19/14
Essex and Wales collide when Gavin and Stacey fall in love, taking their friends, family and luggage with them. With the exception of the scenes filmed in London in the first episode, the entire series was filmed in Wales, including the scenes set in Essex. The house that was used as the Shipmans’ (Gavin’s family) home is located in Dinas Powys, a village 1 mile northwest of Barry, where the Wests (Stacey’s family) live. In series 3, Bryn and Gavin’s cars have completely different registration numbers to the previous series. Gavin’s blue Saxo has been changed from a T-reg (MY 1999) to an X-reg (MY 2000). Bryn’s green Picasso has been upgraded from CV02 (MY 2002, Cardiff registered) to HV54 (MY 2004, Portsmouth registered). They are obviously different cars. Featured in Gavin & Stacey: Outtakes (2007). RunBy Stephen FretwellPlayed by Stephen Fretwell. This was a short, sweet, minimal engagement that took me a couple of days to get through. It’s nothing mind-blowing and doesn’t move mountains or shift paradigms. Rather, it’s a character study of two (extended) families coming together – one from Wales and one from England – after a couple hook up and marry. It’s easy, fun and friendly viewing. I wish there were more shows like this, where every character is kind-hearted, loving, community-minded, and thinks about and expresses those in their lives, despite their flaws. It’s not groundbreaking, but it’s not contrived either. It’s an honest slice of life, and it’s charming. It’s not the laugh-out-loud slapstick comedy that you often find in British comedies. Rather, it’s the characters that drive this film. Highly recommended.
