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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Entertainment
Tina Campbell

Gavin and Stacey Christmas special: More clues emerge about Smithy and Nessa's wedding

More clues have emerged about the highly anticipated Gavin and Stacey Christmas special as on-location filming on Barry Island comes to a close.

The beloved TV series was written by Ruth Jones and James Corden, who also star, and ran for three series between 2007 and 2010.

It returned in 2019 for a one-off festive episode, which ended on a cliff-hanger when Nessa, played by Jones, proposed to Corden’s character Smithy.

The cast has been spotted filming what appear to be wedding scenes, but new pictures obtained by the MailOnline suggest not all could be as it appears.

James Corden has been warmly received by locals (BBC Breakfast)

The cast were spotted boarding the famous Dave's Coaches to head to a church for the big day, but the bride-to-be herself Nessa was noticeably absent.

Among those who boarded the coach was a dapperly-dressed Corden, casting doubt on whether he and Nessa are the ones who say “I do”.

During a break from filming, Corden visited an ice cream shop for a brownie and a chat with its owner Laura Davenport, who told the PA news agency it had been “a great day”.

She said: “We waved madly at James and got him over to the shop.

“He’s really lovely, asking about the shop, saying that it was really lovely, really different.

James Corden and Ruth Jones delighted fans when they announced on social media that a new Gavin and Stacey Christmas special was on the way (James Corden/Instagram)

“He was great, he had some photos with us – one of the girls that works for us is our baker so he had one of her brownies as well.

“He’s been lovely to everybody to be honest, all the fans, he’s had photos with them – so it’s been a great day.”

Former chat show host Corden announced the show’s return in an Instagram post on May 3 by sharing an image of him and Jones with a 2024 script titled Gavin And Stacey: The Finale.

Other cast members who are set to return are Mathew Horne and Joanna Page, who play lovers Gavin and Stacey, Larry Lamb as Gavin’s father Mick, Melanie Walters portraying Stacey’s widowed mother Gwen, and Rob Brydon who plays her Uncle Bryn.

Expectations for the next instalment are high, with the previous special earning the highest overnight Christmas ratings in 12 years, attracting an average audience of 11.6 million viewers. It was the biggest festive special since Christmas Day 2008.

By the new year, it had been viewed by 17.1 million people, making it the biggest scripted programme of the decade at the time.

It went on to win the impact award at the National Television Awards in 2020.

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