The small Welsh businesses who helped create the Gavin & Stacey finale

While Ruth Jones and James Corden may have been the stars of this year's Christmas after the success of the Gavin & Stacey finale, the episode would not have been possible without the help of some small Welsh businesses. BBC producers enlisted the help of a number of business owners to bring the finale together, but they all had to keep their involvement a secret until the episode finally aired.

We spoke to some of the businesses that played their part in making the finale what it was. From businesses in Barry feeding the cast during filming, to decorating the sets for all-important scenes, they all helped to create the final-ever episode which fans loved.

One business which was very surprised to get the call to be involved in the episode was Attention to Detail, run by Paula Blinkhorn. Paula has been running Attention to Detail, a wedding decor business based in Ferndale, Rhondda, for the last seven years and was asked by the BBC back in July to ask if she would like to do the decor for a wedding in the Gavin & Stacey finale.

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"I thought it was a joke to be honest," Paula laughed. "I was thinking this can’t be right because there’s a lot bigger businesses out there so when you get a phone call like that, I couldn’t believe it.

"It was exciting but really nerve-wracking. It was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down, especially being a big fan of Gavin & Stacey."

The weekend Paula needed to decorate the venue, Court Colman Manor in Bridgend, was also very busy as she had other weddings as well as celebrations for her 60th birthday but she managed to squeeze everything in. She told WalesOnline: "It was a frantic weekend but we got there and I still had my big celebration."

Paula knows Court Colman well, but seeing the cameramen and security at the venue was "surreal". "We were over at the venue setting things up and you’ve got cameramen coming in to put their things up. It’s something you’re not used to.”

"I do remember saying at one point to some men who were putting the filming equipment up ‘Do not touch my flower arch’," she laughed. Paula and her team, including her husband and daughter, created the flower arch, trees, chair covers and all the decor that can be seen in the scene where Smithy nearly marries Sonia, whose appearance in the finale surprised everyone.

The plot was also kept a secret for the businesses involved and while Paula knew that she was decorating for a wedding, she did not know who it would be for. She said: "Obviously everybody was assuming beforehand that Smithy and Nessa would be getting married but we didn’t know. At the same time, while we were setting everything up I was thinking in my head ‘Nessa wouldn’t have all this stuff’," she laughed.

She added that it was "really hard" to keep her involvement in the finale a secret. "It’s so popular and everyone was talking about it but we had to keep it a secret because I saw it as a privilege to be asked. I’m just a family-run, little Welsh business."

Paula didn’t even have time to announce that it was her who had decorated for the wedding before people had started to recognise her work. She said; “I had a couple of messages on Christmas night from a few brides saying they knew it was me which was really lovely. Friends were realising that it was my work too and were all asking what it was like. When I went to the pub on Boxing Day a group of my friends all shouted ‘Oh! What’s occurrin?’ It's just been lovely and I've already taken a new booking."

Another Rhondda-based business who were involved in the finale were Occasions of Porth, a family-run card, gift and balloons business. After being recommended by Paula, who regularly works with them, Occasions created the balloon arch and shimmer wall for Sonia's hen night.

They said that it made their Christmas "extra special" to be involved in the finale of the beloved show Sian Pesticcio, who works at Occasions said that "It was a really positive and good thing from start to finish.

"We had to sign non-disclosure agreements to ensure we didn't spoil any storylines." The team also didn't know what they were creating the balloon arch for in the episode. For the latest TV & Showbiz news, sign up to our newsletter

Sonia's hen was filmed at The Pumphouse in Barry, which is now home to the Front Room, a pizzeria and cafe space owned by David Wigley. Back in September when the cast were using the Front Room as a green room and space to get ready in hair and makeup, David and the other Front Room staff treated the crew and waiting fans to pizza throughout the day.

Word quickly spread to the cast who also kept their hunger at bay with the Front Room's pizza. David said: "We were getting lots of great feedback from the cast. Ruth Jones came up and said that she loved the pizza and thanked us for feeding everybody. She even said that she’d be back as soon as she could as a customer!

"At some point somebody must have told James Corden because he hadn’t been there during the day but later on he made a trip down to see us from where they were filming and said ‘I’m here to try this amazing pizza I’ve been hearing about’." You can read more about this here.

Fans are set to hear more about the creation of the final episode and the series as a whole on New Year's Day when a special one-off documentary titled Gavin & Stacey: A Fond Farewell airs at 7pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.