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A new Fools and Horses thread.

Started by Glebe, December 19, 2017, 06:49:26 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

imitationleather

I can only recall Compo on Last of the Summer Wine doing it. I assumed it was a northern system for cooling down hot tea.

biggytitbo

All old people did it when I was a kid, it was a common thing and yes simply a way of drinking some tea before it had cooled down.

Replies From View

If you didn't have a saucer you could sip it off your trousers, as long as you could spill it onto a part of them that was sufficiently close to your mouth.

Uncle TechTip

Does anyone think that To Hull and Back would have stood up to a cinema release? I don't see any difference between it and say George and Mildred or Porridge, except that it wasn't financed independently. Would have been perfect and I always wonder it would have been successful. Perhaps the failures of eg G&M did it for this idea.

biggytitbo

The fact the whole thing was shot on 35mm, including the interiors does suggest they might have thought about releasing it as a film. It certainly compares quite favourably production wise with something like Clockwise from the same year.

Malcy

I watched all these hoping to see loads of old unseen footage. Even the stuff that was 'never before seen ever ever' I had seen nearly 20 years ago having downloaded them from some torrent site like the oil rig thing and the video for the soldiers.

Catalogue Trousers

QuoteI agree that the Damien stuff doesn't really work, although it's almost worth it for the music stings from The Omen. Was that film our around that time?

The final Omen cinema film disregarding tame made-for-TV rubbish and pointless remakes, The Final Conflict, was released in 1981, a full decade prior to Damien's first appearance on the show. However, the films had received heavy circulation on terrestrial telly in that time, so they were still pretty valid as a pop culture touchstone.

The real disgrace is that they didn't use any of Jerry Goldsmith's score for The Omen. They used snatches of Orff's Carmina Burana, best known then for its use in Old Spice adverts and Excalibur.

magval

I've just watched A Royal Flush after checking if the cut on Netflix was any different to my DVD, but both are the edit with the laugh track added and, supposedly, much nastiness removed.

Can anyone tell me what was cut out that John Sullivan was so ashamed of?

Tony Yeboah

Quote from: magval on January 14, 2018, 09:39:31 PM
I've just watched A Royal Flush after checking if the cut on Netflix was any different to my DVD, but both are the edit with the laugh track added and, supposedly, much nastiness removed.

Can anyone tell me what was cut out that John Sullivan was so ashamed of?

This topic comes up a lot but I think this may be the full version if anyone can be bothered to compare the two. Certainly there were bits cut out of the opera scene where Del acts incredibly boorishly.  https://ok.ru/video/331653581537

The end scene was apparently recorded at the last minute and is quite unpleasant, just Del being a bully. The one redeeming feature of the episode is Vicky who is very fanciable.

Paul Calf

Quote from: BeardFaceMan on December 21, 2017, 07:41:23 PM
Are the DVD releases edited much? Whats the best way to go about watching complete episodes from the first few series?

The iTunes versions are generally intact.

EDIT: I mean, more intact than the DVD\repeat channel releases.

magval

I think the old magazine collection series is mostly unedited too.

Ignatius_S

Quote from: magval on January 14, 2018, 09:39:31 PM
I've just watched A Royal Flush after checking if the cut on Netflix was any different to my DVD, but both are the edit with the laugh track added and, supposedly, much nastiness removed.

Can anyone tell me what was cut out that John Sullivan was so ashamed of?

http://www.ofah.net has some good information there – in a previous thread, there was another online resource that was absolutely brilliant for cut information, but it's no longer available.

This review - http://www.ofah.net/blog/royal-flush-episode-review/ - makes a point (one that I've read elsewhere) that Sullivan wasn't able to do his usual rewriting and wasn't on set, due to working on Just Good Friends. Additionally, Sullivan was also writing Dear John around the same time – that's an incredible amount of work for one writer and it's not surprising that Sullivan might have thought that some work could have been executed better.

I was going to mention the reaction to the cringe comedy at the time so just going to crib something I've previously mentioned as that also covers something else I was going to mention – in A Royal Flush, Del's character isn't drastically rewritten.

Quote from: Ignatius_S on September 20, 2010, 01:36:35 PM
I remember on This Morning, Nina Myskow praised it during a phone-in, whilst (as far as I remember) every caller, who talked about the episode, criticised it. In particular, it was the dinner scene that drew the most ire – people really didn't seem to like the overwhelmingly cringing element.

