James Corden Delays The Start Of His West End Play So He Can Watch England's Penalties

James Corden was apparently not letting anything stand in his way of watching the end of the England match over the weekend – including the play he’s currently starring in.

On Saturday, the England squad went up against Switzerland in the Euros, with the match going into extra time due to a tied score.

This meant that the final moments of the game spilled over into James’ performance in the West End show The Constituent.

Speaking to The Guardian, the Gavin & Stacey creator revealed that when he learned that several members of the audience were watching the match on their phones while they waited for the play to start, he and the crew made a decision.

He said: “The extra time finished about three minutes before the play was due to begin. We thought: ‘Oh man, this is tough but we’ve got to start.’

Then we heard a ‘Yessss’ from the audience, and we looked at each other and said: ‘They’re all watching it.’ We looked out and there were loads of little lit-up phones in the audience.

“It wasn’t the time to start a serious play about serious issues.”

At that moment, he and co-stars Anna Maxwell Martin and Zachary Hart came on stage with an iPad so everyone could see the game’s final moments together.

“It was really wonderful, alive, a glorious collective experience. One of my favourite moments that I’ve ever had really,” he added.

Watch the moment play out in the video below:

James’ love of football has been well-documented throughout his career.

In 2010, he and Dizzee Rascal recorded the unofficial World Cup anthem Shout, which reached number one in the UK singles chart.

A year earlier, he filmed a sketch for Comic Relief with the England squad, in character as his Gavin & Stacey alter-ego Smithy.