A university student from Llanerfyl and his four friends have been praised for repainting a famous mural that was defaced with the word ‘Elvis’.

Caleb Davies, 22, was one of five people who decided to get together and re-paint the ‘Cofiwch Dryweryn’ (Remember Tryweryn) after it was vandalised earlier this month.

The unofficial memorial has stood beside a road near Aberystwyth since the 1960s and refers to the flooding of Capel Celyn, near Bala, to provide water for Liverpool in 1965.

The Aberystwyth University postgraduate student and his friends received a text message from another friend who had driven past the wall and noticed that ‘Elvis’ had been graffitied over the famous political slogan.

“We don’t know who did it or whether it was intentional, but we decided to fix it up. It’s a big part of Welsh history and the fact that someone painted over it was disrespectful.

“We took our paint brushes and buckets and fixed it up. It was very late when we started painting it red, so we left it to dry overnight and painted the words the next day. We tried to keep to the exact copy. There were people honking their horns as they passed by. The response was brilliant.”

The former Caereinion High School student says he’s been “overwhelmed” by the response on social media. Former Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood congratulated the group in the Senedd on Tuesday, February 5.

Rugby referee Nigel Owens and BBC radio presenter Huw Stephens, whose father, Meic Stephens, painted the original slogan, have praised the group of students for their efforts on Twitter.

Caleb said: “I wasn’t expecting it to get this big. But I’m proud to do it. It will be highlighted in history.

“We’ve done our duty. If someone will do it again, we’ll be back with our paint and brushes.”

An online petition has gained more than 4,000 signatures to make the mural a designated Welsh landmark.

Caleb says he agrees that it should be protected.

“It’s a strong part of Welsh culture. It’s connected to a tragedy in Welsh history which I’d learnt at school by my Welsh teacher Pryderi Jones. We never expected it to be this big.”