James Corden did not mince words when discussing a particular Gavin & Stacey episode, calling it “awful” and “very, very, very bad.” The actor and co-creator, who played Smithy in the beloved sitcom, shared his candid thoughts during an appearance at the BBC Comedy Festival last week.
A Harsh Critique
Speaking at the event, Corden specifically targeted the second episode of the first series, which aired in 2007. “It’s a very, very, very bad half-hour,” he said, according to Deadline. “It’s an awful episode.” The episode in question follows Gavin (Mathew Horne) confessing his love to Stacey (Joanna Page) at the end of the premiere, leading to a phone mix-up that prompts Gavin to take a road trip to Wales. The installment concludes with Gavin proposing marriage.
Writing Challenges
Corden explained that the writers—himself and Ruth Jones—had “backed ourselves into a corner” with the romantic ending of the first episode. “You can’t do another romantic proposal [in the next one],” he noted. He admitted that they were still finding their footing with the show’s tone, initially believing they were making a traditional sitcom rather than a character-driven comedy-drama. “We were conscious of this half-hour comedy thing, and I don’t think we trusted that the characters would be the thing that would be funny,” Corden said. “We tried to instead say we needed something funny in the scenes, so we had Gavin jump the barriers when proposing and be covered in lasers.”
Series Legacy
Gavin & Stacey originally aired from 2007 to 2010, spanning three series and a Christmas special. It returned for a 2019 Christmas special and a final one in 2024. The 2024 Christmas episode became the UK’s most-watched scripted show across all broadcasters and streamers since records began in 2002, attracting 12.3 million viewers on Christmas Day and over 20 million within a month.
