Alison Steadman reveals why filming Gavin and Stacey Christmas special was 'a nightmare'

Alison Steadman says filming the ‘Gavin and Stacey’ Christmas special was “a nightmare”.

The 78-year-old award-winning actress stars as matriarch Pam Shipman on the BBC Three sitcom and explained that filming the upcoming Christmas special on Barry Island, Wales was tricky because of paparazzi who descended on the area.

Speaking at the Cheltenham Literature Festival to promote her new memoir ‘Out of Character’, she said: “The main thing is when we were filming, truly the paps were everywhere taking pictures, it was a nightmare.

“And there was people at the end of the street, here, there and everywhere, and the main thing that Ruth and James were saying to everyone is: ‘We don’t want to spoil it for you, we want Christmas Day to be a surprise, and once you know a bit of the story, it’s going to spoil it.’

“And that is what I want too.”

The series follows the lives of the Shipmans and the Wests, who become intertwined when Gavin (Mathew Horne) and Stacey (Joanna Page) begin a long-distance relationship from Essex and South Wales respectively.

It aired on BBC Three from 2007 until 2010 for an initial run of 21 episodes.

The show returned in 2019 for a festive special which ended on a cliffhanger, in which Nessa Jenkins (Ruth Jones) proposed to Neil 'Smithy' Smith (James Corden), and all questions will be answered with the new special.

Alison recently explained that it was "wonderful" to see her

She told Prima magazine: "It was wonderful to meet up again with Ruth and James for this year’s Christmas special. And with all the cast.

“They are like our family to me."