‘I practically have to close my eyes’
Sir David Jason has revealed his favourite Only Fools and Horses episode, and the emotional scene that makes him well up.
The 82-year-old acting veteran is best known for his role as Del Boy in the legendary BBC sitcom, and has detailed some of his favourite memories from the show in his new book The Twelves Dels of Christmas.
In quotes released to the Sun, he said that if he could “only keep one” episode, it would be the 1989 special, The Jolly Boys’ Outing.
He recalled “the sheer fun” of the episode and spoke of the late John Challis in “a world that’s gone.”
Challis played Boycie in Only Fools and Horses, and passed away at the age of 79 last year.
Jason writes in his book: “It’s the sequence where Harry Nilsson’s Everybody’s Talkin’ plays as we see the cast on board the coach to Margate, and the day’s high jinks starting to unfold.
“The magic of Only Fools is compressed into this single sequence – the gang of friends that the cast had become, and the sheer fun of it all. And so many of those faces no longer with us, of course.”
He continued: “Nowadays the glimpse of John Challis reaching across to swipe my hat off is so poignant that I practically have to close my eyes, and the whole thing is a world that’s gone.”
The episode sees Rodney get arrested and the coach burst into flames because of a radio supplied by Del Boy.
Jason explained that the scene and episode sums up the relationship the cast members had and exactly what it felt like to work on the show.
The actor will be returning to the world of Only Fools in a new documentary about the series this Christmas.
Jason will feature in the Channel 5 doc, alongside a bunch of other cast members and guest contributors.
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