Gavin and Stacey star Mathew Horne has flatly denied he ever suffered a falling out with show creator James Corden and the boys have reunited for the 2024 Christmas special finale
Mathew Horne has hit back at claims he bitterly fell out with James Corden after the Gavin and Stacey creator found fame in the USA.
The pair were once inseparable and would frequently be spotted together – both professionally and personally as friends. But in the years since Gavin and Stacey started airing in 2007, 46-year-old James has seen his star power rise as he found fame in the USA and fronted the successful Late Late Show chat show.
However, and suggestion that Mathew and James had a falling out has been rubbished by the actor who plays Gavin Shipman in the BBC show. The 46-year-old has also hinted he is frustrated that confronting the claims in the past had the opposite effect of trying to cool off the speculation.
As Gavin and Stacey is set to return for a last ever episode this Christmas, Mathew has said he was thrilled to reunite with James and the rest of their cast. And he has also defended his fellow actor against the vicious negative comments that he has drawn over the years.
Speaking to The Times, Mathew said: “This notion of us falling out in 2009 — it wasn’t true, but I couldn’t really do anything about it. Because James then went off to the States, that was the narrative and however much I said that we didn’t fall out, no amount of protesting would have convinced people that it didn’t happen.”
Suggesting the boys enjoyed the madness that their growing fame brought them at the time, he added: “It was a hectic time and I really don’t want any more hecticness and chaos in my life. I just want to be grateful and enjoy the things that I’m so fortunate to have. Which is a really interesting, fun career and a beautiful family. Honestly, I’m sick of talking about 15 years of this, it sapped my energy at the time and it’s not important.”
And going on to defend James from trolls who target him for his success, the comedy star said: “The root of all of the flak that he takes — and it’s beyond flak — is jealousy. He is a phenomenally gifted actor and writer, and a brilliant working-class success story. So yeah, I am protective of him. But I think I’ve been silenced in discussing him because of this narrative that’s been imposed.”
The cast of Gavin and Stacey have promised fans that they are in for a treat with the final episode. Mathew said earlier this month: “I want to say I was nervous about reading the script as it’s always been Ruth’s (Jones) and James’s (Corden) priority to get the script perfect in the first instance, to tell a story the right way. And I had no evidence to suggest that this final script wouldn’t adhere to those principles and be anything other than brilliant. I did have a nervous compulsion to read it immediately and my expectations were exceeded. It made me laugh, it made me cry and upon completion, I thought it was nothing short of a masterpiece.
“Not just in terms of an episode of Gavin And Stacey, but frankly any script I’ve ever read. I immediately took to our WhatsApp group to say as much. The nerves started upon finishing reading the script in as much as I hoped we could all meet the quality of the script upon shooting it. It hasn’t disappointed.”
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