[In response to another post]
Personally, I feel it's all true to form for Del – he can't just let his brother get on with the friendship, he has to interfere.

Although Del certainly has a strong belief in family ties, I would also say that there are more than a few episodes where he's shown to see Rodney as little more than a resource to exploit. All too often, his attitude is what's good for me, is good for the Trotters.

In Slow Bus to Chingford, Del gets Rodney to act as an unpaid night watchman so they can use a bus for free, so they can run a tour for tourists – naturally, he expects Rodney to be working in the day as the driver. On the pretence of keeping on eye on Rodney's girlfriend while he's working nights, Del starts taking her out. Earlier in the episode, Rodney looks like a sure thing with the girl, until Del turns up at the flat and ruins Rodney's chances, but not before taken the mickey out of Rodney and treated him like a little kid in front of the woman.

I would say more than a few jokes Del makes at Rodney's expense, in earlier series, are meant to belittle him and damage his self-confidence. Del can be an emotional bully – in A Royal Flush, when Del is callously squeezing Rodney's hand, arguably he's showing his true colours.

*edit* Pretty sure I was wrong about This Morning being the show that Myskow discussed the episode.

Ignatius_S

Quote from: Paul Calf on January 15, 2018, 12:00:58 AM
The iTunes versions are generally intact.

EDIT: I mean, more intact than the DVD\repeat channel releases.

IIRC, it tends to be the BBC repeats that have the most cuts – there have been episodes on Gold that have lines cut from the BBC broadcasts.

magval


purlieu

Slow Bus to Chingford is another episode which makes me a bit uncomfortable, although not quite as much as A Royal Flush. I suppose because the bus scenario is a fairly daft sitcom setup which adds a lighter touch to it all, but also because in A Royal Flush, Rodney potentially has the opportunity to escape from Del's influence in a big way. I'm not convinced that relationship would have necessarily worked anyway, but if it had, Rodney wouldn't have needed Del for financial support, which is always something that hangs over him.

Now, I'm not sure which version of A Royal Flush I've seen, because the one I downloaded a couple of years back didn't have a laugh track, but I'm sure I compared times, and it wasn't as long as the original. But the lack of laugh track actually makes if horribly uncomfortable viewing.

magval

Yeah, I hadn't considered how much more awful it would make it. There's a lot of tension released with that laughter punctuating everything.

I'm only working my way through these now and I've not seen anything from where I'm at (about to watch Dates) up until Time on our Hands. I like how the show occasionally has moments where other sitcoms have trained you to expect a round of applause ("heroes fit for homes" being the main example) but they just let them linger silently, usually with a moment showcasing Rodney's innocence to break the tension with an easy but warmly handled and very welcome laugh.

It is very very good. Only one I've not enjoyed so far is To Hull and Back. I'm also not looking forward much to Miami Twice, which sounds a bit far-fetched.

Utter Shit

Miami Twice is good for the first half - not brilliant, but a fairly standard Fools and Horses episode set in the flat and surrounding areas as usual. It's only when they get to Miami that it goes to pot. To be honest I don't think it would be anywhere near as bad if David Jason could do an American accent - the accent is so bad it completely breaks any possible chance you have of suspending your disbelief that they're different people.

It does have one of my favourite OFAH lines in it - Rodney refusing to go to Miami with Del citing previous bad behaviour on their travels, "you seem to forget, I've been on holiday with you before[...]you got drunk, you shouted things at women, you got us into fight", leading to Del's amused, baffled response of "we were on holiday!"...does a great job of summing up the sort of person Del is.

purlieu

Yeah, the first half of Miami Twice is perfectly watchable. The second half feels like a bit of a shark jump really, just barges past the barriers of believability, guns blazing.

Glebe

The ending of the non-laugh track version of 'A Royal Flush' is particularly weird, with Del torturing Rodney's hand to the sound of utter silence!

'Miami Twice: Oh to Be in England' never felt right to me. It feels like a dodgy attempt to do an American comedy movie, and it just doesn't really work. The jet ski gag would probably be a lot funnier and more charming in a 'normal' episode, for instance. And Mafia Del gets a bit embarrassing after awhile.

toetoe

Telegraph is ranking all OFAH christmas specials on their page

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/fools-horses-every-christmas-special-ranked-worst-best/

For those of us who wont register even for free, anyone got the list?

magval

Happy Christmas boss.


