
'I knew I was going to cry as soon as I walked on set'
Joanna Page on the end of Gavin & Stacey
As Gavin & Stacey comes to an end, Joanna Page describes her emotional response to her last day’s filming, how excited she was to get James Corden and Ruth Jones’s final script, and how there will always be a part of her that is Stacey…
How did it feel when you received the final script and what was your initial reaction?
It was really exciting when I received the script. I was driving home from another job and I pulled into the services. I was standing and waiting at the counter for a burger, and I looked down at my phone and suddenly it came up and I thought, "Oh my God, I’ve got this thing on my phone which loads of people here in the service station would love to see!"
I got in the car and ate my burger and read the first half of the script. Then I thought, I better move on to another services before I get a parking fine. So I drove on to the next services, and then I carried on reading the rest of the script.
I was just voice-noting Ruth, who was sending messages to James with me, going, "Oh my god, I can't believe this!" and "Oh my god, I can't believe that!"
In 2007 the first episode aired, can you remember those early years?
When the script came in, it was just like another job in that I didn't know what it was going to be like but I just knew that it was so well written, and it really made me laugh.
I loved working with all of these people I had admired, I couldn’t quite believe the fact that Alison Steadman was my mother-in-law, and it was just a joy watching her act. Working with the comedy genius that is Rob Brydon and that he was playing my uncle, was amazing and I got to act with him and try not to laugh, because he is so funny. Also having Rob Wilfort play my brother, because I went to Rada with him was just like, oh wow my mate is in this as well, and it was just an absolute joy!
We just had fun, we all gelled and had chemistry. We basically just went to Wales and had a laugh. It launched on BBC Three, and I was thought it was quite strange when people started to review it, then when people were quoting our lines back to us, it was really strange, because I suddenly thought, I've never been involved in anything like this!
What is your earliest Gavin & Stacey memory?
Turning up to the read-through. I remember wearing a bright yellow little thermal vest cardigan with a big flower on the side and it was all nice and soft.
I remember thinking, I'm going to wear my yellow top today for the read-through because I just want to be really approachable, happy and joyous and embody Stacey.
I remember we all turned up, and we all read the scripts, and everybody was just laughing, and it was really exciting meeting everybody. I also remember going for my first ever costume fitting, and Ruth and James came with me, and I hadn't met James before because he'd been away filming The History Boys. I remember going and trying on some costumes and meeting him for the first time.
Do you have a favourite Stacey moment from the entire series?
My favourite Stacey moments basically are all of the ones where uncle Bryn comes in. He's always got like, half a shaved face, or he's dressed in his vest, and when he comes in, because Stacey's done something we've got to calm him down.
Stacey's usually being very Welsh and very dramatic, and shouty and upset and ends up storming out. Those are my favourite scenes, because I love filming in Gwen's house, in the house that Stacey grew up in. I feel so comfortable and so safe and warm there, because that's Stacey's house.
Fans are going to get glimpse behind the scenes with an accompanying documentary. What was that like to film?
It was funny having the documentary crew there, because in the beginning you feel a bit self-conscious as there's always like an extra camera there with you in your quiet moments, when you’re having your breakfast or your make-up done.
I just can't wait to watch it and see what it was like for everyone, particularly as they've got bits from when we first started and our auditions, and for us to be able to see the whole 17 years’ worth of how we started and how much we've grown as characters, and also as people. I hope that there's loads of outtakes!
What does Gavin & Stacey mean to you?
Gavin and Stacey means so much to me, because it was the job that got me known as an actress. So it's done a lot for my career which is amazing.
But aside from that, it means so much to me because I started on it when I was 29 and I made lifelong friends. I got to act in a show which is so well loved by people, and a show that I've enjoyed acting in.
It's taken me all the way through my life. I started out at 29 and now I'm 47 and I've got four kids, all of the stuff that I've gone through in my life, Gavin and Stacy has kind of always been there.
I also thought it was lovely, because it really put Wales on the map. There hadn't been a show that was Welsh, with Welsh characters, I've never seen anything like that. So to be a part of that, and Wales becoming like the trendy thing and people embracing all of us that was just so huge.
Stacey is so close to my heart, and she's just become a part of me, and I've loved playing her, and I don't feel sad that I won't play her again, because I feel that she's so much a part of me anyway, that she will always be with me.
What I do feel sad about is that I won't ever be able to act with all of the rest of the cast in those circumstances again. It's been such a huge part of my life, and I feel so proud of it, I just feel really lucky to have been a part of it.
Why do you think the show continues to be so popular?
Because it’s relatable. It’s basically what everybody's family life is like. Ruth and James are brilliant at writing relationships and hearing the different characters voices.
What's brilliant is that people come up to me in the street and they say, "Oh my god, we are the real life Gavin and Stacey" and there are all of these long-distance relationships!
People can recognise their own families and relationships, and there's always some drama, and I think that we can all watch it and recognise those characters, and it makes us feel warm and safe.
It's so well written, and it just captures real life and relationships so well that I think that's why everybody loves watching it.
Did you sneak any memorabilia home with you from set?
Definitely! I have got all of Stacey's costume from the final episode, all of her shoes and her jewellery. Also, I've taken a framed painting home from Stacey and Gwen's house, and I also took this glass ornamental duck from Stacey's sideboard in the living room.
How did it feel to be on set for the last time with everyone?
Traumatic. I knew I was going to cry as soon as I walked on set. I saw Steve's face, our first assistant director, and I just burst out crying. Then I saw Sophie Hebron, our second assistant director, and I burst out crying again.
So then I went into my trailer and Julia Davis came in and sat with me, and I couldn't stop crying, because it just felt it was such a huge journey that was ending. So I found it very emotional but then in between that, hysterically funny, because the last scene we filmed was a funny one, so I just alternated between hysterically crying and hysterically laughing.
Right at the very end, on our last bit of filming, I just got this sense of calm wash over me. I remember standing there and looking around at everybody and everybody's faces, and I just remember smiling quite calmly to myself and thinking, ‘Wow, look where we've all come, look where we all are now’.
I delivered my last lines, the way that I wanted to, and the way that I needed to, and then when they shouted, "it's a wrap" and then they clapped all of us goodbye and I just hugged Mat [Horne], and we both stood there crying.
• Gavin & Stacey: The Finale will air at 9pm on Christmas Day and the behind-the-scenes documentary Gavin & Stacey: A Fond Farewell will air at 7pm on New Year’s Day, both on BBC One and iPlayer.
- Behind-the-scenes photos
- Interview with Ruth Jones
- Interview with James Corden
- Interview with Mathew Horne
- Interview with Rob Brydon
- Supporting cast share their memories
Published: 10 Dec 2024