Gavin & Stacey is one of those classic British sitcoms that just makes you feel good about the place. It's warm, cosy and gentle in it's delivery. I don't consider it in the elite category as the writing simply isn't as strong as the likes of Fawlty Towers, Peep Show and The Office, but it is nonetheless a wholly enjoyable series that can be watched and re-watched indefinitely.
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Ruskington11 September 2020
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I must say I can't quite understand the previous reviewer, as I think they are on a different planet to anyone else and I felt compelled to put the record straight.
Gavin & Stacey is one of the best comedies I have seen in recent years. It features a wonderful cast and a brilliantly written script form Ruth Jones and James Cordon. The programme is set around Gavin (an Essex boy) and Stacey (a receptionist from Barry Island) who begin their relationship over the phone when they are at work.
Feedback from the series has been so good that a second series has already been commissioned. -
paul2001sw-128 May 2008In the 1980s, the most famous hit of writer John Sullivan was 'Only Fools and Horses', but what actually won bigger ratings was a gentler comedy drama he wrote about two people falling in love, 'Just Good Friends'. And in some ways, 'Gavin and Stacey', a low key hit, is the 'Just Good Friends' of our time. At initial acquaintance, it's not riotously funny, and it's certainly not savage (unlike 'Pulling', another BBC3 hit); but the more you watch it, the more you find yourself smiling throughout, simply because the world it depicts is unquestionably the real world: this, in a way that few other television programs are, is a story of contemporary life. The central role of Gavin is quite passive and non-comic: the other characters are one-part sitcom staple, one part modern cliché, but still original - the mix works, supporting by acting and direction which overplays nothing and stays true to the rhythms of the everyday. As such, it's a record for the historians of the future to judge our age by; but very much also a comedy for us to laugh at now.
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cneidel15 January 2011I must say that I have really started to like British Comedy. Gavin and Stacey has become my second favorite show behind the IT Crowd. I love some American shows like Seinfeld and All in the Family, but love watching and learning about the different cultures of British television. I just don't understand the 6 episodes per year for 3 years thing. I really need more of Gavin and Stacey as I'm just starting to really love it and it is already over. So much talent, character development, and plot only to be cut short by about 100 episodes. The show is really one of those shows that you just can forget about life for a while and have fun watching on the weekends. I find myself saying Lush, Cracking, and Hiya more times than I really want to say them. On the off chance that the stars of the show ever read these reviews please do everybody a favor and make more episodes. I see so many talented people think they can create something better, when the best thing they have ever done is right under their noses. I'm not sure the actors know what this show means to the true fans. We work hard each week and wait to watch the next episode. 20 is not enough and the story has not been told but only just started! This is a cannot miss for almost any fan of sitcoms. Do yourself a favor and spend about 8 hours watching all 20 episodes and you will be craving a 4th, 5th, and 6th season like the rest of us.
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chloe_the_magic_unicorn5 April 2008An absolutely superb comedy, top class acting and the writing is incredible. This truly is one of the greatest comedy series I have seen in years.
Following the relationship between Gavin (Matthew Horne: Teachers and Catherine Tate) and Stacey (Joanna Page) from their initial phone flirtation, to their wedding day and beyond into married life this programme is skillfully written by James Corden and Ruth Jones who also star as Gavin and Stacey's best friends Smithy and Nessa (who completely steal the show in my opinion.) Those who've given this show a poor rating obviously have no sense of humour and can't appreciate decent comedy! -
daftpunkparis30 April 2011I bought the complete series of Gavin & Stacey in a box-set and could not stop watching it even though I wanted to delay watching the third and final season as it would mean that my viewing pleasure would be shortened.
Gavin & Stacey is a story centred on 2 individuals, their family and friends. It has a very simple storyline showing how the characters relate to one another in their ordinary day to day lives.
The romance between Gavin & Stacey aside, what I loved about the series is the friendship between Gavin & Smithy and Stacey and Vanessa. It is easy to identify with how the separate pairs of besties relate to each other and remain besties throughout the series despite their changing circumstances, like Gavin & Stacey getting married and each having to leave their hometowns and their besties at different points in the series.
