Across the pond the Telegraph is asking itself if the first episode of Only Fools and Horses, which aired 40 years ago today, stands the test of time. The answer? A resounding yes:
...episode one, which I’d never seen before, is quite the achievement. In a single half hour – and in spite of those shonky sets and shaky cameras – Sullivan manages to create a family unit that we laugh at, laugh with, but ultimately care about. Given that almost all sitcoms are about family of one type or another, this is how you set one up.
What is most striking about Only Fools and Horses 40 years later is not the jokes – some crass but most exquisitely crafted and several still laugh-out-loud funny - but its focus on Rodney and Del Boy’s relationship. Within the first 10 minutes, Del Boy tells viewers that their mother died when Rodney was six, that their father upped and left two months later, and that Del Boy was left to care for Rodney, who is his junior by 13 years. It is crucial information that underpins the next 20 years and seven series of Only Fools – beneath every madcap scheme, every one of Rodney’s reluctant groans, every plonker, dipstick and luvvly jubbly, lies a bedrock of loyalty and tenderness. The first episode is called Big Brother for a reason.
You know it makes sense, bruv! And now, thanks to me, and ONLY me, you bunch of wallies can watch the entire episode here. You're welcome, people!
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