Gavin and Stacey star Joanna Page subtly responded to the controversy surrounding her co-star Wynne Evans. The opera singer and GoCompare advert star confirmed his departure from a nationwide tour following a scandalous incident.
During the tour launch in Birmingham, Evans made a derogatory comment towards host Janette Manrara, which led to him issuing an apology. He sang out: “Go Compare,” before adding: “Not too close to Jamie [Borthwick].”
He then reportedly used the offensive term “spit roast” in reference to a crude sexual act.
In a statement, Evans said: “My language was inappropriate and unacceptable, for which I sincerely apologise.”
But his All At Sea co-star Joanna Page has seemingly distanced herself from him as she shared an update to fans which referred to the show as “my show” and only included one image featuring Evans in her promotional posts, reports the Mirror.
On Instagram, Page shared 15 images, only one of which included Evans. This image showed the back of both actors as they prepared to surf in choppy waters, but didn’t tag her All At Sea co-star,with a caption reading: “Check out my new show Wynne and Joanna-All At Sea. Tonight @bbcone 8:30pm! ! What an amazing crew who worked so incredibly hard! Big cheers to you all.”
Notably, she didn’t tag Evans.
Despite a recent setback, anticipation for the new series remains high among viewers. Fans have been expressing their excitement in the comments section, with one saying: “Loved it Joanna and Wynne. I’m from Pembrokeshire so it was good to see you both enjoying all it has to offer. Thank you for showing it off. You have a great rapport. Thoroughly enjoyed.”
Another fan reminisced: “Aw the log flume in Barry Island brought back lots of memories. Fantastic programme made me laugh the whole episode,” while a third shared, “Absolutely loved it! Just a little too much in fact last night with the first 4 binged! Great team and some well needed light hearted nonsense!”.
Despite the surrounding controversy, the BBC is standing by the new series, which features him and Page exploring the Welsh coast over six episodes. A source commented on the situation, stating: “The timing of this is deeply unfortunate… The comments were idiotic and have clearly overshadowed the first episode. What on earth was he thinking?”
In response to the unfolding events, Wynne announced his decision to take a step back from the limelight, confirming: “I’ve agreed with the BBC that I’ll take some time out from my radio show and the Strictly Live tour, as well as my other public commitments, to prioritise my wellbeing.”
He went on to say: “I am deeply sorry for the pain my inappropriate actions have caused, and plan to take this time for self-reflection. Apologies to those I won’t get to see at the remaining performances and I’m grateful to my fellow tour gang for all the amazing support they have given me.”
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