I particularly liked how Vanesssa (played by Ruth Jones) is so tough and yet vulnerable. Vanessa also makes makes some very terse remarks in her Welsh tongue which cracked me up. I love the soundtrack, and how the characters relate through music (music by New Order, for one).
All the actors hold their own and both scriptwriters Ruth Jones and James Corden deserve the all accolades they have received for this series. -
crap-junkmail17 March 2008Being Welsh this is a typically stereotypical view of the way we live out life in Wales. But we don't mind being the but of a joke every now and then. Particularly when the joke is as good as this.
I have often met like people like Nessa and Gwen (Nessa's character being taken to the extreme however) but where in the world did Bryn come from? There are characteristics of Bryn that I have seen in many elderly Welshmen I have met in the valleys and even in my own Grandfather who grew up on the edge on the Rhondda valleys, but Bryn as a whole is unfathomable to me. Such a brilliantly unique character of heart warming naivety and innocence (and horrendous cringe worthiness) that no explanation can accurately describe him.
I have to say that this series completely took me by surprise. I expected it to be completely over the top and totally removed from real life...... and it is. Having said that it works to such a degree that I urge you to try it out for yourselves. -
I recently caught the entire series on BBC3 back to back in one evening and must confess, I was laughing out loud more than any BBC comedy for a very long time.
James Corden and Ruth Jones should be commended for writing a show and not making themselves the central characters a-la Ricky Gervais, Steve Coogan and Co.
Great music throughout the series and some genuinely touching moments as well as some slightly 'blue' ones but all in all it is a very refreshing step in the right direction for the Beeb.
Really looking forward to the second series and finding out what Uncle Bryn and Stacey's gay brother did on that boat trip! -
Now i might sound a little bit biased as i was born and still live in Barry Town. But i have to say i can relate to all of the characters in this show. Although Nessa is slightly exaggerated, i actually know people that sound like her. Nessa along with Pam have to be my favourite characters as they are polar opposites of each other but, both equally as funny..... in different ways. This show is HILARIOUS! the jokes, the innuendos, the one liners, the catchphrases, the characters - they are all "cracking" (yes, Barry people actually say that). The only negative i have (its a tiny one) is that no one in Barry, NO ONE! has a welsh accent as strong as Stacey, Bryn and Gwen. After the Christmas special, i am so expecting another series. Fingers crossed. 9/10
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cambo24326 March 2008Gavin and Stacey is the best programme on TV at the moment. The cast are absolute legends and the casting team could not have picked better at all. Alison Steadman has me in stitches and Rob Brydon singing James Blunt has to be a classic. The whole cast is brilliant....i don't know how you get any work done. Keep up the good work guys you are fantastic!!!!!!
Gavin and Stacey is the best programme on TV at the moment. The cast are absolute legends and the casting team could not have picked better at all. Alison Steadman has me in stitches and Rob Brydon singing James Blunt has to be a classic. The whole cast is brilliant....i don't know how you get any work done. Keep up the good work guys you are fantastic!!!!!! -
contrarygirl-115 May 2008Gavin And Stacey is a brilliant show. One of the best UK sitcoms of this decade, revolving around the general theme of a long distance relationship, quick marriage and how the distance between Essex (Gavin's home) and Barry, Wales (Stacey's home) underlining that situation – us being treated to the idiosyncrasies of their rival clans along the way. Two strong supporting characters are Nessa and Smiffy (Ruth Jones and James Corden – the show's writers), who try to face up to the life lessons an unplanned pregnancy brings, whilst Rob Brydon shines as stand-out character Bryn (Stacey's ever-present Uncle). There are some poignant moments along the way. The last episode of the first series, where Bryn reads a note from Stacey's deceased father, is very moving indeed. Some moments are a little bit too cloying for my liking (the last episode of series 2 featuring far more situation than comedy), but on the whole I've thoroughly enjoyed the series.
