ALISON Steadman was reunited with her on-screen son Gavin (Mathew Horne) last week, while hosting a Gavin and Stacey themed quiz in aid of Marie Curie, which raised over £44,000 and was played by over 22,000 people.

During the quiz, Alison and Mathew performed a skit. Getting into character, Pam explained to her little prince that she was finding quarantine tough because she ‘hasn’t been able to see Japanese Margaret or Big Fat Sue in nine weeks’. Not to be outdone, Gavin explained that he doesn’t have it easy either, as he has to live off his mother-in-law Gwen’s omelettes. ‘Oh that Gwen is lovely but she needs to stop that egg business,’ Pam stated. Gavin confessed: ‘The highlight of my day is working out whether I’m going to have a mushroom omelette or a ham omelette.’

Marie Curie has been providing lockdown entertainment all month and has already featured a stellar line up of celebrity quizzes including Claire Richards from Steps’ Back to the 90’s Quiz, Mel Giedroyc’s Eurovision Quiz and Paul Chuckle’s Kids Trivia Quiz.

This week also sees Jim Carter (Carson in Downton Abbey) and Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter) lined up to host a general knowledge quiz on the 28th May.

Speaking on the success of the quiz, Marie Curie Ambassador, Alison Steadman said:

“Marie Curie needs to make £2.5million a week to keep nine hospices going and all their amazing nurses in the community so as soon as they asked me if I wanted to be involved in the quiz, I, of course, said yes. I am delighted that we were able to raise such an incredible amount and I want to say a big thank you to everyone who took part and donated.

“The support Marie Curie provided to me and my mum 24 years ago when she was diagnosed with terminal cancer is something I’ll never forget, and the money raised from the quiz will ensure Marie Curie can continue supporting people and their families in the future.”

Mathew Horne who played Gavin surprised fans by joining his on-screen mum and said:

“It was so much fun being reunited with my screen mum! Alison Steadman was hosting a Gavin & Stacey quiz to raise funds for Marie Curie, and I got to pop in and say ‘hi’. I think it was a big surprise for everyone watching! The quiz was brilliant, and I’m so pleased it raised so much money for Marie Curie. Every charity is under so much pressure right now, so well done to everyone who played and donated. I encourage everyone to tune in to one of the Marie Curie quizzes – the line-up is amazing.”

Marie Curie’s Chief Executive Matthew Reed said:

“We hope this series of quizzes has provided the nation with some light relief when they need it most and also has been a fun way to come together to support Marie Curie Nurses and the people and families they continue to support through this crisis.”

Marie Curie is caring for dying patients with a terminal illness as well as caring for people with coronavirus in both its hospices and people’s own homes. The charity needs to raise £2.5million a week to continue to run its essential frontline services, at a time when its ability to generate this money has been decimated.

Head to Marie Curie’s Facebook page or visit https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/quiz to see the full schedule of quizzes and make sure to keep checking back for exciting new announcements. In an attempt to raise as much money possible after a devastating loss of funds, the charity has suggested a donation of £5 to take part in the quizzes.
You can re-watch all of the quizzes here: https://www.twitch.tv/mariecurieuk