James Corden Admits The Gavin & Stacey Christmas Special Had To Be Rewritten Because ‘It Wasn’t Good Enough’

James said: “I called her and said, Look, there’s no right or wrong answer to this, and you might have no interest in what I’m about to say, but… I’m sat here in LA with Ruth Jones… Of course, we had to add, we haven’t spoken to the cast yet, this might not even be possible.”

But James said the cast’s reaction to the news was “glorious”.

“I remember calling Mat Horne [who plays Gavin] and him just going, ‘Holy shit, man’,” he said.

All of the main cast will return for the festive special, with Mat Horne and Joanna Page back as the titular couple, while Rob Brydon (Bryn), Melanie Walters (Gwyn), Larry Lamb (Mick) and Alison Steadman (Pam) will also reprise their roles. 

Gavin Stacey aired over three series, from 2007 to 2010, with the finale being watched by more than 10 million viewers.

Read the full interview with James and Ruth in the new issue of Radio Times, out now. www.radiotimes.com.