Rob Brydon Laurence Olivier. His character Bryn West in "Gavin & Stacey", written by Ruth Jones and James Corden, allowed him to return to his South Wales roots. In this role Brydon performed the 2009 Comic Relief charity single, "(Barry) Islands in the Stream", with Ruth Jones (both actors appearing as their characters from "Gavin & Stacey") and singer Tom Jones. It reached No.1 in the UK singles chart on 15 March 2009. In 2010 Brydon starred alongside Steve Coogan in Michael Winterbottom's partially improvised BBC Two sitcom series "The Trip," in which both actors played fictionalized versions of their public personas
Gavin & Stacey most watched programme on that day, behind "EastEnders", "Coronation Street" and "Doctor Who". The show was nominated for and won several awards throughout its run, with two notable wins being the British Academy Television Awards (BAFTAs) Audience Award, and the British Comedy Awards Best TV Comedy Award, both in 2008. In the December 2007 British Comedy Awards, the show won Best New British TV Comedy, losing in the Best New TV Comedy category to "Peep Show". James Corden and Ruth Jones won Best Male and Female Comedy Newcomer respectively, with fellow cast members Mathew Horne and Joanna Page having also