Joanna Page and Ruth Jones remember late Gavin and Stacey star Margaret John ahead of final episode
Ahead of the last-ever episode of 'Gavin and Stacey', stars Joanna Page and Ruth Jones have remembered the "hilarious" and "lovely" Doris actress Margaret John, who passed away in 2011.
Joanna Page and Ruth Jones have paid a touching tribute to their late ‘Gavin and Stacey’ co-star Margaret John.
The actress - who played the cheeky Barry Islander Doris O’Neill in the beloved BBC sitcom - passed away in 2011 at the age of 84, and ahead of the last-ever ‘Gavin and Stacey’ episode, the 2024 Christmas special, her co-stars have taken the time to remember her.
During an appearance on the BBC Sounds segment ‘Barry Island Discs’, Stacey Shipman actress Joanna said: “Working with Maggie John has got to be one of the highlights of ‘Gavin and Stacey’.
“I just love how her character got bigger and worse and saucier and sexier as the series went on.”
Jones - who co-wrote the show with James Corden, and stars as Nessa Jenkins - told how ‘Gavin and Stacey’ director Chris Gernon thought Margaret would be the perfect fit for Doris when the character first came to be.
The 58-year-old actress recalled: “I do remember when we were casting ‘Gavin and Stacey’ and we had this character of Doris, the next-door neighbour who was a little bit rude.
“Chris Gernon, our director, said ‘I know exactly the actress to play that part - it's Maggie John.’ ”
Joanna, 47, recounted shooting her first scene with Margaret, and called the late actress “hilarious”.
She said: “From, I think, the first series, I always remember filming it because it was my first scene as well.
“Getting off the bus, walking across the road and going ‘Alright Dor?’ and then she gives me advice on what I should be like when I travel up to London to see Gavin, and she gives me a little bit of saucy advice.
“From that moment I just thought 'Oh my god, this woman is just so hilarious and lovely, and brilliant.' ”
Another moment that stood out for Joanna was when Doris tried to play the drums at Neil the Baby’s christening, while Rob Brydon’s Uncle Bryn sang Labi Siffre’s 1987 song ‘So Strong’.
The actress said: “He was quite nervous when he was doing it, Rob, because he wanted to do it well. Oh my gosh, he does it so incredibly well.
“I remember sitting in the pews and laughing all the way through and just desperately trying to keep it together.
“Because you had Uncle Bryn going for it with a song that you never ever really hear at a christening, and then you had Maggie, the wonderful Margaret John who was on the drums, and we loved Maggie so much … but she was very nervous and she couldn’t get the timing.
“She would wait like a second and then go ‘boom’ so it was always unintentionally late with the timing. It was absolutely hilarious.
“One of the best days filming, ever.”
