James Corden has revealed the pressure to get the Gavin and Stacey finale right felt like “the closest thing to being called up to play for England.”
The 46-year-old actor acknowledged giving the show his best and was thrilled for fans to watch it on Christmas Day.
According to The Sun, the talk show presenter clarified that he felt pressured to live up to the high expectations because the show was so popular with viewers.
Gavin & Stacey The Finale Teaser! #BBC pic.twitter.com/HI143l2TFr
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James told the publication: “We’ve thrown absolutely everything at this to try to make it be as satisfactory as it can be for a big audience.”
He continued by saying that it’s “nuts” that the show still has more meaning for viewers now, 20 years after the debut episode.
James compared the anticipation to being called up to play for England in the World Cup, which is why he and Ruth Jones felt like they had taken on a monumental assignment.
He added: “I think it’s the closest you could get to being called up to the England team in terms of something meaning a lot to a lot of people.”
“You are representing your country right now in a sense, you know?”
“And so, it’s a lot… but we’ve really tried our absolute best.”
Earlier this week, James Corden and Ruth Jones teased that the final episode of Gavin and Stacey “might not be what you are expecting.”
In May, the creators announced that the hit comedy show would return for one final episode.
The show will return one last time for a Christmas special this year, with the most recent airing nearly five years ago.
While fans hope that the new episode will answer the questions left by the cliffhanger at the end of the last special, Ruth has teased it might not be what viewers are expecting.
Speaking to the Big Issue, the actress and writer confessed: “I keep telling people this finale might not be what you are expecting.”
“And I guarantee we will definitely not be coming back.’
While James added: “What people are going to see on Christmas Day is the culmination of a 20-year love story, which hopefully shows, if nothing else, that love is complicated and messy and for everyone.”
Last month, the BBC teased the storylines for the upcoming the Gavin and Stacey Christmas special.
A one-off festive episode that concluded on a cliffhanger when Vanessa Shanessa “Nessa” Jenkins (Ruth Jones) proposed to Neil “Smithy” Smith (James Corden) in 2019 marked the return of the popular television program, which ran from 2007 to 2010.
After sleeping together on-and-off, they had a son named “Baby Neil” and raised him in both Essex and Wales.
Five years ago, Neil, played by Oscar Hartland, made an appearance in the special at the age of twelve.
However, it has not yet been revealed whether Nessa or Stacey tied the knot.
The BBC teased the comeback by posting a picture of Corden and Jones standing next to a wall, emulating the first season image, and Mathew Horne and Joanna Page as Gavin Shipman and Stacey West, respectively.
The BBC said that the 2024 Christmas special sees Gavin and Stacey “looking for new ways to spice up their 17-year marriage”, while Nessa begins a new business venture.
Along with Neil the Baby beginning a “apprenticeship with his dad,” Rob Brydon plays Uncle Bryn, who is preparing his Citroen Xsara Picasso on Barry Island in Wales for a journey to Essex since his sister-in-law Gwen West has been “behaving most strangely.”
Michael “Mick” Shipman (Larry Lamb), Gavin’s father, will also cause trouble for his stern wife Pamela Andrea “Pam” Shipman (Alison Steadman) in the Essex town of Billericay as she prepares to play hostess.
Additionally, Peter Sutcliffe (played by Adrian Scarborough) and his wife Dawn Sutcliffe (played by Julia Davis) will continue to have marital issues.
The BBC have also stated that it would help unravel one of the long-standing mysteries surrounding Gavin and Stacey.
“Join us on the journey to Barry and Billericay as we catch up with the Shipmans and the Wests for the very last time and maybe find out what exactly did happen on that fishing trip.”
Throughout the series, Stacey’s uncle Bryn and his nephew Jason (Robert Wilfort) make references to the “fishing trip”; however, viewers are only aware that the two men were close prior to the incident and hardly spoke afterward.
