Happy Returns

Last updated

"Happy Returns"
Only Fools and Horses episode
Episode no.Series 4
Episode 1
Directed by Susan Belbin
Written by John Sullivan
Produced by Ray Butt
Original air date21 February 1985 (1985-02-21)
Running time30:30 (DVD) / 30:33 (iTunes)
Episode chronology
 Previous
"Thicker than Water"
Next 
"Strained Relations"
List of episodes

"Happy Returns" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses . It was the first episode of series 4, and was first broadcast on 21 February 1985. In the episode, when Del discovers that Rodney's latest girlfriend is the daughter of an old flame, he suspects she might be his daughter.

Contents

Synopsis

The latest object of Rodney's love is an attractive newsagent worker named Debbie. Meanwhile, Del Boy prevents a young boy from getting hit by a speeding car. That night, Del comes across the boy again, who tells him that he is running away from home because he got into trouble with his mother for letting the air out of the tyres on the Trotters' Reliant Regal van. Del tells him that they will go and tell the boy's mother that he had asked the youngster to deflate the tyres, to convince the boy to return home.

The boy's mother is June Snell, one of Del's ex-girlfriends from the 1960s. When Rodney unexpectedly arrives to see Debbie (from the newsagent), Del realises that June is Debbie's mother too. In order to leave the courting couple alone, he and June go to The Nag's Head to talk about old times, although June is reluctant to reveal why she left Del so suddenly when they were a couple. However, when the barmaid unwittingly reveals that Debbie's 19th birthday is imminent, Del deduces that June left him because she was pregnant with his child. Quickly, he returns to June's flat to stop Rodney committing "an act of incense". Rodney demands to know why it is Del's choice who he dates. Del tells him the story. Horrified, Rodney pleads with Del to ask June if he is definitely Debbie's father.

The next night, June comes clean; Albie Littlewood – not Del – is really the father. Albie was Del's best friend, who June was cheating on Del with. For 19 years, Del had suffered survivor guilt over Albie's death. He believed Albie had died whilst using the railway line as a short cut when on his way to meet him at the pub (Albie's bicycle had fallen onto a live rail and electrocuted him). June informs Del that Albie was actually on his way to see her, so he has nothing to feel guilty about. But Del tells June that is not the cause of his guilt. The real cause of his guilt is that even if Albie had made it to the pub that fateful night, Del would not have been there to meet him; Del was busy cheating on June with Deidre, Albie's girlfriend.

Just when the farce appears to be resolved, Del realises it is too late, as Debbie has now fallen for Mickey Pearce. As Del leaves the flat, he sarcastically tells a confused Mickey not to take a shortcut across the railway line.

The events of this episode are mentioned by Debbie's mum, June, in "A Royal Flush".

Episode cast

ActorRole
David Jason Derek Trotter
Nicholas Lyndhurst Rodney Trotter
Diane Langton June Snell
Roger Lloyd-Pack Trigger
Patrick Murray Mickey Pearce
Oona KirschDebbie
Lala LloydLady in newsagents
Nula Conwell Maureen (barmaid)
Ben DavisJason Snell

Production

Lennard Pearce died from a heart attack shortly after filming of the fourth series began. "Hole in One", originally scheduled as the series opener, had been partially filmed with Pearce before his death. John Sullivan wrote this episode to replace "Hole in One" as the series opener and the following episode, "Strained Relations", to write Grandad's death into the series. During this episode, it is briefly mentioned that Grandad is in hospital. Pearce's photo was also omitted from the opening title sequence, with only David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst appearing.

