Like Will and Grace in, er, Will & Grace, the least interesting characters in Gavin & Stacey are indeed Gavin and Stacey (see also Ally McBeal, if you can remember that far back). Matthew Horne’s Gavin is pleasant enough, even if he does rely on Tim from The Office’s bemused face rather too much (got the same Lego Man hair too) and Stacey (Joanna Page) is a fairly typical nice-but-dim sitcom character, but the strength of this show is in the writing, the supporting characters and the wonderful cast.

Written by James Corden and Ruth Jones – who play Gav’s best friend, Smithy, and Stacey’s bestie, Nessa, respectively – there is a sweetness running through Gavin & Stacey, despite some edgier elements. The characters are warm, friendly, funny and the dialogue is quite brilliant. The characters talk the way real people talk. It reminds me of Peter Kay in his Phoenix Nights heyday.

As for the edgier elements I mentioned, well, the families are named the Shipmans and the Wests; there’s the recurring mystery of Uncle Bryn’s (the consistently wonderful Rob Brydon) apparently inappropriate relationship with his nephew and his more-than-friendly interest in both Gavin and Smithy; the hideous marriage of the Shipmans’ friends, Dawn and Pete, and one of my absolute favourite lines from either series – when Nessa explains giving up working for The Who: “Let’s just say I learned some things about Pete Townshend that I didn’t like… I’ll say to you what I said to him: ‘Where is the book, Pete? Where is the book?’” Genius.

Another regular highlight is Gavin’s mother, Pamela. Played by Alison Steadman, she’s just a lovely character: funny, protective, gossipy, worried about what people think of her. Plus she likes to pretend to be Camilla Parker-Bowles during sex. Can’t argue with that – or those painful-looking white jeans – can you? Since she’s played by Alison Steadman, Pamela is often the most over-the-top character, but Corden and Jones had the sense to balance her out with sensible husband, Mick, played by Larry Lamb (no, really).

Again, like Phoenix Nights, Spaced, or the more recent Outnumbered, Gavin & Stacey is one of those shows you can watch over and over and catch something new each time.

My absolute favourite moment of either series took place during Stacey’s mother Gwen’s birthday party. While Nessa and Bryn performed “Islands in the Stream” on the stage, it’s revealed that the party guests, including Smithy, are line-dancing. It made me laugh out loud. And it made me warm inside. It was a moment of pure TV joy. More please.