BBC sitcom Gavin And Stacey ended a 90 minute rollercoaster ride for fans with an emotional finale as co-writer James Corden admitted: "I just wanted it to feel satisfying".
Viewers were initially shocked when the episode began with a wedding, but not between Neil "Smithy" Smith (James Corden) and Vanessa Shanessa "Nessa" Jenkins (Ruth Jones).
Instead Smithy was planning to marry Sonia, his stuck up girlfriend played by Laura Aikman, who had snuck onto set to keep the twist a surprise.
In the end Smithy's pal Gavin (played by Mathew Horne) stopped the wedding at the last minute during the ceremony and Smithy and his pals then left Sonia as a jilted bride so Smithy could stop Nessa boarding a ship and they could marry instead.
Even the second proposal didn't go completely smoothly as Smithy asked Nessa to propose again - as she had done in the 2019 Christmas special - and she said no.
In a tear jerking moment for fans, Smithy responded by saying: "It's okay. Nessa, wait! Look, I don't know what it is or why it is or when this thing that was nothing became something. And right now it's everything.
But it did. And I know it's been messy and not perfect. But that's because we're messy and not perfect. But I love you, Nessa. I always have. I mean, not always, but most of the time. And I get it. You don't have to ask me. I'll ask you. Nessa, I love you. Will you marry me?"
The pair then married in a small ceremony and the wedding reception - filmed on the final day of recording the sitcom, showed the emotional cast having fun in a bar with karaoke before the credits rolled.
Speaking at a cast and crew screening for the finale, Ruth said: "I'm feeling a bit drained. It was so lovely to watch it with an audience. I hope we did you proud. It was just lovely to hear all the reactions. To hear that very initial response, it's just gorgeous."
A tearful James said: "I just wanted it to feel satisfying really. What was really interesting is after the 2019 special, all people would say to us was, what does he say? They would never say who did he choose.
"I called Ruth and I was like, I wonder if we could trick everybody into thinking that for the first six or seven minutes that they're just going to watch a wedding between Nessa and Smithy. I remember so vividly having that chat with Ruth going, 'oh, I wonder if we could pull that off. I feel like we did'."
On the performance and surprise element of Smithy's potential bride Sonia, James also paid tribute to actress Laura. He explained: "She stayed in different hotels. She was going into places in the dead of night. She's not part of any of this, such is her want to try and protect it.
"She actually promised to try and film her parents on Christmas Day. She hasn't even told them! And she's hoping to film her parents' reaction. She hasn't even said she's in it."
Larry Lamb who plays Gavin's dad Mick Shipman was left in no doubt creators James and Ruth had ended the series brilliantly on a high after two decades.
Asked what he thought of the script, he said: "What I thought was, here we go, another miracle from the Dream Weavers and off we go. Simple as that. The whole thing is a wonderful gift. I do not think I can ever remember being so moved by something, either that I've been involved with or not involved with. It's absolutely, just as I knew as soon as I read it, it's a masterpiece."
His on screen wife Alison Steadman, who plays Pam Shipman added: "Watching it, it was just a joy. And like you, Larry, I don't normally cry and get over-emotional about things, but I was sitting there in that seat and I was just completely choked. And I don't know, it was a mixture of all sorts of things making me cry. But it's been one of the best jobs of my whole career."
Co-writer Ruth Jones revealed the wedding reception was not supposed to be the final scene filmed by the cast but they pushed production to move things round so they could have one last day together.
She explained: "That was lovely. Actually, if you look at the script, it is literally just the montage, isn't it? And so we had a whole day. It was quite a luxury because normally, you know, you're watching the clock and you're up against it.
"And we were so blessed that everyone in production that made this happen so that we could have the luxury of having a final day where everybody was there and that all we had to do, we didn't really have any lines. We had karaoke. We all learned to karaoke, which of course you never get to hear.
"Rob Brydon was warming up his voice! But it was lovely because it did feel like a real wedding, didn't it? Like a real wedding, sort of pub reception. And we were very grateful for being indulged, for being able to do that because it made such a world of difference that we did that last shot."
James added: "Tears all around. It was probably the most emotional film set I've ever been on and it was kind of wonderful. So many of our crew have been with us from the start and so it's a wonderful way to close it all out on a Monday in Barry."
One storyline which did stay secret to the end what was really happened on 'that fishing trip' with Stacey's uncle Bryn (Rob Brydon) and her brother Jason (Robert Wilfort).
Robert said: "I'd like to say now and forever, the joke has always been you don't find out what happens on the fishing trip. I'm sorry everybody, but that has always been the joke and it always will be because it's funny. It's funnier that way. And I was so pleased that we didn't reveal it - because we've never known what it is."
Gavin And Stacey originally aired between 2007 and 2010, and follows Gavin's family, the Shipmans, who live in Billericay, Essex, and Stacey's family, the Wests, who reside in Barry, Wales.
Joanna Page, who plays Stacey was thrilled to play the role one final time alongside Mathew Horen who played Gavin. She said: "It was just lovely working with Matt. I mean, we just clicked straight away. And then you come back, you know, to do this after so many years, and you just slot straight back into being husband and wife. And you don't have to really think about how you're going to do the scenes, or, you know, we always rehearse but with Matt, we've been playing husband and wife now for so long that it just felt natural, and it was fun, and it was lovely."
In 2019 the show returned after almost a decade for a special that saw Nessa get down on one knee to confess her love for Smithy.
The hit TV series returned in 2019 for a special that scored the highest overnight Christmas ratings in 12 years. It attracted an average audience of 11.6 million viewers, making it the biggest festive special since Christmas Day 2008.
By the New Year, it had been viewed by 17.1 million people, making it the biggest scripted programme of the decade at the time. It also won the impact award at the National Television Awards in 2020. The show was co-created by Corden and Jones, and the 90-minute special was written and executively produced by them.
* Gavin And Stacey: The Finale is available on BBC iPlayer. The documentary Gavin And Stacey: A Fond Farewell will be shown at 7pm on New Year's Day on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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