Gavin and Stacey star Alison Steadman has revealed that after filming the final scenes of the beloved show, “90% of us were in tears.”
Speaking on BBC’s The One Show, the actress, who plays Gavin’s mother Pam, shared that the entire cast had been dreading the end of the series.
Co-creators James Corden and Ruth Jones had confirmed in May that the hit sitcom would return for one final episode, set to air on Christmas Day.
Filming began in September, with fans eagerly gathering at various locations across the Vale of Glamorgan to catch a glimpse of the stars. The emotional shoot wrapped up on Monday night.
Steadman, 78, reflected on the bittersweet experience of filming the finale.
“We’ve had a great five weeks; we only finished on Monday night,” she said. “But we were all dreading that final scene. I think 90% of us were in tears—some people braved it—but it’s been so fantastic.”
She added, “We had a wrap party, it was very nice, it was lovely. We’ll just miss not filming it anymore. It was fabulous.”
The show previously returned in 2019 for a one-off Christmas special, which ended with Nessa, played by Ruth Jones, proposing to Neil “Smithy” Smith, portrayed by James Corden.
Steadman also reminisced about reading the original script.
“James and Ruth are amazing; their scripts are so witty and funny. When I read the first scene, I thought, ‘I’ve got to do this.’ I couldn’t wait, and they didn’t let me down.”
The 2019 episode achieved the highest overnight Christmas ratings in 12 years, with an average of 11.6 million viewers, and went on to be viewed by 17.1 million people.
It became the biggest scripted program of the decade at the time and won the impact award at the 2020 National Television Awards.
After filming the final episode, the BBC posted on X (formerly Twitter), “And that’s a wrap… for the last time ever.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Steadman spoke to BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, reflecting on her 17-year journey with the show, saying, “It’s been a real experience. It can’t get better than that, really. It has to go down as one of my most favorite, fun jobs.”
Since filming began, hundreds of fans have flocked to well-known locations in the Vale of Glamorgan.
Karen Ash, 61, from Cwmbran, shared, “We’ve come down a few times over the last few weeks,” as shooting wrapped at Pam and Mick’s house, which is actually filmed in Dinas Powys, not Essex.
Owain Cleese, 22, from Barry, expressed his love for the show, saying, “I’m the biggest, biggest fan… I love them all, but I’ve got to say, who I miss the most is Doris.”
Gavin and Stacey originally aired for three series between 2007 and 2010, following the romance between a young couple, Gavin (Mathew Horne) and Stacey (Joanna Page), from Essex and Barry, respectively.
As anticipation builds for the Christmas Day finale, some fans believe they have spotted spoilers.
Karen Ash hinted, “I think I might have seen a spoiler, but I’m not prepared to say. I’m not going to tell you what my ending is—it’s a spoiler. I think it is anyway!”
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