This BBC romantic sitcom is about the long-distance relationship between Gavin (from Billericay, Essex) and Stacey (from Barry, South Wales).This is a very good idea for a sitcom, but I didn't enjoy watching it. I continued only because many people had claimed that it gets better. I don't know why this sitcom became massively popular. The vast majority of the characters are dull (such as Gavin), annoying (such as Stacey) or obnoxious (such as Gavin's best friend Smithy and Stacey's best friend Nessa). None of them are likable. Smithy is the sort of arrogant loudmouth that many of us have had the misfortune of meeting. He has no respect for personal boundaries and thinks he's 'the king of banter' - but is actually a loud and overbearing idiot.Nessa (a poor, fat, plain woman) frequently boasts about all the wonderful adventures she's had and the celebrities she's known - and no-one challenges her on any of it.

This show was huge back in the day. It was one of those shows buried away on the smaller BBC channels, became a hit and then got bumped up to BBC 1 purely based on the public's love of it. It was the same with Miranda.Only difference is that Miranda was funny. This show tries to be a modern 'Just Good Friends' and fails miserably. It has it's moments, don't get me wrong, but I highly doubt it will last the test of time as a classic sitcom.The only saving grace is James Corden, a funny man who quite rightly has gone onto bigger and better things, albeit sadly in the US. His charm and timing make this show in places, and his subsequent success is not a surprise.People love this show, and that's fair enough, I'm just not one of them.

A great cast brings the story of a Welsh young woman, Stacey, and an Essex young man, Gavin, into a lovely realistic romance. The cast are first rate with Larry Lamb and Alison Steadman playing Gavin's parents. I adore Steadman as Pam. Melanie Walters does a great job as Stacey's widowed mother. The first season is about their first meeting to their wedding day. Along the out of studio and audience, there are plenty of laughs especially with the creators and writers, James Cordern and Ruth Jones, who play pals, Smithy and Nessa. I adore Ruth Jones who plays the role and steals every scene. I would watch a show around Ruth Jones talent every day. Both Jones and Stacey (played by Joanna Page) are Welsh which adds to the authenticity to the show's success. It's realistic and believable about two families from different parts of the country getting together to celebrate a couple's love and determination to stay together.

The BBC seems to have commissioned some very conservative stuff (ie soft writing about soft targets) for the main channels lately. I suppose 'G&S' comes under the banner of 'regional comedy', like 'Bread', or - sorry, but I can't think of any other gag-free, mawkish, undemanding sub-soap operas at the moment. Apart from 'My Family', that is. But even though you can see the payoffs in that coming a mile away, at least 'My Family' makes a stab at witty dialogue and plot structure. 'Gavin and Stacey' fans, however, seem content to laugh at people 'just like their Nan' picking their noses, usually in slow motion, though maybe that's just the leaden writing giving that impression. These are supposed to be real characters, are they? Yes, and very, very ordinary they are too. Presumably a nation brought up on 'Bob the Builder' and 'Thomas the Tank Engine' considers a Welsh or Essex accent the height of in-depth characterisation. Alison Steadman deserves particular excoriation for her patronising caricature of somebody 'common'. G&S is anodyne mush for the self-loathing masses, who voted for it in droves and only proved how much they love to be patronised and mocked behind their backs. If you happen to be a Martian visitor reading this (and the contradictions this review will no doubt draw, assuming anybody reads this far) please remember that G&S isn't universally popular, so don't judge the whole planet too harshly. For current observational British comedy with any bite at all, try 'Pulling' instead.