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alunthomas21 January 2008This was an outstanding series - won a few awards as well. This is Welsh humour and needs to be listened to so that you understand the joke. Many might need slapstick for humour but this picks up on the way many Welsh families are intertwined and how the matriarchal and patriarchal figures are often figures of humour. Ruth Jones demonstrates real skill in playing such a part and the cast is full of home grown talent.
They must be watched in order - each episode runs naturally on but will spoil the previous episode if watched out-of-synch.
Roll on series 2 -
strike-199530 June 2019The laughs often fall flat, but that doesn't reduce the love you have for the characters.
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DavidYZ24 April 2017This BBC romantic sitcom is about the long-distance relationship between Gavin (from Billericay, Essex) and Stacey (from Barry, South Wales).
This is a very good idea for a sitcom, but I didn't enjoy watching it. I continued only because many people had claimed that it gets better.
I don't know why this sitcom became massively popular. The vast majority of the characters are dull (such as Gavin), annoying (such as Stacey) or obnoxious (such as Gavin's best friend Smithy and Stacey's best friend Nessa). None of them are likable.
Smithy is the sort of arrogant loudmouth that many of us have had the misfortune of meeting. He has no respect for personal boundaries and thinks he's 'the king of banter' - but is actually a loud and overbearing idiot.
Nessa (a poor, fat, plain woman) frequently boasts about all the wonderful adventures she's had and the celebrities she's known - and no-one challenges her on any of it. -
blakedw19 March 2008This is an absolutely brilliant series with wonderful characters saying hugely funny things. I'm Welsh and I have never seen anything which captures the rhythm of the way Welsj people speak like this, but the Essex characters are just as good in their ways. This isn't just the best comedy the BBC has done for a long time; it's the best series of any kind for a very long time. Everyopne will have their favourites amongst the characters but I defy anyone who has ever been west of the Severn Bridge not to see Bryn as the ultimate hero. Lots of the success lies in the timing, because the actors don't stand around for hours trying to milk laughs. All in all a very tidy show.
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hicky55919 April 2008I cannot understand the previous comments either. This is one of the funniest 'feel nice' programmes I have ever seen. Perhaps it will only appeal to the British humour, but I doubt it. Ruth Jones is simply the best or in her own words 'Tidy'. The writing by Jones and Corden is ingenious and appeals to all age groups, the well deserved their awards. I watched the first series whilst it was showing for the first time, I watched it again during the BBC3 Gavin and Stacey evening, and even bought the DVD. (Something which I don't usually do) The second series is now being shown on BBC3 and it is just as good as the first. Lets hope there are more to come. If the BBC keep coming up with programmes like this then I will never moan about paying my TV licence again!
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jboothmillard4 August 2011I had never watched this before when it was broadcast on television, but I had heard about how popular and critically acclaimed it was, so when I was able to I watched the whole lot in one go. Basically level-headed Gavin Shipman (The Catherine Tate Show's British Comedy Award nominated Mathew Horne) from Billericay, Essex, and bubbly Stacey West (Love Actually's British Comedy Award nominated Joanna Page) from Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, have been talking romantically on the phone for six months, and they finally arrange a face to face meeting. Gavin lives with his parents, down-to-earth father Michael 'Mick' (EastEnders' Larry Lamb) and house-proud, over-protective and reputation caring Pamela Andrea 'Pam' (Clockwise's Alison Steadman), and spends time with his oldest and closest best friend, Neil 'Smithy' Smith (The History Boys' BAFTA and twice British Comedy Award winning (and nominated), and British Comedy Award nominated James Corden). Stacey meanwhile lives with her caring widowed mother Gwen West (Being Human's Melanie Walters), gets frequent visits from protective and jolly uncle Bryn (The Big Fat Quiz of the Year's BAFTA and British Comedy Award nominated Rob Brydon), and spends time with best friend Vanessa Shanessa 'Nessa' Jenkins (Fat Friends' British Comedy Award winning (and twice nominated) Ruth Jones). Throughout the series we see the key moments of the relationship, the first meeting, the first kiss, meeting each other's families, becoming engaged, getting married, finding a house, briefly splitting, looking