Researcher & Videographer from Swansea, South Wales. Hello and welcome to my channel! My name is Greg Ballantine and I am a TV Researcher and Videographer. When not working in TV I am passionate about making short films on local history and discussing my experiences growing up with Coeliac Disease and living on a gluten free diet. I also make a few travel vlogs in between and post any promotional videos I create for businesses. For promotional videos or collaborations contact me at gregballantinefilms@gmail.com. If you like my videos, subscribe for more! Find me on social media: Instagram - greg_ballantine Twitter - @gregnballantine Thank you for viewing my channel, I hope you enjoy my content! 🎞️
swansea had not only celtic people but irish and itallian, myself a welsh born and bred from swansea have irish heretage. Itallian resturants in swansea are highly respected. shes a top girl her mush
Can I ask please. At some point you had malabsorption . How long did your villi come back to life? I just found out that I am coelic and I am losing weight. Thank you.
Hello and thank you for your comment. For me personally, once I cut Gluten out of my diet it was quite rapid how quickly everything got better. It was almost instant. It may vary between people but for me it was a very quick recovery! Hope this helps :)
@@gregballantine Thank you. I am still struggling with diarrhea and anemia though I have up gluten. Is very frustrating since I started having insomnia anxiety and depression due to Celiac. Very frustrating. Can I also ask. How do you manage to drink gluten removed beer without any problems. I tried it as well and had diarrhea for two days. Thank you very much.
Hi Greg. I've just subscribed to your channel. I am impressed with your presentation skills on this video, and on other videos that you have hosted. I am actually old enough to recall the grand old days when Fortes was still located in the Dunns. My parents use to take my brother and I there as a special treat back in the 1960s. We actually know each other as my son is called Greg and my family and I are regular customers at Fortes so we have spoken several times in the past. Great video my friend!
Hi David. Thank you for your kind comment! :) and thank you for subscribing, it’s great to connect! Of course I remember you and your family at Forte’s! So much history around the business and I loved working there. Hope you’ve been keeping well and say hi to Greg! Speak soon and best wishes, Greg
I think this is what is happening to me, my family around is on a good weight, except me, I have been struggling for 1.5 years, I cannot get weight, I'm stuck on 58kg, my height is 1.75. I have like allergic on my skin, My abs hurts a bit during the dawn, I'm a bit irritable, I drink water with sodium, potasium, magnesium, I do sunbathing, I walk. I tried to sleep early, but is not helping me. At this point I guess I have Coeliac Disease? I remember years later I was good on my weight, but suddenly I cannot get to my proper weight which is 68-69 kg. Also I'm having hard time to focus, to learn, and Struggled to talk. Plus a lot of ADHD. Do you think I can get a blood test and find out if have Coeliac? or Celiac? Sorry for my poor grammar
Hello and thank you for your comment. I’m sorry to hear about your symptoms, there is no harm at all in getting a blood test for Coeliac Disease, if it comes out positive a lot of your questions will be answered. Just make sure if you do have a blood test you have eaten some gluten leading up to the test, otherwise you could get a false result. I hope you solve your symptoms soon and wishing you all the best, Greg
Looks awesome! Ill have to try this one! Im new to gluten free and trying to get my head around it! 100% agree with the toasting gluten free bread on your other video! 😃👍
When I visited Malmö I was not old enough to legally buy any alcohol stronger than 3.5% so I got the train over to Copenhagen and bought something stronger. Absolutely worth the visit.
Brings back memories for me being born in Swansea in1953 a very enjoyable interview Swansea was really busy in the sixties and a great music scene thank you
Greg, you have been through a struggle. I hope you are well now. Did you know there is a connection between gluten and dairy? And also eggs do not improve our body as they are food for viruses that infect us. Also other grains have gliadin, a different type of gluten. I always feel better when off all grains, and also off dairy and eggs. Wishing you improved health.
Thank you for your comment, I didn’t know of a connection, I must admit living on a gluten free diet I feel you’re more likely to want dairy to make up for the lack of Gluten. It’s never easy working out what to eat when having coeliac disease, it’s great to hear your comments and other suggestions, thank you again :) Greg
The 1960s were soooo short-sighted and smug in the belief that the internal combustion engine was the only way forward. I can remember seeing the old tram cars many times but only rode on it once. I was quite young then (71 now ! ) and remember it was rather noisy with wooden seats that had backs which could tip in either direction, depending on the way it was travelling. I also remember the pneumatic powered folding doors that whipped open and shut with alarming speed for a little boy ! I wonder what would have happened if they'd shut on you ? The congestion that ensued on the road must have meant a 2nd thought by South Wales transport - but it was too late by then !
Thank you Andrew for your comment and for sharing your memories! I’ll never get tired of hearing peoples stories of what Swansea used to be like, if only we had the tram today!
Got diagnosed age 48. Now 55. Probably had celiac disease since I was a teenager or in my early 20s, thinking back to the symptoms. Weaker symptoms than you, but was thin, unconcentrated and had bad short time memory that destroyed every attempt to get a degree. Both my kids have the gene, but have not developed celiac disease, at least not yet. Thank you for your video. ❤
Thank you for your comment and for sharing story, I’ll never get over how many people are affected by Coeliac Disease, I’m glad you have had a diagnosis and know now! Best wishes, Greg
When my mother was a child and she use to visit family in Swansea (she lived in Essex), as most of the women at this time didn't drive and most families didn't own cars, the train to the Mumbles was how you got to the seaside. Mum did say that I went on it, but unfortunately I can't remember as I was a baby in arms, and the next time we were on holiday a few years later, it was gone.
gregg, are you familiar with the suspended trains of wuppertal in germany, if not you can get them up on utube, they have been running for some 100 years. and are updated every so often. to keep up with technology obviously. transport suspended above ground I believe less likely to cause problems as they are suspended, above, the ground.. regards. Ron Flynn
you'd be surprised by how much its has changed , I remember John Menzies , back in the 80s ,you'd be excited about going to town to buy just about anything , there were so many fun shops, the odeon cinema was great on the Kingsway , the quadrant had more variety of shops . live bands ,music was strong
Thank you Greg for interviewing this wonderful man. Giuseppi Macari, (Mr Macari as Grafton calls him) was my grandfather, and Elio, Olimpio and Tony my 3 uncles. My mother Elena was also involved in the Fortes business and ran the kiosk in Bracelet bay, sadly no longer there, but you can still see the steps leading up to it opposite the car park. His description of my grandfather was so accurate, outwardly he seemed very stern, but he was a loving family man with a gentle sense of humour. We all lived above the shop and I have so many happy memories of sitting with him by the fire eating olives and drinking “black beer” , I think it was Guinness , needless to say I wasn’t allowed the beer as I was only 3 or 4 years old, but I still to this day absolutely love olives! The films of the demolition of our business and home are quite distressing still, but it was lovely to see Uncle Olimpio walking amongst all the debris, typically with a Senior Service cigarette firmly in hand! Thank you Greg once again .
Thank you so Madeline for your comment. There is so much history here, so many memories from individuals. I feel so lucky to have got the opportunity to record a little of Grafton’s memories. Thank you again and best wishes, Greg
If you like Warburtons, then try Warburtons gluten free tiger bread and Warburtons gluten free sourdough cob , which are excellent, they aren’t sliced and look and cut like a real loaf of bread. They are still nicer toasted but when fresh are nicer untoasted than the sliced type.
swansea needs some new form of transit like trams or trolley buses and more train stations. the buses and taxis are expensive and un reliable. the roads are congested.
