CARDIFF, July 28 — October 27 will mark the start of Welsh poet Dylan Thomas’s centenary year, with events and landmarks tracked by a new website called the Dylan Thomas 100.

The celebrated writer, who lived between 1914 and 1953, was met with acclaim for his debut collection “18 Poems” and one of his last works, the play “Under Milk Wood,” which built on earlier work “Quite Early One Morning.”

A celebrity in his own time and a literary icon after his early death in New York at age 39, he was known just as much for his brilliance as for his unpredictable public behaviour.

Thomas’s granddaughter, Hannah Ellis, launched the website, saying “it will be a great opportunity to work together to ensure Dylan Thomas 100 is a huge success ... Please search, share, follow, like, comment and, most of all, enjoy.”

An annual Dylan Thomas Festival usually runs for two weeks starting on October 27, with his birthplace of Swansea acting as host for many of the events.

In 2013, the Festival marks the beginning of a yearlong celebration, whose nationwide events are to be tracked by the Dylan Thomas 100 site and include literary tours, theatrical productions, exhibitions, and musical performances.

Many of them take place along the South and Central Welsh coasts, especially in and near his Laugharne home, but others have sprung up in London, Cornwall, Sussex, and New York. — AFP/Relaxnews