James Corden, Ruth Jones Reunite for ‘Gavin & Stacey’ Christmas Special
To the list of TV revivals and revisits, add Britain’s beloved and widely traveled “Gavin & Stacey.”
The BBC announced Tuesday that it would catch up with the doings of the eponymous couple and their friends and family this Christmas after a nearly 10-year hiatus. The hourlong special is written by James Corden and Ruth Jones, who together created, wrote and co-starred in the original show.
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“Gavin & Stacey” ran for three seasons from 2007 to 2010, including a previous Christmas special in 2008. The series followed the long-distance and then up-close romance of Gavin (Mathew Horne) from Essex, outside London, and Stacey (Joanna Page) from Barry, in Wales. Corden and Jones played the pair’s best friends, Smithy and Nessa.
“Over the last 10 years we’ve talked a lot about Gavin and Stacey – where they might be today and what their lives might look like. And so in secret we took the plunge and wrote this one-hour special,” Corden and Jones said in a statement. “We’ve loved revisiting Barry and Essex again and bringing the characters back together has been a joy.”
The original show proved a hit for the BBC and won numerous awards, including BAFTAs. The finale on New Year’s Day of 2010 was watched by more than 10 million people, the most ever for the series. Talk of a U.S. remake at various networks bubbled up through the years, with Fox’s “Us & Them” coming closest to fruition, but none of the episodes of “Us & Them” that were produced ever made it to air.
The new “Gavin & Stacey” Christmas special is being produced by Corden’s banner, Fulwell 73, along with Tidy Productions and Baby Cow Production. It was commissioned by Charlotte Moore, the BBC’s director of content, and Shane Allen, the BBC’s controller for comedy.
“Everyone at the BBC is hugely excited to be welcoming back Gavin and Stacey to BBC One this Christmas,” said Moore. “We can’t wait to see what’s happened to everyone over the last nine years, and what’s next for one of the nation’s favorite comedy families.”
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