James Corden delights Robin Hood pantomime audience as he makes surprise appearance at the London Palladium - after Gavin & Stacey finale

James Corden delighted a pantomime audience as he made a surprise appearance at the London Palladium during a performance of Robin Hood this weekend.

On Saturday night the Gavin & Stacey actor and comedian, 46, made a guest appearance as the character King Richard in the production.

Actress Marisha Wallace who stars as The Sheriff of Nottingham took to Instagram to share snaps of James' visit as they posed backstage together.

She wrote: 'Oh, what's occurring @j_corden? The man of the hour popped into @thelondonpalladium to surprise our matinee audience as today's King Richard @palladiumpanto!'

More snaps showed him posing with standby Robin Hood actor Chris Howell and other cast members. 

Starring in Robin Hood is Palladium panto regular Julian Clary in the title role, with Jane McDonald as Maid Marion. 

Other faces returning for the show include Paul Zerdin (Will Scarlet), Nigel Havers (Friar Tuck), Charlie Stemp (Alan-A-Dale) and Rob Madge (The Spirit of Sherwood), all of whom have previously appeared in the West End staple. 

Other famous faces have made guest appearances as King Richard too over the course of the show including Sir Ian McKellen and Lee Mack. 

James appears to have been embraced by the nation once more as the Gavin and Stacey finale has proved a huge hit with viewers.

The last ever episode of the show - which came five years after the most recent Christmas special - pulled in a massive 12.5 million viewers for the BBC. 

The show was the brainchild of James and co-star Ruth Jones who penned the finale in secret earlier this year. 

It marks a change of fortune for the comedian as stories have swirled for quite a while that he was unpopular in the UK entertainment industry.

James moved back to Britain earlier this year following an eight-year stint in the US hosting The Late Show with James Corden on CBS. 

There have been no public announcements of projects in the pipeline, except for a role voicing a character in next summer's animated The Smurfs Movie.

And sources have said he has also been reluctant to replicate his Stateside career and front a chat-show here – because it's 'too much work'.

Indeed, if it wasn't for the Gavin and Stacey finale –  his big British comeback would almost certainly have been something of a damp squib, insiders say.

According to the Mail On Sunday, bringing back the show that made his name was one of the only things he could do that is guaranteed not only to be a hit but to catapult him back into the limelight.

A source said: 'There was a huge expectation that James was going to get a big deal somewhere. He didn't want the daily grind of doing a nightly show as it is a lot of work and is exhausting, but there was talk of some big projects.

'Nothing materialised apart from an impressive, yet short, stint at a London theatre, which has been baffling for the television industry.

'You have to wonder why. James loves the limelight, he loves being the centre of attention, but this was simply not happening.

'But then bang, out of the blue, Gavin & Stacey is back and James is back on the radar.'

The move seems to have worked as fans and critics alike adored the episode, which saw James' Smithy and Ruth's Nessa finally tie the knot after her proposal went disastrously wrong five years ago.