The BBC sent Gavin and Stacey fans into minor meltdown over the weekend – and in this heat, that's far from considerate – after revealing that one of the series' popular characters would be appearing on this year's Strictly Come Dancing (yes, a character).
The official Twitter account for BBC Three posted a picture of Stacey's crackin' bestie, Nessa Jenkins (photoshopped in front of a very Strictly-esque backdrop), alongside a tweet that has truly baffled Gavin and Stacey and Strictly fans alike.
BBC Three tweeted, "'Oh! What's occurring?' Nessa is bringing Barry Island to the ballroom as the 20th celebrity contestant for #Strictly 2022."
Our first thoughts, we hear you ask? Now we're pretty on top of these things and are fairly certain that Strictly 2022's final contestant is presenter Helen Skelton, who was revealed on Saturday 13th August on BBC Radio 2 by Claudia Winkleman. Naturally, a few immediate questions came to mind.
Firstly, why is Nessa (the character, not Ruth Jones, let's re-clarify) the 20th contestant? We know this Welsh icon has a big personality, but she's not exactly six celebrities in one.
Secondly, where is this announcement on Strictly's official socials?
Thirdly, why does this tweet link to Gavin and Stacey episodes on iPlayer?
And finally, – and this question encapsulates all of the aforementioned questions neatly – what's occurring?
Naturally, we turned to the Twitter comments, which as the kids say, have popped up (and understandably so) as of late.
One fan tweeted, "How did I miss this news?"
Another tweeted, "Absobloodylutely!!! Can't wait to see Ruth stepping up! 👍."
A third commented, "I hope she dances to Islands in the Streams."
After further digging, we stumbled across a follow-up BBC3 tweet in the comments, which read, "sorry @bbcpress and @bbcstrictly our hand slipped", confirming the tweet as a joke.
Oh, internet, when are you gonna learn?
So, if you clicked on this page looking for some lush Gavin and Stacey reunion news/genuine affirmation that the BBC was bringing back one of its most iconic characters to the Strictly dance floor, sadly, we can't help you. HOWEVER, this apparent prank has sparked several conversations, which have caught our eye.
One fan commented on the link to Gavin and Stacey episodes on BBC iPlayer, tweeting, "Getting people in to rewatch the series before a new one is announced?? James Corden is leaving the US next year…"
To be fair, this isn't a bad theory, and as all this devious mischief is taking place under the same BBC umbrella, the original joke tweet is actually not as stupid as it seems (if they are indeed warming us up to announce a new series, potentially even a 2022 Christmas special?).
Jokes aside, we doubt the BBC will be ignoring the tidal wave of comments coming in on this post, all exclaiming that this should actually happen.
One fan wrote, "I think you have hit on a brilliant idea - a #strictly special with characters from iconic TV shows."
Another said, "Nessa would be the best contestant on scd EVER!! Please please make this happen."
A third tweeted, "Be brilliant for comic relief I’m sure Ruth Jones would be game for that."
We concur all round.
Who is on this year's series of Strictly Come Dancing?
As far as we can tell, probably not Nessa or Ruth Jones.
We do however have a complete line-up of 14 celebrities to obsess over (all ACTUALLY appearing on the series), including three massive soap stars, an 80s boyband sensation, a Blue Peter legend and an X Factor icon.
Is Gavin and Stacey coming back?
If they're going to start teasing nonsense like this on socials outside of the pre-agreed 1 April teasing zone, then who can say? This move just made the game of speculating a lot harder.
Over the three series (and two Christmas specials) of Gavin & Stacey we saw the iconic duos' adorable relationships blossom, Smithy and Nessa welcome baby Neil and, of course, those awkward moments when Uncle Bryn and Jason's infamous fishing trip came up in conversation.
In 2019 the nation was over the moon when James Corden announced that the show would return for a special on Christmas Day, and boy, it did not disappoint. During the special episode we saw baby Neil all grown up, Gavin and Stacey's three children Harri, Caitlin and Megan, we almost discovered what actually happened on the fishing trip and Nessa proposed to Smithy. What fab Christmas TV that was, eh?
Then, in 2020, fans rejoiced again when BBC seemingly CONFIRMED that the show could return in the future. But we haven't much from the Shipmans and the Wests since.
We do know that James Corden is officially moving back to the UK after a few years of conquering America, so if that doesn't help these stars align, it might be time to let this national treasure of a show go. For good.
We know. We hate change, too. So let's not end on a negative, let's take a look at what the stars of this beloved British staple are up to now and continue to piece the possibilities together.
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