Gavin and Stacey set for Christmas return to boost BBC ratings
THE HIT comedy Gavin and Stacey will reportedly return to the BBC for a new Christmas Day TV special.
A one-off episode is reportedly in development and will be filmed over the summer, according to Deadline.
The last Christmas Day special in 2019 was the most-watched scripted show of the decade with over 17 million viewers. Since then, the BBC has relied on Call the Midwife, Mrs Brown’s Boys and Michael Mcintyre shows to fill the schedule, sparking complaints about a lack of variety, and a slump in ratings.
The 2019 special ended on a cliffhanger with Nessa (Ruth Jones) proposing to Smithy (James Corden). Corden and Jones, who co-write the series, have faced endless questions about the possibility of the show’s return.
Corden returned to the UK this year after ending his eight-year stint as host of The Late Late Show in the US. At the Royal Television Society’s Cambridge conference in September, Corden appeared uncertain about the merits of making another Gavin and Stacey, saying it had ended on a “perfect” note. “Honestly, I don’t know if we’ll ever do another one. Ruth and I would love to make something together again but I really don’t know if that will be Gavin and Stacey,” he said.
“We feel so proud of that last special. And I know people want resolution to that and all manner of other things in the show. But those characters carry on, they’re still out there living and breathing. Some people say to me, ‘I want to know what happens,’ and I say, ‘So do I.’
“Maybe there was something really perfect about it ending there. Can we truly fulfil people’s ambitions for it?”
But Corden and Jones were photographed together in Soho in November, prompting speculation that they were meeting to discuss a new episode.
According to Deadline, the majority of the cast will return, including Mathew Horne and Joanna Page in the titular roles.
Page said in December: “After filming [the 2019 special] I did think, ‘There is another one. There’s got to be another one. We’ve got to find out what Smithy says!’”
The BBC declined to comment.