Shivam Sharma: 2011

Episode 1 of Gavin and Stacy is about a young couple, one from Essex and one from Wales, planning to go on a blind date in London for the first time after communicating on the phone for a while. Throughout this essay I will talk how each character is stereotyped and how each one represents their gender and region.

First of all I am going to talk about gender. In Wales all the women are portrayed as weak and a bit thick. You notice how Stacy has an office job that does not seem very good or profitable and that she smokes. On the way the way home she gets out of a bus and meets her neighbour who seems very thick (as like all women within the clip) and tries to give her advice on her first date. Telling Stacy “don’t go givin’ him nothing on the first night.” She also seems very ‘hard worn’ saying that she “wished they’d cut the bugger off.” Meaning her leg and “if you hand me an axe I’d do it myself.”

Stacy's Office

Stacy's Mother In
Her Apron

As Stacy enters the house you see her mother wearing an apron and bustling around the house and cooking in the kitchen. She obviously has no job and is portrayed as the lower-class domestic housewife. Both Stacy and her mother and not dressed very well indicating that they are probably poorer and how Stacy is happy when she found the yellow top she’s wearing which I s not very fashionable at T.K Max from “10 quid down to 5 quid.” Also the women in Barry Island are shown to be thick, domestic and not very strong- emotionally and physically for when Stacy’s uncle Bryn as her to attack him, she gives a week punch causing no harm whatsoever. Then when Bryan asks again with a bit more force Stacy seems on the verge of crying because she didn’t want to attack him in the first place. Next her friend Nessa seems the complete opposite of Stacy. She is will take no bull-crap, she is quite big and she is not pedantic or frightened very easily. This makes her seem to take on a more male persona, wearing mostly black and seeming very thuggish-usually a role played by a male.

Nessa

Pam Sticking Here Tongue Out
Cheekily At Mick

Now the typical women in Essex is portrayed as very ‘soft’ and ‘weak’ as Gavin comes in to find his mother say to him-“I’ve been crying all afternoon” she is crying because she watched some baby badgers die. Next she has a massive strop at the dinner table after Gavin’s dad questions her choice to go on the Atkins diet after saying she’ having three stakes for dinner. She then becomes very paranoid and says she will starve instead, and when Smithy turns up she is cheeky and says, after Smithy asked if she is eating anything. “Uh no Smithy and this may be the last time you ever see me.” She then cheekily sticks her tongue out to her husband and then leaves. Also finally she is also shown as a middle-class domestic house wife because after she says she has been crying all afternoon she then states-“Your father will be home in a minute, and "those steaks won’t cook themselves.” So overall Women are stereotyped as being domestic, thick and not very strong-emotionally and physically.

Uncle Bryan

Throughout the entire clip Bryan is the only man featured in the scenes in Wales. He seems very patronising and protective of women – a stereotypical man, but he is also a bit clever with words at first saying that he will take no money for the rape alarm he is giving to Stacy. He states-“I don’t want anyone in this room being raped, me included.” After this clever and witty comment they decide to take it for free. But later on Barry is made to be very stupid after insisting on giving a demonstration of the alarm by saying, “if you come back Sunday, raped, and I showed you how to use it, I’ll rest easy in my bed. You come back Sunday raped; the fault will lie solely at your door.” This shows the typical man being lazy not caring what happens, just making sure his end of the bargain is done.

Here Mick Playfully Hits Pam On The Bottom

The men in Essex are portrayed being as superior but very unfair and completely stereotyped. After Gavin enters and sees his mother asleep he just continues talking not caring if he woke her up, also he then drank straight out of the milk carton not caring for anyone else. Next when they are all around the dinner table Mick, Gavin’s father, lies to Pam, Gavin’s mum, by saying he was at work when actually he was playing golf with his friends. Also Mick hits Pam on the bottom playfully and then insults her calling her mad because she is eating three stakes for diner. It is also shown that the men are served first at the table and they expect Pam to do all the housework. When Neil, a.k.a Smithy, arrives it shown that the men don’t care about there diet as Gavin and Mick are eating lots of chips and Pam offers three stakes to Smithy and he replies, “ three! I just had Sheppard’s pie but I’d certainly take two of them on.” Then in the last scene in Essex it’s shown that the men are outside having a cigarette and drinking beer. Having a ‘pint or two’ seems to be a stereotype for men. Also Smithy is doubting weather they should go to London to meet the girls or not, saying, “It’s not too late to back out you know, all it takes is one phone call.” So overall the men are portrayed as being superior, selfish, untrustworthy and dirty after Mick hit his wife on the bottom and that it is said that smithy went out with a seventeen year old.

Smithy And Gavin Having A Beer And A Smoke Outside

The representation of region in Wales can be clearly seen. First of all, all the character has thick accents as well as being all dressed unfashionable. Also generally they seems to be poorer, and example is how Stacy gets out of a bus showing she uses public transport while you see the Gavin drives into his house’s drive-way. In Barry it also always seems to be cold and rainy. All it’s occupants seem to be thick and all are lower-class, either very meek and pedantic or very ‘hard-wearing.’ These people fit the mould for the stereotype of the Welsh.

In Essex there seems to be a completely different story as all the character are middle/upper-class and also they are all dressed more or less fashionably. In Essex it always seems a bit brighter and sunnier while also throughout the clip they seem to have a dominating accent. Also in general Gavin’s house seems to look a lot more modern and better than Stacy’s showing how they have a better quality of life. The people of Barry also seem to think that this nice looking area of Essex is dangerous; full of rapists and that everyone wants to hurt you. The people of Essex fit the mould for the stereotype just like the Welsh.

Overall I feel that ‘Gavin and Stacy’ use and stereotype gender and region very effectively to create a highly amusing show.