau doedden ni ddim yn ei weld am flwyddyn. Roedd e yn y Llynges Fasnachol yn y 50au.”
Ganed Errol Alexis yn India’r Gorllewin, ar ynys St Vincent, a fu gynt yn un o drefedigaethau Prydain, yn 1936. Anfonodd tad Errol amdano i ddod i Brydain yn 1957, pan roedd tua 21 mlwydd oed.
“Roeddwn i eisiau bod yn focsiwr, o bob dim…”
“[In yr ysgol] roedden ni’n cael gwasanaeth, roedden ni oll yn gorfod canu’r anthem genedlaethol [Brydeinig], yn y 50au, Prydeinig oedd India’r Gorllewin... roedd yr addysg i gyd yn cael ei weinyddu gan Brydain.”
“Fe ofynnais i wahanol bobl ac fe wnaethon nhw fy rhoi ar y trên ac fe gyrhaeddais i Gaerdydd....
Fe wnes i ymuno â’r Fyddin [chwardda]... yn y diwedd, fe ges i fy ngalw. Aethon ni i hyfforddi yn Maindy Barracks... anfonwyd ni i Libya... o Libya i Cyprus i fod yn llu cadw heddwch i gefnogi’r Heddlu... Fe gawson ein hanfon gartref, rhoddwyd offer i ni, gorffwys, ailhyfforddi, a’n hanfon wedyn i Berlin, yn ystod y Rhyfel Oer oedd hyn... [roeddwn i’n] aelod o’r gwarchodlu rhyngwladol, roedden ni’n cadw [Rudolph] Hess dan wyliadwraeth.... Wel, fi oedd yr unig berson Du yno, ond pan rydych chi’n dod ynghyd, rydych chi’n dod yn deulu, pawb yn dibynnu ar ein gilydd, felly dyma ni’n [dod yn] uned... Chwe blynedd [yn y Fyddin].”
“Fe adawais i’r Fyddin yn y 60au...”
“Ar ôl cyfnod, fe ges i waith ar y rheilffordd, fel porthor yng ngorsaf Caerdydd Canolog ar ddiwedd y 60au... yna fe wnes i geisio am swydd yrru, roeddwn i’n gyrru i’r rheilffordd, yna fe wnaeth Margaret Thatcher breifateiddio rhan o’r adran honno. Amser maith, tua ugain mlynedd [a dreuliodd yn gweithio ar y rheilffyrdd].”
“Roeddwn i’n tua 70... Elusen [o’r enw] ‘Scope’, elusen genedlaethol, [mae’n edrych ar ôl] pobl anabl. Tua deuddeg mlynedd fues i’n gweithio gyda nhw...”
“Rwy’n hoff o Gymru, wyddoch chi... mae’n bosib cael dau gartref... rwy’n meddwl [bod fy rhieni] wedi gwneud dewis da pan ddaeth fy nhad i Gymru.”