How Gavin & Stacey turned ‘dangerous’ crime-ridden Barry into unlikely holiday hotspot…with 30,000 invading OAP’s home

CRIPPLED with arthritis and surviving on sickness benefits, Glenda Kenyon was at rock bottom when a letter that was to change her life dropped through her front door.

The letter was from a location manager working a TV and film company and he wanted to know if she would be interested in hiring out her neat, terraced home in Barry, south Wales, for “a comedy drama”.

Divorced and living alone, Glenda had recently been forced to give up her job on a factory production line making fruit machines due to her health issues.

Curious, she agreed to allowing the film company to look around her three-bedroom home. Days later, she had signed a contract agreeing to hire out her property to the makers of hit comedy series Gavin and Stacey.

Seventeen years on, her house, at 47 Trinity Street, was to become one of the biggest “stars” of the show – and ensured she was never lonely again.

As the final episode in the show’s history airs on Christmas Day, Glenda tells The Sun that almost 30,000 fans of the programme have walked through her door to experience it for themselves.

She conducts “tours” of her immaculate home, makes her visitors a cup of tea and allows them to take selfies in every room.

Glenda says: “I just love meeting other fans of the show and chatting to them. I was so lonely after I had to give up work and I get depressed if I spend too much time on my own, so it’s a lifeline, really.

“The show has made such a difference to my life – and to the town.”

Grateful Glenda is not the only one whose lives have been improved by the comedy success and locals say the TV tourism has led to a boost in the local economy, with hotels and restaurants thriving.

It’s welcome news for the town, which has a crime rate of 104.8 per 1,000 residents – 36 per cent higher than the rest of Wales.

Recent stats also named it the most dangerous medium-sized town in the region of South Glamorgan, with violence and sexual assault rates rising from 2,032 in 2022 to 3,365 in 2024.

The area has seen a sharp rise in homelessness in recent years, with a record number of people living in emergency accommodation and a local councillor recently warned the Vale of Glamorgan is facing it’s “highest housing demands for many years.”

But Sarah Howell, a sales assistant at Sofia’s Souvenirs, says the Gavin and Stacey effect has brought many benefits.

“I have an immense amount of pride for all the businesses that have blossomed since the interest in Gavin and Stacey.

“You name it – the hotels, restaurants, cafes, amusements, they have all taken off over the years and we now have a wonderful prosperous place.

“There are two dedicated coach tours every week in the summer. The place is packed.

“People come here from all over the country, from Scotland to Cornwall and we also get a lot of international visitors too.

“Many people come and stay in Cardiff and then come here for a great day out.

“I’d say that Barry is now a happy place full of happy people.”

What’s occurrin’

For 17 years, devoted fans of Gavin and Stacey have trekked to Glenda’s Victorian terraced home in a once-quiet street – sometimes up to 100 a single day – to see for themselves where scenes from the hit show are filmed.

Glenda, 71, said: “Initially, it was between my house and another one nearby, because we have elevated views of Barry Island in the near distance. I was told they chose mine because it’s a bit bigger.

“Once the deal was done, a production team came over a week or two later in a coach and about a dozen of the crew inspected the house from top to bottom.

“They come over for a week or two per series and take the place over. They put me up in a hotel nearby and pay me a modest amount for the use of my home.”

She is coy about figures, but says she would have done it for nothing as she adores the show – and she never charges for fans to take a look.

Glenda, a grandmother, is always happy to invite them in so they can have a snoop around and take photos of each other sitting on the cosy cream leather sofa the characters sit on.

“They all want a snap of themselves sitting where Stacey sits when she’s at the family home,” says the owner of the three-bed property.

She said many of them have made the journey from Gavin’s home town Billericay in Essex – a round trip of almost 500 miles.

“I always let them in because I love the show too so I can understand their curiosity only too well,” she explains.

“The buggers are getting the address off the internet and coming over.

“It’s amazing how far some of these fans will travel for a nose round and a five minutes on the sofa.

“I’ve had quite a few driving all the way from Billericay, where Gavin’s character is from.

“They’re all ever so friendly and I don’t begrudge them a look round. We’re all fans round here, after all.”

And Glenda insists she is not yet feeling overwhelmed by the numbers of sight-seers she has turning up on her well-worn doorstep.

“Some days there will literally be a hundred people coming in through the day,” she said. “It’s incredible.

The show has made such a difference to my life – and to the town

Glenda Kenyon

“But some of them have made such an effort, I think it would be rude to turn them away.

“The only thing I insist on is that they take their shoes off before they come in. I love living here because of all the fans that come. It stops the loneliness.

When filming starts – usually it lasts up to two weeks per series – Mrs Kenyon has to move out to a local hotel, where her room and food is paid for by the production company.

“I treat my stays in the hotel as an annual holiday because I couldn’t afford one otherwise,” she says.

“I can’t wait to watch the Christmas show – I’m really excited.”

Town transformed

Outside, superfan Paul Williams is in Trinity Street after driving three hours from Shrewsbury.

He said: “I’ve come to visit number 47 with the Christmas special coming up and it being the last one they’ll ever do.

“This house is kind of the heart of the show and it’s just like it looks on the telly.”

On the nearby beach front, where much of the show has also been filmed, we find Gavin and Stacey fan Chloe Davis, 33, a pub manager from Brighton who made a diversion on her way home from Cardiff to take in the famous sights.

She said: “I was in Cardiff for a work meeting, but while I’m here, I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity of coming to Barry Island. It’s wonderful – just like it looks in the show.

“I’ve bought a few souvenirs and I’ve nipped in to the amusements arcade to play on the games. I checked online and found a map of all the places where they hang out. The beach is next.”

Nearby, Marco Zerascho, 66, owns the famous cafe – Marco’s Cafe – in the hit show. He revealed he has often served drinks and food to the stars of Gavin and Stacey at his eatery.

He said: “They first started coming in 17 years ago and they haven’t changed a bit. They’re more successful, but they’re the same people.

“I’ve just seen Larry Lamb cold water swimming in the sea out here. It was three degrees, and I said to him, ‘You must be mad’, and he replied – ‘Yep, you’ve got to be.’

“Afterwards, he and the friends he was with came in for a coffee – and some warmth. He said he was here for a few days, even though he’s not filming. He said he’s fallen in love with Barry so he comes back whenever he can.

“He comes here most mornings when he’s here and he’s just one of the guys.

People come here from all over the country, from Scotland to Cornwall

Sarah Howell

“Ruth Jones comes down here quite often too. I told her one morning when it was packed with people on the front, ‘Oh, Ruth, you can’t, it’s so busy down here, you’re going to get mobbed. Just wear some dark glasses and a false moustache.’ But she ignored me and came as she was… and got mobbed.

“She must have done more than 100 selfies. James Corden’s the same. He’d come down and spend hours doing selfies with the fans.

“The show and its stars have done wonders for Barry. We get tourism all year round as a result and that has led to more jobs for local people.

“I mean, look at the location we’ve got. We’ve actually got a blue sea in November. It’s got the second highest tide in the world and the same dimensions as Bondi Beach.

“We’ve got this amazing, pristine, clean promenade. You know, you can sit here and if you squint, you think you’re in the South of France. It’s just a lovely place to come.

“I feel like a very, very lucky, privileged man to be a part of this.”

Retired teacher Ann Thomas and her friend, retired aviation engineer David Huntley, were in Barry Island to take in the sights from the famous TV show.

Ann said: “We love the area anyway but it’s the Gavin and Stacey element that makes it so special now. We’re here to enjoy the sunshine too and have a nice stroll on the beach.

“We can’t wait for the Christmas special.”