Gavin & Stacey script raises £50,000 for charity

A signed copy of the Gavin & Stacey finale script has raised more than £50,000 for charity in an online raffle.

Robert Wilfort, who plays Stacey's brother Jason West in the popular BBC show, donated the script to a charity in his hometown of Chesham, Buckinghamshire, as a raffle prize.

The winning ticket was drawn on Monday, with proceeds going to The Theatre Shed, an inclusive theatre company bringing together disabled and non-disabled children.

Gavin & Stacey was first screened in 2007 and about more than 19.1 million viewers have now watched the final episode of the show, first screened on Christmas Day.

The series tells the story of Gavin, from Billericay, Essex, and his romance with Stacey from Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, and the intertwined lives of their friends and family.

More than 4,500 people bought the £5 tickets, after Wilfort decided to raise funds through a raffle rather than an auction.

"I knew the show finale would be popular, to put it mildly, and I thought it would be good to do something with that popularity," he said.

"There's a fantastic charity near to me, I've had a long association with them, so I got in touch and said, 'Shall we raffle off the script?'"

Alice Connor, artistic director of The Theatre Shed, said the gesture was "beyond generous".

"Being able to raise money like this is so imperative to help us keep going. We don't get any statutory funding, and it's been a tough year for us as a small charity," she said.

The group "incorporates sign language into everything we do" and every show was written and choreographed by the young people, Ms Connor added.

She said the money would "create access to the arts for those who would usually be unable to access it".

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