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@M_V
Is it possible you inserted the new stem in further (or it was longer) and reached the butting at the bottom of the steerer?
When you back the quill bolt out, does the bolt come up out of the stem or stay in the recess?
If it's coming up out of the stem it implies the wedge/expander etc is not falling down and unwedging/un-expanding as it should. Try and tap the bolt to knock the wedge/expander down. If you need to do more than a gentle tap then stick an allen key in and whack it so as not to deform the head of the bolt.
If the bolt head stays in the recess then the wedge/expander is falling away and the stem itself is stuck in the steerer. Applying percussive persuasion to the underside of the stem extension is going to be your best bet. Use a bit of wood or something to avoid damaging the stem.
In either scenario, inserting something from the bottom of the steerer and hammering on that is only likely to get things more stuck UNLESS you can completely undo the bolt and the wedge/expander falls out the bottom of the steerer. If you hammer anything up that way with the wedge/expander still in there you will only be tightening the stem into the steerer.