Billericay to Barry walk starts in Gavin and Stacey fan's memory

Pia Eaves with her husband Simon and daughters Rhiannon and Emilia

Friends and family of a woman who died of pancreatic cancer are doing a 200-mile walk inspired by "Gavin and Stacey" to raise funds for research.

Pia Eaves, 54, loved the show and was originally from Barry, the Welsh town made famous by the BBC comedy.

The show tells the story of Gavin, from Billericay, Essex, who falls in love with Stacey, from Barry.

Participants in the walk will go from Billericay to the Barry Island kiosk, once run by Mrs Eaves' parents.

During her illness, Pia Eaves would cheer herself up by watching episodes of Gavin and Stacey

Her family hopes the walk will raise £100,000 for Pancreatic Cancer UK.

Mrs Eaves, who worked in international banking before becoming a personal trainer, died in September after she was diagnosed with cancer in November 2020.

She was married to Simon, who she met at the age of 16 on Barry Island.

Family and friends of Pia Eaves will walk 200 miles from Billericay in Essex to Barry Island to raise funds for research in the name of Pia Eaves

Mr Eaves, who lives in Guildford, described his wife as "a lovely lady, with a huge zest for life".

"Even when she was diagnosed she fought the disease with a huge smile on her face," he said. "The world is a sadder place without her.

"This walk is helping us get through and help us remember her."

Simon Eaves with his daughter Rhiannon and Emilia

He said his late wife worked every summer as a teenager in the kiosk on Barry Island and that the family was "very keen to do something that means something to us and resonate with people".

"And hence we wanted to walk that route form Billericay to Barry island in her memory and to raise awareness of pancreatic cancer," Mr Eaves said.

During her illness, Pia would cheer herself up by watching episodes of Gavin and Stacey and the programme became a favourite of the family.

They received recorded messages of support from some of the show's stars including Ruth Jones, who plays Ness, Mathew Horne (Gavin) and Steffan Rhodri (Dave Coaches).

Rhiannon, one of Mrs Eaves' two daughters, said her mother would be "very proud and very shocked that we had taken this on because we are not walkers in our family".

The family hopes to arrive at Barry Island on 1 May.

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