Inside the messy love lives of Gavin & Stacey cast..from groping claim to star's affair & James Corden's pass at singer

The Sun

20-06-2025

IT'S the TV series that proves that love conquers all - even culture clashes, long distance and in the case of Smithy and Nessa, the awkward fact that he's marrying someone else.
But while our favourite Gavin and Stacey characters got their happily ever after in last year's Christmas special, we're afraid the same can't be said for their real-life alter egos.
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Just take actress Ruth Jones, who - as well as starring as Nessa - co-created the beloved series with James Corden.
Yesterday, the 58 year old revealed that she'd 'amicably' split 18 months ago from her husband of 26 years, David Peet, 71, and said they were now 'legally separated'.
She added in a statement, 'We remain good friends. Since our separation, Ruth is living in London and David is living in Canada, where he is in a new relationship'.
It's since been revealed he's dating education assistant Jayne Charity Cook, 46, who bears an uncanny resemblance to the Gavin and Stacey star.
As friendly as it may be, the break-up has still come as a shock to many - not least given the fact that Ruth and David were together for almost three decades.
Yet their relationship wasn't without its drama early doors.
The pair first met in the 1990s while filming the pilot episode of a BBC comedy; but while she was single, he was married with three children.
She later admitted there was some 'overlap' between her beginning her relationship with David, and him ending his marriage. They married in 1999, and Ruth became a step-mum to his three kids.
She's since spoken about her guilt over the way things started, reflecting, 'Affairs cause a lot of pain; they're not something one aspires to do. You don't aspire to cause pain to people in their life."
As for the rest of the Gavin and Stacey gang, nobody's had it quite so tidy in the love department. In fact, for most of them, it's been downright messy. So, what's occurring when it comes to their respective romantic foibles behind the scenes?
Watch the sweet moment Ruth Jones reunites with Neil the Baby after Gavin and Stacey finale
James Corden
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Before meeting his wife, Julia Carey, James, 46, had a tumultuous relationship with his co-star, Sheridan Smith.
The pair dated - on and off - for two years, before finally calling it quits in 2008.
In the meantime, during one of their off-spells, James famously tried it on with Lily Allen, after flirting with her on her BBC chat show.
Reports from the time suggested they did in fact go on several dates, but Lily shut down the rumours quickly, revealing, 'No, I wasn't horny for James Corden…he came on to me in front of a studio audience.
'If I'd have shut him down, I would have been labelled cold or up myself or snobbish.'
James admitted he had been trying to hook up with the star, explaining: "I made it my aim to make Lily mine. I guess we were friends but, for my part, I definitely wanted more than that."
His efforts may not have made the singer Smile, but James had better luck with Julia, who he met after finally ending things for good with Sheridan.
They got together in 2009 and married three years later, with James revealing on Good Morning Britain, 'I absolutely knew minute one that I couldn't do any better than this.
'When I met Jules, I was like it's a miracle every day. She must just look at me and think, 'What did I do? This was a huge mistake.'
Despite his concerns, it seems the feeling's mutual.
The couple, who share three children together - Max, 14, Carey, 10, and Charlotte, seven - are still going strong, and relocated the family back to the UK in 2023 after eight years in Los Angeles.
A marriage that survives Hollywood? As Smithy would say, sounds like they're two peas in a bag.
Mat Horne
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Mat 's alter-ego Gavin may have married Stacey in the finale of season one, but the actor didn't make it down the aisle with his first fiancée, Casualty star Evelyn Hoskins.
The pair announced their engagement in October 2018, but the happy news was short lived as - months later - he was spotted kissing Norwegian set designer Celina Bassili.
But Evelyn's loss was Celina's gain - the latter married Mat in 2021 in an intimate ceremony in Oslo, Norway, and they're still going strong.
As for previous rumours that he once dated Kylie Minogue, the actor's jokingly rubbished the very thought of it.
The 46-year-old previously told The Sun, 'If I'd shagged Kylie everyone would know about it. I would have a T-shirt and a tattoo telling them.
'The idea of people camping outside my mum's house last year to ask her if i'm seeing Kylie is ridiculous. Of course nothing happened…she's Kylie!'
Joanna Page
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As Stacey, Joanna 's always been a hopeless romantic.
And, for the most part, her personal life has followed suit. She met fellow actor James Thornton on the set of David Copperfield in 1999 and they married four years later.
They now share four children - Eva, 12, Kit, 10, Noah, eight, and Boe, three - and live happily in Henley-on-Thames.
However, she did admit things hit the skids during COVID, when the couple found themselves struggling for the first time ever.
'We spent the whole of the first lockdown arguing and threatening to divorce each other,' she's previously said.
'Then we went through a month of literally not saying a single word to each other.'
They've since come back fighting - and Joanna's spoken about spending more time together one-on-one.