18. If They Could See Us Now (2001)

Which One Is This? The Trotters lose their fortune and end up back in Nelson Mandela House.

You Plonker! Five years after Del and Rodney walked off into the sunset as millionaires, they make an ill-advised comeback with this episode – spoiling their perfect happy ending.

Bonne De Douche! It's more a series of sketches than an actual story: the Trotters attend the wrong funeral after Uncle Albert dies; Del Boy goes on a game show; Rodney and Cassandra do fantasy role play as a gladiator and policewoman.

42-Carat Moment? Del Boy – bankrupt and disqualified from running a business – cons eternal dipstick Rodney into taking over Trotters Independent Traders. A flash of the old Del Boy magic.

17. Strangers on the Shore (2002)

Which One Is This? Del Boy and Rodders attend a naval reunion in France on behalf of Albert but accidentally smuggle back a foreigner they call "Gary".

Chateauneuf Du Pape! This second comeback episode is slightly better. But not by much – and Gary is bordering on racist.

You Plonker! Del's teenage son Damien is beyond cringe-worthy. If you ever wondered what a 55-year-old white man thinks gangster rap is, see it here in John Sullivan's writing.

42-Carat Moment? There are a lot of bearded men in the French town where Albert was stationed during the war. It looks like he was up to more than just being torpedoed.

16. Sleepless In Peckham (2003)

Which One Is This? Del Boy has just a few days to pay off the Inland Revenue or they lose the flat. Meanwhile, Cassandra is ready to give birth and letters from a mystery solicitor pile up.

Bonjour! This was the Trotters' final goodbye, and they go out tugging the heartstrings as hard as they can.

He Who Dares! Rodney discovers his real father was in fact "Freddy the Frog". It's a twist that pays off, if you can excuse the crafty continuity tinkering.

42-Carat Moment? Albert leaves them £200,000 in his will and Rodney becomes a father – tear-jerking moments, even if you don't count these comebacks as "proper" Fools & Horses.

15. A Royal Flush (1986)

Which One Is This? Rodney meets "posh sort" Vicky, who turns out to be a Duke's daughter. But Del's interfering spoils it for Rodders.

Shut Up You Tart! This is Del at his absolute worst. Crass and overbearing, he invites himself to the Duke's stately home and tramples all over Rodney's love life. It's painfully uncomfortable.

Bunch Of Wallies! Production ran out of time to film this in front of an audience – and it was still being edited on Christmas Eve. A shorter version was released in 2004, with added laughter track and edited-down Del Boy.

42-Carat Moment? Del turns up to a clay pigeon shoot with a pump-action shotgun.

14. Miami Twice (1991)

Which One Is This? The brothers go to Florida and the mafia tries to assassinate Del Boy.

Chateauneuf du Pape! This two-parter is the obligatory "characters go on holiday" Christmas special and begins an era of more far-fetched stories.

Lovely Jubbly! There are some great gags. Del reveals that he's tricked Rodney into going on holiday so he can escape a load of Romanian Riesling he's bought by mistake.

42-Carat Moment? Del and Rodney see Barry Gibb doing a spot of gardening in Miami, prompting Del to sing "How Deep Is You Love?" at top volume.

13. Christmas Crackers (1981)

Which One Is This? Granddad ruins the turkey and Del and Rodney go clubbing on Christmas night.

Bonne De Douche! John Sullivan said this script was hastily written for the sake of doing a special for the first series. But there's a nostalgic charm to these very early episodes.

Lovely Jubbly! The banter between the original trio is pukka, even this early on, before the show had found its rhythm. "Slightly underdone?" says Rodney about Granddad's cooking. "I reckon the kiss of life would revive that turkey."

42-Carat Moment? They realise Granddad has cooked the turkey with the giblets-in-plastic still inside.

12. Diamonds Are For Heather (1982)

Which One Is This? Del gets a taste of family life when he meets Heather and her three-year-old son.

Mais Oui! The greatest myth about Derek Trotter is that he's a one-note, catchphrase-spouting character. But this melancholy episode reveals an emotional depth.

