A collection of every episode plus the specials of Britain's best-loved comedy series!
Product description
ONLY FOOLS AND HORSES - The ultimate British sitcom
Derek "Del Boy" Trotter (played by David Jason), a fast-talking, archetypal cockney market trader, lives in a council flat in a high-rise tower block, Nelson Mandela House, in Peckham, South London with his much younger brother, Rodney Trotter (Nicholas Lyndhurst), and their elderly Grandad (Lennard Pearce). Their mother Joan died when Rodney was young, and their father Reg absconded shortly after his wife's death, effectively making Del Rodney's surrogate father and the family patriarch. Despite the difference in their ages, the brothers share a constant bond throughout.
The situation focuses primarily on their futile attempts to get rich - "This time next year, we'll be millionaires" is a frequent saying of Del's - through buying and selling a variety of low-quality and illegal goods, such as Russian Army camcorders, luminous yellow paint and sex dolls filled with an explosive gas. They own an unregistered company, Trotters Independent Traders, trade primarily on the black market and generally neither pay taxes nor claim money from the state; as Del says "the government don't give us nothing, so we don't give the government nothing". Most of their deals are too dodgy to succeed and usually end up backfiring, an important factor in generating sympathy for the characters. They also drive a grubby three-wheeled van, and are regulars at their local pub, The Nag's Head.
Initially, Del Boy, Rodney and Grandad were the show's only regulars during series one, along with the occasional appearances of Trigger (Roger Lloyd Pack) and snobbish used car salesman Boycie (John Challis). By the end of series 3, new characters were introduced such as Nag's Head landlord Mike (Kenneth MacDonald), lorry driver Denzil (Paul Barber) and youthful spiv Mickey Pearce (Patrick Murray) which set up a more regular cast for the end of series three and the start of series four. In series four, Boycie's unseen wife Marlene (Sue Holderness) (who was the centre of gags made by Del and Trigger) was finally introduced. They started becoming popular in their own right and contributing to the humour and the plots, although the show always centred on the Trotters.
As the series progressed, the scope of the plots expanded, leading to the larger regular cast, with writer John Sullivan unafraid to mix comedy with drama. Many early episodes were largely self-contained, with few plot-lines mentioned again, but the show developed a story arc and an ongoing episodic dimension. The character of Grandad was killed off following the death of Lennard Pearce, and his brother Uncle Albert (Buster Merryfield) emerged to restore the three generations line-up. After years of fruitless searching, both Del and Rodney found long-term love, in the form of Raquel (Tessa Peake-Jones) and Cassandra (Gwyneth Strong) respectively; Del also had a son with Raquel, Damien (played by five actors, most recently Ben Smith). Rodney and Cassandra married, separated and then got back together again. Cassandra miscarried, but then she and Rodney eventually had a baby. Rodney found out who his real father was. The Trotters finally became millionaires, before losing it again, and then gaining some of it back. This level of character development is unusual in a sitcom, as most examples of the genre only rarely make major changes to the 'situation' upon which the premise hangs.
The humour comes from several sources. The interaction between Del and Rodney is key, with each an ideal comic foil for the other in both personality and appearance. Much is made of the traits of individual characters, such as Del's lack of cultural refinement, despite his pretensions, best seen in his misuse of French phrases or his claims to be a yuppy; Rodney's gormless nature, resulting in him being labelled a "plonker" or a "dipstick" by Del, though occasionally showing hidden depths; the general daftness of Grandad and Trigger, and the rampant snobbery of Boycie. There are also several running gags, including Trigger's constant reference to Rodney as "Dave", Uncle Albert's "during the war..." anecdotes, Del's supposed long-time affair with Marlene and the dilapidated Reliant Regal van.
This box set comes from our personal collection and, although not shrink-wrapped, is in mint condition. The pack's design and quality make it a piece of art by itself. Only one set is available. Lovely Jubbly!
This movie comes from our personal collection and only one piece is available
DVD Rating
Like New: a DVD in perfect condition. The box or jewel case is clean and vivid, with no signs of wear.
= New = Like New = Very Good = Good = Acceptable
See the list of episodes and other details under Additional information.
Additional information
Starring
David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst, Buster Merryfiled, Gwyneth Strong, John Challis, Roger Lloyd- Pack, Kenneth MacDonald, Lennard Pearce, Sue Holderness, Tessa Peake-Jones, Patrick Murray, Paul Barber
Format
Box set, Colour, PAL UK, Closed-captioned
Main soundtrack
English Mono & Stereo
Subtitles
OFF, English for the Hard of Hearing
Region
Aspect ratio
4:3 & 16:9
Number of discs
26 (DVD5x17 & DVD9x9)
Classification
BBFC (Sleepless in Peckam) (Everything else)
Studio
2 Entertain Video
DVD release date
16 Oct 2006
Run time
2832 minutes (over 47 hours)
EAN
5014503227227
Episodes
Season 1
01 Big Brother 02 Go West Young Man 03 Cash and Curry 04 The Second Time Around 05 A Slow Bus to Chingford 06 The Russians Are Coming 07 Christmas Crackers
Season 2
08 The Long Legs of the Law 09 Ashes to Ashes 10 A Losing Streak 11 No Greater Love 12 The Yellow Peril 13 It Never Rains 14 A Touch of Glass 15 Diamonds Are for Heather
Season 3 (2 discs)
16 Homesick 17 Healthy Competition 18 Friday the 14th 19 Yesterday Never Comes 20 May The Force Be with You 21 Wanted 22 Who's a Pretty Boy? 23 Thicker Than Water
Season 4 (2 discs)
24 Happy Return 25 Strained Relations 26 Hole in One 27 It's Only Rock and Roll 28 Sleeping Dogs Lie 29 Watching the Girls Go By 30 As One Door Closes 31 To Hull and Back
Season 5 (4 discs)
32 To Hull and Back 33 From Prussia with Love 34 The Miracle of Peckham 35 The Longest Night 36 Tea for Three 37 Video Nasty 38 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire 39 A Royal Flush 40 The Frog's Legacy 41 Dates
Season 6 (3 discs)
42 Yuppy Love 43 Danger UXD 44 Chain Gang 45 The Unlucky Winner Is... 46 Sickness and Wealth 47 Little Problems 48 The Jolly Boys' Outing
Season 7 (6 discs)
49 Rodney Come Home 50 The Sky's the Limit 51 The Chance of a Lunchtime 52 Stage Fright 53 Class of '62 54 He Ain't Heavy, He's My Uncle 55 Three Men, a Woman and a Baby 56 Miami Twice 57 Mother Nature's Son 58 Fatal Extraction
Season 8 (3 discs)
59 Heroes and Villains 60 Modern Men 61 Time on Our Hands
Season 9 (4 discs)
62 If They Could See Us Now 63 Strangers on the Shore 64 Sleepless in Peckham 65 The Story of Only Fools and Horses