The Christmas broadcast of Gavin & Stacey: The Finale became the UK’s most-watched scripted show across all broadcasters and streamers since records began in 2002 – racking up ratings of 19.3million so far.
READ MORE: Fans react to the ‘Gavin & Stacey’ finale: “perfection from beginning to end”
According to a new report by the BBC, the last episode of the beloved sitcom – created by James Corden and Ruth Jones – also took the top spot on Christmas Day. On the day, 12.3million viewers tuned in to see what happened between the friends in the five years since they were last on our screens.
Millions more watched the show during the following days, with the episode expected to top 20million viewers when the 28-day viewing figures are published. It breaks the show’s own record, with the 2019 Christmas special which reached 18.5million viewers in 28 days.
‘Gavin and Stacey’ cast. CREDIT: Getty/Gareth Cattermole
Corden and Jones said in a statement: “We are completely overwhelmed by the audience response to our show and to these astonishing viewing figures. Gavin & Stacey really does belong to the audience and we are beyond thrilled that so many people enjoyed watching it this Christmas.”
The finale saw Corden’s character Smithy planning to marry girlfriend Sonia (Laura Aikman), rather than Jones’ Nessa, and the tense build up to the wedding as Gavin (Matthew Horne) struggles to tell Smithy that he’s making a mistake. Fans described the show as “Perfection”, with the warm response reflected in record-breaking numbers.
While Jones has claimed the show will “definitely not be coming back”, Jones did make one final appearance in character as Nessa, reading the Shipping Forecast – a Met Office broadcast of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the UK – on New Year’s Day to celebrate the service’s centenary.
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