David Lyn Jenkins (30 April 1927 – 4 August 2012), known professionally as David Lyn, was a Welsh television, film[1] and stage actor and director who in his 40 year career was at the forefront in the development of professional Welsh language theatre in Wales in the 1960s and 70s and won a BAFTA Cymru.

Lyn was raised on a smallholding in Cynwyl Elfed in Carmarthenshire, an area steeped in poverty, and his own early family life was one of struggle; after winning a place at the local grammar school he went on to attend the teacher-training course at Trinity College, Carmarthen.

He later joined a weekend drama course where a tutor from the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) recognised his dramatic gifts and persuaded him to move to London to study.

Throughout this period alongside his acting Lyn also developed a side-line in renovating houses and when he moved his family to North Wales he bought five derelict cottages and knocked them through into one long house, fitting a large church window in the front of the last cottage giving the building the appearance of an old chapel.

In 1972 Lyn purchased a 55 ft 50 ton Norwegian trawler, the Tolga, which he intended to renovate to fulfil a promise to his father to take him up the Zambezi.

Over the ensuing years Lyn improved his knowledge of Welsh to such an extent that eventually he was able to act in and direct plays for Cwmni Theatr Cymru fluently in that language;[2] among the plays he directed were: Pethe Brau (1972), a Welsh language version of The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams; Esther by Saunders Lewis (1973) and Y Twr (1978) by Gwenlyn Parry.

[1] By now disillusioned with the theatre scene in Wales he and his family sailed their trawler the Tolga from Barry to St Katharine Docks by Tower Bridge.

In 1994 Lyn purchased Pilroath, a rundown mansion in Llangain in Carmarthenshire which had large outbuildings in which he built studios and back stage areas.

Here he based Penadur, which produced the acclaimed Welsh-language series Pris y Farchnad (1995) about auctioneers in Carmarthen and which won him a BAFTA Cymru award.

His funeral service was held at St Ystyffan's church in Llansteffan in Carmarthenshire where he was buried in the churchyard with his late wife.