Gavin and Stacey's Ruth Jones is to reprise the role of Nessa for BBC Radio 4's Shipping Forecast as it celebrates its 100th anniversary.
There will be a number of famous faces marking the programme's first-ever broadcast, including Julie Hesmondhalgh, Stephen Fry and Line Of Duty’s Adrian Dunbar.
Discussing the special show, Jones said: “Nessa has got quite a colourful history and one of her jobs was on the high seas. The Shipping Forecast was always very important and useful to her.”
This comes after the last-ever episode of Gavin and Stacey aired to millions of viewers across the country on Christmas Day.
Nessa to read Shipping Forecast as BBC radio programme marks first broadcast
Director of Speech and Radio 4 controller Mohit Bakaya said: “The Shipping Forecast is one of our national treasures. So I’m delighted that we are cracking a bottle against the hull to launch 100 years of the Shipping Forecast on the BBC with a special schedule of programming on New Year’s Day.
“As well as providing crucial information for seafarers over the years, the Shipping Forecast is also a cherished ritual that distils the essence of Radio 4 for so many of our listeners. It is also a moment for those great, unsung heroes and heroines of the Radio 4 schedule – the continuity announcers – to shine.
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“On January 1, we will celebrate our ‘national poem’ with a dedicated day of fascinating programmes for listeners from Bailey to Viking, Biscay to South Utsire and everywhere in between.”
BBC presenter Paddy O’Connell will also present a documentary about the history of the forecast, called A Beginner’s Guide, as historian Jerry Brotton presents an Archive On 4, which will explore how Britain is shaped by its maritime past.
The Shipping Forecast is produced by the Met Office on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
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