Former President of the United States, Bill Clinton, and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stopped by one of Swansea's most popular restaurants on Friday for a spot of afternoon tea. The political power couple had attended an event at Swansea University the previous day, where they sat with First Minister Mark Drakeford and answered a series of questions from the university's Vice Chancellor and some local sixth form students on the subjects of global affairs and leadership.
Mrs Clinton first visited Swansea University in 2017 to attend a graduation ceremony where she was presented with an honorary doctorate in recognition of her "political career, commitment to human rights, and of her ancestral connections with Swansea". She has since returned to the University several times to meet students in the Hillary Rodham Clinton global challenges scholarship programme and at the Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law, which was named in her honour in 2019 - this visit, however, is thought to be the first time her husband, former president Bill Clinton, has joined her.
But, whilst some may have expected the Clintons to have jetted-off back to the US after their university talk, the pair extended their visit to Wales and stayed overnight at one of the region's top wedding venues, Fairyhill, before visiting one of Swansea and Mumbles' most popular restaurants, The Lighthouse bar and kitchen on Friday afternoon. For the latest Swansea news, sign up to our newsletter here
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Sharing photos of the visit on the restaurant's Instagram account, a spokesperson for The Lighthouse said: "Today we welcomed back the wonderful Mr President Bill Clinton & Madame Secretary Hillary Clinton to Swansea for some lunch with us here at The Lighthouse. Big shout out to Swansea Uni for making it happen."
Asked what items from the menu the Clintons tried, director of The Secret Hospitality Group, which owns The Lighthouse and a handful of other popular haunts in Swansea and Mumbles, Ryan Hole, told WalesOnline: "They were served afternoon tea made from scratch by our head chef Calum Pickard and baker Amy Bennett. They were also served coffee and tea from our local suppliers, Coaltown Coffee & Welsh Brew Tea."
"They loved it, were very complimentary about Swansea and said they can't wait to visit again!" he added. "They were great, so friendly to all the customers and posed for lots of pictures!"
As well as chatting to staff and customers at The Lighthouse, the pair spent time "mingling" with key dignitaries and personalities from across the country during a dinner held in the couple's honour at Fairyhill in Gower, where the couple stayed, on Thursday evening.
A spokesperson for Fairyhill said former president Clinton and secretary Clinton spent time in the venue's K Room, which boasts gorgeous views of the grounds, and enjoyed a lavish dinner which showcased freshly prepared Welsh produce and was attended by a stellar guest list including First Minister Mark Drakeford and presenter Carol Vorderman.
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Recap of the Clintons' talk at Swansea University
WalesOnline's education editor Abbie Wightwick has put an article together on the most important things Hillary and Bill Clinton talked about during their visit to Swansea University on November 16 - you can read the full report here.
Arguably one of the most thought-provoking questions posed to the pair was 'what can people do to help make a better world?' In response, Mr Clinton said: "Each country's own individuals need to acknowledge the legitimacy of other nations and religious, political and ethnic differences. It's important you can say, 'I like my country' and still recognise claims of others to live and think differently in a framework that respects fundamental human rights."
Asked for his thoughts on the Ukraine-Russia war, he added: "I think what Russia did in Ukraine is truly terrible," adding: "They are not asking us to die for them, but the means to defend themselves. Yet you hear people say, 'this is so expensive, we are going to get tired of this'. But if you think this is bad you have no idea what Europe will look like if you let Russia win in Ukraine!"
