Gavin and Stacey actor Mathew Horne struggled to contain his emotions after revealing a member of the crew – who has not been pictured – had suddenly passed away.
The actor, who played Gavin Shipman in the BBC hit show, was being interviewed on stage at his ‘In Conversation With…’ show in Taunton, Somerset.
According to The Sun, Mathew was talking about how the cast were all still chatting to each other on a Whatsapp group, when he became emotional.
He said: ‘Sorry. I got distracted. Earlier on… we had a driver on the finale called Rob and he was in his early 40s… and I found out via the Whatsapp group earlier that he has passed away and I got slightly distracted there.
‘It’s really really sad. I got distracted by losing Rob. He was a really lovely guy and he’s left a four year old behind and that is really really really sad.’
Mathew Horne struggled to contain his emotions as he revealed a Gavin And Stacey crew member died suddenly, (stock image)
The actor, who played Gavin Shipman in the BBC hit show, was being interviewed on stage at his ‘In Conversation With…’ show in Taunton, Somerset
He went on to tell the crowd how all the cast and crew had become close after working together for almost two decades.
He said: ‘In 2019 before the Christmas special – part one of the finale if you like – aired, I lost my mother and Alison [Stedman, who played his onscreen mother Pam], really stepped up and she became my surrogate mother off screen as well.
‘Whenever she texts me even now she signs it “Mum”. And that is cool. That is so beautiful. And she says “How are you, my little prince?’ It means the world to me.”‘
The Gavin and Stacey finale aired on Christmas Day last year, with 19.1 million viewers tuning in for the final episode.
The series, which debuted back in 2007 after being created by stars James Corden and Ruth Jones, concluded with on/off lovers Smithy and Nessa finally declaring their love for one another and tying the knot, but not without a few hiccups along the way.
While fans tuned into the episode to see whether Smithy had accepted Nessa’s proposal from the 2019 Christmas Special, a five-year time jump revealed that he was indeed set to tie the knot, but all was not as it seemed.
It was revealed that Smithy had instead got engaged to his girlfriend Sonia, who failed to impress the Shipman/West clan when she met them in the last festive episode, with actress Laura Aikman’s return to the show kept a closely-guarded secret.
With Smithy’s big day taking centre stage throughout the episode, Gavin and Stacey travelled back to Essex with her Welsh family in tow to celebrate his stag party with Pam and Mick.
Mathew looked worlds away from his sitcom character as he showed off a bold new hair style at Wimbledon on June 30
Many of the family’s concerns about Sonia hadn’t been eased in the months leading up to the big day, as she feigned illness to avoid attending his pre-wedding celebrations, and said she ‘couldn’t wait’ until they were married, so they could sever ties with Gavin’s family.
Nessa was visibly reluctant to travel to Billericay for Smithy’s big day, with big changes looming as their son Neil prepared to join his dad in Essex for an apprenticeship.
She then revealed that Smithy had never got the chance to answer her proposal, as they were interrupted by Gavin, and they hadn’t talked about it since.
Elsewhere, Gavin and Stacey attempted to spice up their marriage with a spot of role play, and while she shared concerns that their relationship could be fizzling out, a spicy evening at Pam and Mick’s brought an end to those fears.
In a scene that went back to the boozy night from the show’s third series, Smithy enjoyed a pre-stag celebration with the Shipman/West clan, culminating in him missing his suit fitting the next day, to Sonia’s fury.
And it wouldn’t be an episode of Gavin and Stacey without yet another relationship drama for Pete and Dawn.
While the couple are revealed to have divorced during the five-year time vacuum, the couple struggle to keep away from one another, resulting in one of the episode’s steamier moments.
In a special packed with nods and Easter Eggs from the original series, Smithy headed to his stag with Gavin, with the pair’s entire crew of pals, including Deano, Chinese Alan and Fingers – attempting to recreate the glory days, with mixed results.
In a poignant scene, Smithy appeared to allude to his feelings for Nessa under the ruse of sharing a corn-on-the-cob, a reference to one of the show’s most steamy moments from the second series.
With it soon becoming clear that with Sonia more preoccupied by the aesthetics of her wedding than becoming Mrs Smith, Smithy’s family began to share concerns that he was making a ‘big mistake’ by going ahead with the wedding.
The Gavin and Stacey finale aired on Christmas Day last year, with 19.1 million viewers tuning in for the final episode (Stefan Rhodri, James Corden, Alison Steadman, Joanna Page, Rob Brydon, and Robert Wilfort pictured)
The series, which debuted back in 2007 after being created by stars James Corden and Ruth Jones (pictured), concluded with on/off lovers Smithy and Nessa finally declaring their love for one another and tying the knot, but not without a few hiccups along the way
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Gavin & Stacey's Mathew Horne looks worlds away from his sitcom character as he shows off bold new hair style at Wimbledon with his wife Celina Bassili
Amid the wedding drama, Stacey also grew suspicious of her mother, Gwen, with it eventually revealed she’d been hiding a secret from her daughter, a boyfriend!
But in a jaw-dropping reveal, fans were not prepared to discover the identity of her mystery man… Nessa’s ex Dave Coaches!
With Uncle Bryn visibly furious, Gwen hit back by referencing the famous fishing trip, no doubt leading some viewers to hope that they were finally going to discover the truth about the famous outing.
But it seems that this will be one mystery that will be left to the TV archives, as the family were interrupted before Dave could share the truth.
Turning focus back to Smithy’s wedding, as the big day loomed, Stacey shared her fears with Gavin, who warned her against interrupting or spoiling their pal’s big day.
Fans were also treated to the surprise return of Sheridan Smith as Smithy’s sister Rudi, and Pam Ferris as his mum, Cath.
Having bid farewell to her son Neil and Smithy, Nessa shared that she was leaving Barry to return to her job at sea, and in an emotional scene, viewers saw her heading out of the island, while Neil ‘The Baby’ performed a moving track at his dad’s wedding.
As Smithy and Sonia prepared to exchange their vows, with a registrar played by Anna Maxwell Martin watching on, a surprise twist saw Gavin himself stop the ceremony, urging his best pal to rethink his decision.
With the registrar asking anyone to stand if they agreed with Gavin, the entire Shipman/West clan did so, leading Smithy to finally realise that he loved Nessa, before vowing to go after her.
It was a finale that brought a long-awaited end to the story that began back in 2007, and fans rushed to social media to praise the ‘perfect’ ending.
Fans first fell in love with the series back in 2007 (pictured)
Taking to Twitter, they wrote: ‘What an ending, my heart feels full’;
‘NESSA AND SMITHY FINALLY!!!! The nation rejoices’; ‘last 15 mins were pure CINEMA. perfect end’;
‘Up there with one of the best TV finales of all time. Credit where it’s due to James and Ruth for making us care so much about these characters for 17 YEARS! Take a bow.’;
‘Might be the best ending to a comedy show ever. What a brilliant send off for all the characters. Ruth and James never lost their touch. Funny, emotional and brimming with whit. Amazing’;
‘Gavin and Stacey finale was what I’ve needed, the closure I feel is IMENSE’;
‘@JKCorden that was perfect. To you and Ruth, you’ve created a story I’ve grown up with. The perfect end. Thank you Merry Christmas’;
‘So beautiful. So perfect. So special. The end’; ‘That was actually perfection. From top to bottom, proper tidy.’
Another joked: ‘This is making me wanna text my ex and tell them I still love them’.