Gavin and Stacey star set to 'sign for Strictly' after last ever episode

A star of Gavin and Stacey has been hotly tipped to join the cast of Strictly Come Dancing next year after the resounding success of the final episode of the show

A star of the hugely popular series Gavin and Stacey is set to sign up to appear on Strictly Come Dancing following the show's final episode, bookies claim.

The odds for Joanna Page - best known as Stacey Shipman in the series - have soared following the finale with her now looking like a top choice to grace next year's dancefloor. The finale saw a record 12.3 million viewers tune in to Gavin and Stacey racking up the highest Christmas Day audience since 2008.

The success means that stars of the show could now be in demand for a string of other appearances thanks to the resounding success. Fans are already demanding to see more of them after the episode drew the story to a close.

Alex Apati of Ladbrokes told The Sun: "The Gavin and Stacey finale went down a storm, and with the latter playing such a huge part in the episode, we reckon she could soon be swapping Barry for the ballroom."

The last ever episode began with Smithy preparing to celebrate his stag do before he went down the aisle to swap vows with Sonia. The celebration brought all the main characters together for a knees - but Nessa struggled with her emotions as the countdown to the wedding progressed.

While fans were devastated when the final episode began with Smithy planning to marry Sonia instead of Nessa, towards the end of the episode, they were delighted to see Pam Ferris and Sheridan Smith return to the series - reprising their roles as Cath Smith and Ruth 'Rudi' Smith respectively. The characters returned to watch Smithy walk down the aisle on his wedding day - with many feeling the cameos stole the show.

Despite the series getting a satisfactory ending top dogs at the production company behind the show are now reportedly eager to develop a spin-off following strong fan demand after the finale. Despite the conclusion, fans have expressed their desire for more, prompting bosses to consider expanding the universe with new stories.

A source told The Sun that it would be "madness" to close the door on the show. The source told the publication: "James and Ruth are adamant this is the last of Gavin & Stacey. But, when a programme achieves such results, execs will always hope for more.

“At the end of the day, ratings talk and it would be madness to close the door on such a hit forever when fans loved it so much. Bosses have had casual discussions about whether options like a Pete and Dawn spin-off could work.

"They were always more separate to the main group and a new universe could be developed which didn’t involve any of the core cast, so James and Ruth’s involvement could be a little different.”

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