Related Research Articles

<i>Only Fools and Horses</i> British TV sitcom (1981–2003)

Only Fools and Horses.... is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas specials aired until the end of the show in 2003. Set in working-class Peckham in south-east London, it stars David Jason as ambitious market trader Derek "Del Boy" Trotter and Nicholas Lyndhurst as his younger half-brother Rodney Trotter, alongside a supporting cast. The series follows the Trotters' highs and lows in life, in particular their attempts to get rich. Critically and popularly acclaimed, the series received numerous awards, including recognition from BAFTA, the National Television Awards, and the Royal Television Society, as well as winning individual accolades for both Sullivan and Jason. It was voted Britain's Best Sitcom in a 2004 BBC poll.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Del Boy</span> Fictional character

Derek Edward Trotter, more commonly known as Del Boy, is a fictional character from the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses and one of the main characters of its spinoff series, Rock & Chips. He was played by David Jason in the original series and was portrayed as a teenager by James Buckley in the prequel. Del Boy is often regarded as one of the greatest comedy characters in the history of British television, and is regarded as an iconic character in British culture. In a 2001 poll conducted by Channel 4 Del Boy was ranked fourth on their list of the 100 Greatest TV Characters.

Grandad (<i>Only Fools and Horses</i>) Fictional character from Only Fools and Horses

Edward Kitchener "Ted" Trotter, better known as Grandad, is a fictional character who was one of the original leads of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. He appeared in the show's first three series, played by Lennard Pearce. The character is grandfather to Del Boy and Rodney Trotter. Pearce's death in December 1984 was written into the series with the death of Grandad. His place was taken by Uncle Albert.

"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the final episode of Series 5, and was first screened on 5 October 1986. This is also the last episode to be 30 minutes long with all the subsequent episodes lasting 50 minutes or more. In the episode, Del's old business partner Jumbo Mills returns to Peckham and asks Del to go into business with him in Australia.

"Thicker than Water" is the third Christmas special episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses, broadcast on 25 December 1983, and is the first to be screened on Christmas Day.

"Strained Relations" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the second episode of series 4, and was first screened on 28 February 1985.

"Christmas Crackers" is the first Christmas special episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was originally screened on 28 December 1981 and is the first episode of the series to run at over 30 minutes.

"The Second Time Around" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the fourth episode of series 1, and was first broadcast on 29 September 1981. In the episode, an old fiancée of Del's returns and they rekindle their relationship, to Rodney and Grandad's horror.

"May the Force Be with You" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the fifth episode of series 3, and was first screened on 8 December 1983. In the episode, the despised DCI Roy Slater returns to Peckham and arrests the Trotters for stealing a microwave.

"Hole in One" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the third episode of series 4 and was first broadcast on 7 March 1985. In the episode, Del decides to sue the brewery after Uncle Albert falls down the Nag's Head cellar.

"Go West Young Man" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the second episode of series 1, and was first screened on 15 September 1981. This was the lowest rated episode of the entire series, with only 6.1 million viewers. In the episode, Del sells a faulty car to an Australian man.

Cassandra Louise Trotter is a fictional character from the British sitcom Only Fools and Horses. She is portrayed by Gwyneth Strong.

"Healthy Competition" is the second episode of series 3 of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was first broadcast on 17 November 1983. In the episode, Rodney decides to leave Trotters Independent Traders and go into business with Mickey Pearce, but soon learns that it is harder than it looks.

"Sleepless in Peckham...!" is the final episode of BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was first screened on 25 December 2003 as the third and final part of the early 2000s Christmas trilogy, and as the eighteenth and final Christmas special. It was the last Only Fools and Horses-related episode until the Sport Relief special in March 2014.

"Wanted" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the sixth episode of series 3, and was first broadcast on 15 December 1983. In the episode, after an incident with a local woman, Del Boy pretends that Rodney had been dubbed the 'Peckham pouncer' and is being hunted by the police, so Rodney goes on the run.

"Video Nasty" is the fifth episode of series 5 of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses, first broadcast on 28 September 1986. In the episode, Rodney receives a grant to make a local film, but Del sees it as an opportunity to make money.

"Watching the Girls Go By" is an episode of the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses. It was the sixth episode of series 4 and first broadcast on 28 March 1985. In the episode Rodney, egged on by Del, bets Mickey Pearce that he can find a date for an upcoming party and Del decides to help him win the bet.

"Five Gold Rings" is the second episode of the Rock & Chips trilogy and the series' only Christmas Special. It was first aired on 29 December 2010.

"The Frog and the Pussycat" is the third and final episode of the Rock & Chips trilogy. It was first screened on 28 April 2011, six days after the death of writer John Sullivan.

References