for new jobs and trying to conceive. The series also consists on the full family coming together for the small and non dramatic events, e.g. playing a pub quiz, having a takeaway, having a night out, a day at the beach, and the same goes for the conversations, realistically simple and non significant, but there are also the meaningful occasions, such as weddings, christenings, birthday parties and Christmas. While Gavin and Stacey provide the emotional core of the show, there are also the smallest subplots, such as Smithy and Nessa have a contrasting relationship, filled with dislike and one-night stands, one of which creating a baby that forces them together, and when Nessa becomes engaged to Dave Coaches (Ali G Indahouse's Steffan Rhodri) there is a big conclusion to their relationship in the end. Other subplots in the story that create other interest and humour are Pam trying to convince everyone that she is vegetarian when of course she is not and is desperate to keep up the pretence and not eat meat, which is hard, Bryn has many encounters with Stacey's older brother Jason (Robert Wilfort) who is gay, and they often discuss something that happened on a fishing trip between them. Also starring Russell Tovey as Budgie and Pam Ferris as Cath. This programme is really funny when it wants to be, but it is also brilliant for being so simple with many lovable characters, not least Smithy with his fun-loving and cool persona, and Nessa with her catchphrases "What's occurring?", "How's it going', alright" and "Oh!", the relationship concept building up quickly by each episode is clever, and the scripting by Corden and Jones is fantastic, I would highly recommend everyone watch this highly entertaining British romantic comedy drama. Note not just the Christmas special, but also the fantastic number single made for Comic Relief by Bryn, Nessa and Sir Tom Jones, "Islands In The Stream", and other great Comic Relief appearances by Smithy. It won the British Comedy Awards for Best Television Comedy, Best New TV Comedy (Scripted) and Best TV Comedy, and it won the National Television Award for Most Popular Comedy Programme. Very good!
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My younger sister (she's 19) and I (aged 22) both love this series. Before I watched the third series on BBC One, I saw the majority of series two episode four where Gavin and Stacey go house-hunting and have an argument at a bowling alley when it was repeated on BBC Three. My care home support staff gave me the first two series of the show on DVD for Christmas last year. I'd already heard of Ruth Jones and Rob Brydon before I watched this series because they were previously in 'Little Britain.' Now I've heard of most of the cast because of this show and I have also seen Joanna Page as the woman in the simulated sex scenes in 'Love Actually.'
The third series of the programme was very up-to-date (with references to Twitter and the recession). One of my favourite places to visit as a child, Barry Island in South Wales, features strongly in most episodes and it's an instantly recognisable place for those who have been there before. Other places in the series I could recognise were London's Leicester Square and the Severn Bridge tolling booths. A TV series revolving around the relationship of an Essex boy and a Barry girl is one of the most original ideas I've ever heard of.
There is a modern soundtrack throughout the series. Songs to feature in the programme include 'Don't Look Back Into the Sun' by the Libertines, 'Brianstorm' by Arctic Monkeys, 'Pencil Full of Lead' by Paolo Nutini and 'Wisemen' by James Blunt. The theme tune 'Run' by Stephen Fretwell is so beautiful I had to download it from iTunes.
The only downsides of the show were not getting to see Gavin and Stacey's child (due to Stacey falling regnant in the very last episode) and the train station where Gavin proposes to Stacey looks nothing like London Paddington, despite its signs. 9/10. -
Sylviastel27 August 2014A great cast brings the story of a Welsh young woman, Stacey, and an Essex young man, Gavin, into a lovely realistic romance. The cast are first rate with Larry Lamb and Alison Steadman playing Gavin's parents. I adore Steadman as Pam. Melanie Walters does a great job as Stacey's widowed mother. The first season is about their first meeting to their wedding day. Along the out of studio and audience, there are plenty of laughs especially with the creators and writers, James Cordern and Ruth Jones, who play pals, Smithy and Nessa. I adore Ruth Jones who plays the role and steals every scene. I would watch a show around Ruth Jones talent every day. Both Jones and Stacey (played by Joanna Page) are Welsh which adds to the authenticity to the show's success. It's realistic and believable about two families from different parts of the country getting together to celebrate a couple's love and determination to stay together.
