A FAN-FAVOURITE Gavin and Stacey star has revealed they almost didn’t accept the iconic telly role.
They told how they had played a previous TV role which was “not a million miles away” from their Barry Island-based character.
Now Rob Brydon, 59, who has played Stacey’s loveable Uncle Bryn West since the first ever Gavin and Stacey episode, has suggested things could have been very different.
The Would I Lie To You? presenter told how his drew parallels between the quirky character – who is the brother of Stacey’s mum – to his career-defining role in show Marion and Geoff.
He told the Dish podcast: “The thing that changed my life, work wise, was a show called Marion and Geoff.
“I was a Welsh taxi driver called Keith Barret who told you about his wife now.
“He was a naive person like Bryn. He was a big-hearted person like Bryn, it’s not a million miles away-from Bryn.
“And at that stage in my life, about 2006, 2007, I was still thinking, oh, well, you know, I’ve got to be… I hadn’t started doing Would I Lie to You? So, I was thinking, I want to be this actor who, who could play any part, and if I do this part now it’s, I don’t know…
“I don’t know, I think I just had a day when I woke up and I went, no, I’m just going to do the things I like. And then Would I Lie to You? came along, I thought yeah, I want to do that.
“Also, I’d started to have my two boys after my first marriage. So, you don’t want to then be away for films and dramas.
“Ooh, it looks glamorous, but the reality is anything but. You are miles from home. You’re getting up at the crack of dawn. You don’t see your family.
“So, I wanted things that would keep me closer to home.”
Talking of the Gavin and Stacey plotline he added: “And I knew that the script was just superb.
“So off we went and thank god I did. If I hadn’t, could you imagine?
“It’d be Ben Miller, wouldn’t it? It’d be Ben – I always get mistaken for Ben.”
The Swansea-born star recently admitted he was “moved to tears” after reading James Corden and Ruth Jones‘s script for the final-ever episode.
With the news that the show is set to make an exciting return to screens, let's take a look at some of the comedy programme's biggest and best moments...
Although comeback rumours had circulated since 2019, the return of the beloved BBC sitcom was only officially confirmed in May by the co-creators.
The infamous sitcom was written by the comedy pairing and it became a smash hit after its debut in 2007.
One long-running joke in the series features Rob’s naive and endearing character refer to the infamous fishing trip.
Yet the episode, to be aired on Christmas Day on BBC One at 9pm, will be the final-ever.
The comedian went on to share a more personal moment, revealing that he was so moved by the script that he found himself breaking down.
“Do you know what? I was moved to tears, because it’s emotional,” he confessed.
James Corden himself also previously struggled to hold back tears as he recalled the feeling of finishing the final Gavin and Stacey script with Ruth.
He also revealed his major concern ahead of the much-loved show wrapping for good.
Dish from Waitrose is available on all podcast providers.