Speaking to Natalie Cassidy on the On The Telly podcast last year, she said she'd be taking James away for his 50th birthday.
She said: 'I thought stuff it, I'm going to take me and him away for a couple of days because we've never really been away for a good few days, just the pair of us."
Sounds lush to us.
Alison Steadman
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The actress, 78, who played Gavin's iconic mum Pam, was previously married to legendary director Mike Leigh.
The pair met at East 15 Acting School in 1967, and got married in 1973, before welcoming two sons together - Toby, now 46, and Leo, now 43.
During their marriage, Alison often appeared in Mike's films, including Abigail's Party, Nuts in May and Life is Sweet.
They split in 1995 and divorced in 2001, but always remained close - and are now dedicated grandparents to Freddy, seven, and Milo, one.
What's more, Alison got her second stab at happily ever after when she met Welsh actor Michael Elwyn.
The pair have now been together for 27 years and enjoy a cosy life in north London, which includes a mutual love of bird watching.
In 2022, she paid tribute to her long-term partner, saying, "I really appreciate how wonderful it is to enjoy doing things with someone at this stage of life, knowing we'll be together until one of us flies away up to heaven."
Larry Lamb
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As Mick, Larry played the patient and down-to-earth antidote to his wife Pam's theatrics.
But in real life, Larry's love life reads a little more dramatically.
He married his first wife Anita Wisbey when he was just 21, and had one daughter with her - Vanessa, who was born in 1969.
Sadly, he only met her once, when she was seven months old, as Vanessa was subsequently adopted by her mother's new husband.
Larry has since expressed his sadness and longing to connect with Vanessa, stating that he thinks about his 'long-lost daughter' often and wondering if she ever had children herself.
As for his romantic life, he didn't let divorce slow him down. His second short-lived marriage was to an American nurse named Jacquie Parris.
Then, following a brief fling with Lady Colin Campbell, he married his third wife, Irish singer Linda Martin, in 1979.
The pair had one son together - TV presenter George Lamb, now 45 - before splitting in 1996.
And since then, it seems Larry's had a different attitude when it comes to marriage, deciding that three was enough after all.
In the mid-1990s, he entered into a long-term relationship with actress Clare Burt, with whom he shares two daughters - Eloise, now 27, and Eva-Mathilde, now 22.
They then split in 2016, and Larry's since been happily coupled up with artist Marie Victorine.
Marie was there to greet Larry when he left the I'm A Celeb jungle soon after he split from Clare, and the pair now share a happy life - splitting their time between London and Marie's native France.
Despite the fact that she's the great granddaughter of Les Misérables writer Victor Hugo, it seems there's nothing miserable about Larry and Marie's long-term love.
Rob Brydon
Rob, 60, won rave reviews for his turn as the hilariously eccentric Uncle Bryn in Gavin and Stacey.
In real life, he hasn't always had such glowing praise.
The actor was married to his first wife Martina Fitchie for nine years, welcoming three children together - Katie, 30, Harry, 28, and Amy, 25.
But the pair split in 2001, leaving Rob 'traumatised'. He's since said it took him 16 years to be able to open up about his heartbreak, not even including it in his 2011 autobiography Small Man In A Book.
Happily, he recovered from the turmoil and found love again with second wife Clare Holland, who he married in 2006. The couple have two sons - Tom, 17, and George, 14 - and live in south-west London.
To quote Uncle Bryn: 'It was complicated, Stacey. Very, very complicated.'
Sheridan Smith
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It's no secret that Sheridan, 43, has had a long and tumultuous dating history.
After splitting from co-star James Corden - who played her brother on Gavin and Stacey - Sheridan briefly dated Scottish actor Ross McCall, and celebrity stylist Graham Nation, who tragically died earlier this year.
She then went on to date Hollyoaks actor Greg Wood in 2015 - and, in a regrettable move, got her right rib tattooed with the words 'Gregory's Girl'. He returned the favour, with the tattoo 'My Sheri Amour'.
Unfortunately, their tattoos outlived their fling, which ended later that year.
Sheridan then went on to date insurance broken Jamie Horn, after meeting on Tinder.
They later got engaged, and she gave birth to their son Billy in May 2020.
Meanwhile, amid their relationship, Sheridan was rocked by reports she'd 'put her hands all over' her hairdresser Shelley Cloud during a boozy session at her home in 2018.
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Shelley alleged that Sheridan had boasted, 'I swing both ways you know' and had also complained about having to pay for her own £10,000 engagement ring.
The actress never responded to the allegations, and she and Jamie remained committed for a while - before splitting in 2021.
Later that year, Sheridan revealed she'd rekindled things with actor Alex Lawler - who she'd previously dated 20 years prior.
The pair seemed to delighted to be back in each other's lives, with Sheridan telling fans, 'Life works in mysterious ways', before calling things off again in 2022.
She then went on to date former boxer Dave 'Rocky' Ryan, but - by early 2024 - things had 'fizzled out'.
As for her current dating life, the actress is keeping her cards close to her chest. But, safe to say, events so far have been distinctly untidy.