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Jonas202125 April 2019This was a delightful, short, minimal-commitment that took me two or three days to breeze through. It's nothing mind-blowing and it doesn't move mountains or shift paradigms. Rather, it's a character-study of two (extended) families who come together - one from Wales and the other from England - after the connection and marriage of a couple. It's an easy, fun, friendly watch. I wish there were more shows around like it, where each of the characters is good-hearted, loving, communally-minded, and thinks about and expresses love towards those in their lives, despite their faults. It's not ground-breaking, but it isn't contrived either. It's an honest slice-of-life, and it's lovely. It's not the laugh-a-minute slapstick comedy that British comedies often are. Rather, this is driven by the characters.
Highly recommended. -
joshfirth-9017227 May 2020I started watching this after my girlfriend recommended it. And I'm glad she did. I can't stop laughing and my stomach hurts from doing so. I can't stop smiling with the good times. And I cry with the bad.
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GiraffeDoor15 May 2023I never even considered watching this with my parents when they first followed it. Everyone online and real life just kept saying "bring back Gavin and Stacy!" and no one was in any doubt that by an objective metric this has become essential British Television.
I actually did get into it in the end. It's hard to describe...the humor is this idiosyncratic send of up of people's small foibles (familiar) but there's something about it's tone that oscillates from a life affirming serial about family and romance to the darker side of life. Nothing bleak, but the little embarrassments, the bizarre little things that we want to call people out on but don't are satirized with impeccable timing. Many shows try to show the humor that abounds in normal living and at last one of them isn't totally excruciating.
Filled with vivid, three dimensional personalities, Gavin and Stacy are the focus story-wise but in practice it's basically about everyone BUT them.
The over arching narrative is good enough but it certainly does not over stay it's welcome. It's all very breezey. -
indole_ring2512 April 2010If you've never seen this show, but you've read the premise and seen a clip or two, let me guess what you're thinking...... (1) The premise sounds a bit flimsy especially for three series' worth (2) The clips aren't very funny (3) It's the BBC, meh meh meh. I thought all these things too. I cannot stress too strongly how utterly, completely wrong I was. Gavin & Stacey is so good it's stunning. The writing is glorious - how can they create such characters? They're carved from real life and yet they just spring into your living room, it involves you right from the start, you feel part of it. And the performances.....! Effortless! Not a single moment is wasted in any episode, every character from the mains right down to characters that only appear once.... it's rich, powerful, hilariously funny, heart-wrenching and completely lovable. It will make you glad you're alive.