Bonjour! Heather leaves after turning down Del's marriage proposal. Del Boy has always wanted a family but has spent his entire adult life looking after his dipstick brother Rodney.

42-Carat Moment? A heartbroken Del slips some Christmas carolers a fiver to sing his favourite song about a dead dog – Old Shep by Elvis.

11. Rodney Come Home (1990)

Which One Is This? Rodney and Cassandra's marriage is on the rocks so Rodders is back living with Del Boy.

Au Revoir! Raquel moves into the flat to become a permanent cast member. But she's in the spare room until Del can pluck up the courage to ask her in his bed.

Bonne De Douche! Not much happens here (it feels like Fools & Horses was booked in for Christmas Day without any solid story ideas). But it says a lot about Del's – and to some extent, the show's – archaic attitudes about men and women.

42-Carat Moment: Albert tries to feign shock over Rodney taking another girl to the pictures, but keeps getting it wrong. One of the series' best jokes and David Jason almost cracks up.

10. Modern Men (1996)

Which One Is This? Rodney and Cassandra are expecting a baby, and Del – inspired by a book about what it means to be a modern man – announces that he's having a vasectomy.

You Plonker!A sub-plot about Del Boy wanting to create a turban/crash helmet for motorcycle-riding Sikhs has aged very badly.

A Fait Acopian! It's the weakest episode of the original farewell trilogy but delivers Fools & Horses' most tragic moment when Cassandra miscarries.

42-Carat Moment? Del gives Rodney a man-to-man chat about how he has to be strong and not cry in front of Cassandra – hardly modern men, then – but bursts into tears himself.

9. To Hull And Back (1985)

Which One Is This? The Trotters go to Amsterdam to do a bit of diamond smuggling for Boycie.

You Plonker! Jim Broadbent is fun as recurring villain DCI Slater. A crafty, conniving bent copper, he's the anti-Del (appropriate as Broadbent was original choice for Del Boy).

Cushty! It's feature-length and the first episode filmed without an audience, so feels different – but is still very much classic Fools & Horses.

42-Carat Moment? Trigger on the pull at the very start of the episode. "Alright darling, where you been all my life? I always use that line... I don't know why, it's never worked."

8. Time On Our Hands (1996)

Which One Is This? Raquel's estranged parents come to dinner, and Del unearths an old watch that might be worth a few quid.

This Time Next Year! The Trotters finally become millionaires. It's genuinely feel-good plus there's some enjoyable nostalgic wallowing in the show's own history.

Bonjour! Del, Rodney, and Albert walk off into the sunset. If only they hadn't walked back again five years later.

42-Carat Moment? There's a touching scene earlier in the show, as Del forces Rodney to face up to losing his baby. "It's just a dropped stitch in life's tapestry, that's what mum used to say," Del says.

7. The Frog's Legacy (1987)

Which One Is This? Del learns about Freddy The Frog, a gentleman thief who left their dear old mum £1 million in gold. What a shame nobody knows where it's hidden.

Lovely Jubbly! This get-rich-quick tale is perhaps the archetypal Fools & Horses episode, but its real strength is how it adds layers to the show's mythos – the Trotter family history, background characters, and the original idea that Freddy might be Rodders' real father.

Cushty! This was also the basis of the surprisingly decent prequel Rock 'n' Chips.

42-Carat Moment? Albert pretending to have chronic backache, then tap dancing in the market after a blast from Del's dodgy infrared back massagers.

6. Fatal Extraction (1993)

Which One Is This? Raquel leaves Del and there are riots on the estate.

He Who Dares! Though relatively late in the series' run, this is classic, wheeling-dealing stuff from Del Boy. He asks out the first woman he meets after Raquel walks out just to prove he can still pull, starts a riot with his drunken singing, and then sells the rioters some hooky ski gear.

Bonne De Douche! There's a great Fatal Attraction pastiche when Del thinks his would-be date has started stalking him.

42-Carat Moment? Del Boy is horrified when he comes home to find something boiling on the stove – not a bunny, but Albert's old pants.

5. Heroes & Villains (1996)

Which One Is This? Del Boy is refused a council grant, but he's eyeing up first prize at a fancy dress party.

Chateauneuf Du Pape! It's been three years since the last episode and the production values have gone up. Someone's even spent a monkey (or thereabouts) on a futuristic dream sequence.

