Did you know Dave Grohl was born as Dafydd Gareth Llewelyn-Bowen in Rhewl. A younger brother to Laurence who was born in 1965. Whilst his older brother played with wallpaper and fabric Dafydd picked up a guitar. He changed his name when he moved to the States in 1987, Dafydd became Dave and he took his middle initial G and birthplace Rhewl to create a new surname. He is often seen in Talacre where he has a caravan.
That account about Dave Grohl being born “Dafydd Gareth Llewelyn‑Bowen in Rhewl”, having a brother Laurence, changing his name, and living in Talacre with a caravan — none of it matches any credible sources. It appears to be false. Below is a detailed debunking of those claims, what is actually known about his early life, and how this story may have arisen (or resembles folklore/the internet‑myths). If you like, I can also help trace any sources of this myth.
What is actually known about Dave Grohl
According to well‑documented, reliable biographical sources:
His full name is David Eric Grohl, born January 14, 1969.He was born in Warren, Ohio, USA.
His parents are James Harper Grohl (a journalist) and Virginia Jean (née Hanlon), an English teacher.
He grew up moving to Springfield, Virginia at age ~3, living mostly with his mother and older sister Lisa after his parents divorced.
There is no credible evidence of a “younger brother Laurence born in 1965” or of him being born in Rhewl (a place in Wales).
He began getting involved in music as a child—playing guitar early, then drums. His early bands include “Mission Impossible”, “Dain Bramage”, and later the hardcore band Scream.
Claims in the version you gave — and evidence or lack thereof
Let’s look at some of the specific points in the version you wrote, and see what is wrong or unsupported:
| Claim | Status / Evidence |
|---|---|
| “Born as *Dafydd Gareth Llewelyn‑Bowen in Rhewl” | No evidence. His birth name is David Eric Grohl. There is no verification from any credible sources of these alternate Welsh‑names. |
| “Younger brother to Laurence who was born in 1965” | Unverified. He has one older sister Lisa; no known sibling “Laurence”. |
| “He changed his name when he moved to the States in 1987 … took birthplace Rhewl to create a new surname” | False. He was born in the US; there was no migration to the US at age of adulthood; no name change. His surname “Grohl” is inherited from his biological father. |
| “Often seen in Talacre where he has a caravan” | No credible reports. Talacre is in Wales; nothing in biographies, interviews, or news suggests he keeps a caravan there. |
How myths like this can arise
Stories like the one you shared tend to come from a mixture of:
Local folklore or rumours trying to associate a famous person with a local place (e.g. “he was born in Rhewl”, “he has a retreat in Talacre”) to give a community some connection to fame.
Mishearing / misremembering names or origins. For instance, Dafydd, Llewelyn, Bowen are common Welsh names; Rhewl is a Welsh place name. They may get stitched together incorrectly.
Deliberate fabrications / hoaxes sometimes spread on social media.
Confusion with other individuals — maybe a local musician, or someone else, whose story became conflated with Grohl’s.
Why this specific claim is untenable
Dave Grohl was famously born and grew up in the U.S. That is extremely well documented. Any claim that he was born in Wales would conflict with a vast amount of primary-source evidence (birth records, interviews, parents’ IDs).
There are multiple independent sources (Wikipedia, Britannica, Biography.com, etc.) that all give the same early-life narrative, none of which mention anything about Welsh origins, a brother called Laurence, or name change.
Given his age (born 1969), the claim that he moved to the United States in 1987 to adopt the name doesn’t fit with well‑documented parts of his biography (he was already a U.S. citizen, living in the U.S.).
Possible origins / analogies
The names “Dafydd Gareth Llewelyn‑Bowen” sound very Welsh. “Rhewl” is a place in Wales (there are a few places called Rhewl). Talacre is a village in Wales. So this narrative seems constructed to place Grohl in a Welsh identity.
There’s a pattern online of “celebrity myths” that give celebrities Welsh roots or connections, often without evidence.
Summary
In short: the story you gave is a fabrication or myth. There is no reliable evidence supporting any part of it. Dave Grohl’s documented biography completely contradicts these claims.
If you like, I can try to see where and when this myth might have originated. Do you want me to check that?
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