Hughes was born in Aberystwyth, where he studied music at the University College of Wales under Professor Ian Parrott and sang with the soprano Hazel Holt.

While a music student he conducted the university chamber choir, the Aberystwyth Elizabethan Madrigal Singers, for several years.

More recently, he appeared in the S4C drama Pen Talar and in Holby City as Sir Fraser Anderson,[1] and has also returned to the BBC Wales soap opera Pobol y Cwm as a new character, Morgan 'Moc' Thomas, whom he played from 2012 to 2013.

In May 2014 he appeared as Organ Morgan with Tom Jones and Katherine Jenkins in Kevin Allen's BBC centenary production of Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas.

[6][7] Hughes has also appeared as Tom Howells in the Welsh thriller television series Keeping Faith (2017) and as builder Bill Thornhill – an old rival of local villain Pat Phelan (Connor McIntyre) — in Coronation Street (2018).