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I frequently enjoy all things UK and have long watched anything I could. PBS was and still is one of my best options and has been since I was a youngster. I had to adjust to Gavin & Stacey. It had to grow on me. What I liked: Margaret John was, without a doubt, the best actress in this series. She was a scene stealer with deadly accuracy and razor sharp wit. They don't produce actresses of her calibre any more. I was saddened at her passing. Brilliant actress. Rob Bryden. His Bryn character was so multi-layered that half the time I wanted to box his ears and scream shut it already, and half the time I wanted to hug him and escort him to the nearest psychiatrists on hand. I still don't know if that was his aim. Twisted brilliance. Larry Lamb was the glue that held that family together. I found his run in this series to be remarkable, heart warming, touching , and genuine. I need to watch more with this man in it. Alison Steadman. I'd first caught her in one of my favorite movies "Shirley Valentine". Her character was a bit too self absorbed in that for me. When I saw her playing the mum? I was pleasantly surprised at her range. I found her to be equally heart warming, and slappable at the same time. Always a sign of a brilliant performance. Joanna Page. I liked her portrayal but not always her character. I must strongly agree with other reviewers that she turned into a sniveling ,whiny, controlling brat many times in this series. Ruth's character says it best. She lost some points in other people's eyes. That was the way she was written, but I don't have to like it. Redeemed somewhat but still slap worthy and dim witted per the way her role was written. Stacey got the shaft in more ways than one in this series. Stefan Rhodri and Sheridan Smith were standouts in their supporting roles. I enjoyed both of them and look forward to watching more of their ability in other projects. Neil the baby was a scene stealing wunderkind! Keep a look out for this one to make it as a child then adult actor with great success! Russell Tovey. Refreshing to see that he has range. His werewolf was the gayest monster I've ever seen in film. The high pitched screams! Cringeworthy. Yet his character there was sweet and sad. He's one mixed bag. Like Forrest Gumps chocolates. Never know what you're going to get. Mathew Horne. I enjoy him an everything he does. A brilliant actor with a range not often seen. Again, his character is a victim of the writing at times. Gavin can be as self absorbed and childish as Stacey. Nowhere near as irritating at least. Men can't hit that between the shoulder blades pitch when whining. He never goes as far as Stacy. The scene where she wasn't bright enough to figure out his boss was over his shoulder? Who lives to be 20 something and engaged several times and can't figure that one out? Writerland.
Neutral:
Ruth Jones and James Corden. I'm lumping their characters together in this review because they seemed like two sides of the same coin. These two, and their characters Nessa and Smithy, were made for each other.
I'm not a fan of these characters. As an American, I find the double standard that fat guys can get any sized gal they want and demean fat girls to be a concept I cannot fathom. This made Smithy the tw@t he was. I so hope this is not depiction of real standards in the UK. Very self absorbed. Who goes to help a friend out by providing emotional support and expects Stacy's friend to be a hot babe he's gonna get lucky with? Tragic. Then has the nerve to talk about her like he himself is gold. Delusional? Table for one? I never heard Gavin even imply that Smithy was going to get any. Did you? Who dressed him? Wearing clothes you're bursting out of the seams in is not attractive. Ever. I know plenty of full figured guys/gals that agree. James did the best he could with this character, but only has himself (as a writer) and his dresser ( clueless) to blame for negative reactions. He's much better in Dr. Who. Ruth/Nessa. I liked her character and her portrayal . Very original and funny. At times blunt and grating. Always spot on. Except.
My gigantic beef with both of these characters in the Way they were written and portrayed? That " stomp it into the ground and yet it refuses to die, worn out drop it already, get a new clue and move on blue" FAT PEOPLE EAT ALL THE TIME. GOD, I'm SO OVER THAT CLICHÉ!! They DON'T. I was amazed that two people who are no where near svelte would write such tripe-laden codswallop in attempts to get cheap laughs from the skinny masses. Shame on you two for going there. Period.
In conclusion? Brilliant 3 series run with excellent cast that could have been greatly improved by better writing. I became so attached to the characters that I feel for them. If they were real people? They deserved the high ground and should have been steered away from the negative perceptions and Pidgeon holes. I hope they write another series for these characters. The whole experience was like someone else ordering your idea of the best meal ever. It was delicious and "posh" picking out the parts that I had trouble swallowing, didn't taste right, or were "off" was a challenge to my dining experience. I'd do it again? But I'd bring a big strainer. -
megler_game10 December 2009I will be the first to admit that I thoroughly enjoyed the 1st season, but from the 2nd season onwards someone has obviously forgotten to insert any jokes!!! Kind of odd for a "comedy" series I think! Instead they are focusing on overplayed drawn out dialogue (ordering a curry) and giving more time to possibly the 2 most irritating characters I have ever seen on TV Pete & Dawn...... Another big wrong is that in the 1st season Stacey was adorable, cute & very likable, now they have just made her a squeaky, whiny & extremely annoying little girl.
I suppose it is not too surprising considering Corden's writing skills which were so expertly showcased in the surely long-running & surely classic series "Horne & Corden"!!!!
To put it mildly.....pure tripe!!