BBC to screen brand new Gavin and Stacey special alongside series finale

The BBC will screen a behind-the-scenes documentary about 'Gavin and Stacey' when the sitcom returns for its finale.

The comedy was last seen in 2019 for a festive one-off, and writers James Corden, 45, and Ruth Jones, 57, recently confirmed a Christmas special is on the way, but the broadcaster will also air a special that will look back on the entire history of the show since it began in 2007.

A source told The Sun newspaper's TVBiz column: "The Beeb view this as a momentous occasion and wanted to give Gavin Stacey a suitably auspicious send-off. The fact that the documentary will be made by Fulwell 73, which is co-owned by James and is a co-producer of the sitcom, means they’ll enjoy full access on set and get all the biggest chats.

“It is likely to be made in tandem with the show itself, filming the creative process of delivering the finale from the first to the last day."

The much-anticipated episode of the sitcom - which also stars Mathew Horne, Joanna Page, Alison Steadman and Larry Lamb - will air on Christmas Day and it is expected that the documentary will air around the same time.

The news comes after it was claimed that Ruth and James had turned down a "tempting offer" from Netflix in honour of keeping the sitcom on its original broadcaster.

A source said: "They held conversations with Netflix who threw everything at them to land what is seen as a gem of British comedy.

"James, Ruth and the team were effectively offered a multi-million pound one-off deal, and were promised it would open the show up to a whole new international audience.

“Obviously it was tempting, but they felt 'Gavin and Stacey' belonged to the BBC — and the nation, really.

"The optics wouldn’t have been great had they ‘sold out’ so they went with their hearts, not the cash."