The nation fell in love with the pair as a bickering Essex husband and wife, and it turns out on the new show that the British actors have just the same chemistry in real life
With their low-level affectionate mockery, in-jokes and obvious love for each other, it’s easy to see how Alison Steadman and Larry Lamb have remained firm friends for 25 years.
The nation fell in love with the pair as bickering Essex husband and wife Pam and Mick Shipman in Gavin & Stacey, and it turns out the British actors have just the same chemistry in real life. And 16 years on from the very first episode of the classic sitcom in 2007 â penned by James Corden and Ruth Jones â Alison, 76, and Larry, 75, are finally visiting their onscreen hometown, Billericay, for a new documentary series. This is because the scenes from Essex on the show were actually filmed in Wales.
The actors first met on the set of 1990s BBC comedy The Missing Postman, in which Larry played a lawyer and Alison his wife. And it was only thanks to Alison that Mick and Pam were created: having worked with James and Ruth on Fat Friends, she was a shoo-in for flirtatious Pam, but the producers still didn’t have Mick.
“I remember coming to stay with you in France and you saying to me, âWhat is this Gavin & Stacey then?’,” she recalls to Larry as they drive down to Essex for their travel adventure. “They were looking for a Mick, and they found you.” Alison’s first big break came with Mike Leigh’s 1977 televised play Abigail’s Party, while Larry found fame with Superman in 1978, and later would become known as supervillain Archie Mitchell in EastEnders. But despite their lists of TV, thea-tre and film credits, it’s Pam and Mick for which they are most recognised.