Lovely Jubbly! But it still feels like Fools & Horses, something the later comeback episodes failed to do.

42-Carat Moment? Del and Rodney dash through the streets dressed as Batman and Robin, and chase of a gang of muggers. An instantly-classic scene.

4. Thicker Than Water (1983)

Which One Is This? Reg Trotter comes back after abandoning them 18 years earlier – and he has a devious plan to oust Del Boy from the family.

He Who Dares! It was a risk bringing the Trotters' father into the show, but it works. Peter Woodthorpe is perfectly cast as Del Boy's old man.

Cushty! But it's David Jason who makes this episode. Much more than just a comedy performance, his intensity when he confronts Reg after all these years creates real drama.

42-Carat Moment? In the final scene, Del Boy tucks a wad of notes into Reg's pocket before throwing him out for good. A touching character detail.

3. Mother Nature's Son (1992)

Which One Is This? The Trotters get into the health food boom with the Peckham Spring. Except it's not from a spring, it's from the tap in Del Boy's kitchen.

Bonne De Douche! Following Miami Twice, it's another silly plot, but an example of how astutely Fools & Horses reacted to what was happening culturally in Britain.

You Plonker! There's a great scene with Del's old stock/junk: men's wigs, Bros LPs, royal wedding plates, Romanian Riesling, and Free Nelson Mandela t-shirts.

42-Carat Moment? Del Boy's first ever time in an organic health food shop. "It's nice to know everything on your plate was once under a pile of horse s**t".

2. The Jolly Boys Outing (1989)

Which One Is This? The Nag's Head lot go on a beano to Margate, but their coach blows up thanks to Del's faulty car radio.

Lovely Jubbly! This is Fools & Horses at its most fun. It's big laugh after big laugh, from Rodney and Cassandra hosting a dinner party for her yuppie boss (wannabe yuppie Del vs actual yuppie is pure gold) to the jolly boys' tour of Margate.

Au Revoir! It's also the episode where Del meets Raquel again, now working as a magician's assistant in a Margate nightclub. Del punches the magician, naturally.

42-Carat Moment? Inspired by Del's machismo, Rodney goes home and punches Cassandra's boss.

1. Dates (1988)

Which One Is This? Del Boy meets Raquel – but he's humiliated when she turns out be the stripper he booked for Albert's birthday.

Cushty! Not just the best Christmas special, but the best Fools & Horses ever.

You Plonker! Del meets Raquel through a dating agency. Derek's specifications – "She's got to be a bit of a sort" – are hilarious, but there's an underlying sense that he's getting older. Pulling birds isn't as easy as it used to be.

42-Carat Moment? Del Boy misses out on his chance to rekindle his romance with Raquel when he's unexpectedly arrested over another police/stripper mix up.

toetoe

Brilliant, magval.

Surprised the early 90's specials is so highly rated.

A Royal Flush(With Evil Del) and the millenium specials(with the atrocious actor playing Damien) at the bottom

Replies From View

Quote from: Tony Yeboah on January 14, 2018, 11:33:40 PM
The one redeeming feature of the episode is Vicky who is very fanciable.

Cassandra is essentially a shitified version of her, isn't she.

Phil_A

If anyone's still looking for the uncut Royal Flush, I can upload it...somewhere. The reason being I found the DVD Collection version in a charity shop today.

Utter Shit

Big bump but it would be too self-indulgent for a new thread...anyone got a copy of the 1997 Comic Relief special?

Jake Thingray

The geek meeting place Roobarb's Forum have only just discovered the article four years ago about the superfan who had an OFAH shrine is his house, and said "The writers are so witty. I love all the catchphrases." Another case of CaB getting there first.

thr0b


Catalogue Trousers

From the Wikipedia edits article:

QuoteUK GOLD also show the above scenes in full but unfortunately they cut out the racist slurs (CHINKY & p**i) from the episode.

That 'unfortunately' kind of says it all about a certain type of OFAH fan. That type being the 'fucking wanker'.

Utter Shit

Quote from: Utter Shit on July 23, 2020, 05:12:37 PM
Big bump but it would be too self-indulgent for a new thread...anyone got a copy of the 1997 Comic Relief special?

Anyone?

TheMonk

This YouTube channel has some interesting OfAH bits, if annoyingly edited.
https://www.youtube.com/c/OnlyFoolsHorses