The following is an episode list for the BBC television situation comedy Only Fools and Horses. The show was first broadcast in the UK on BBC One on 8 September, 1981.[1] It ran for seven series (1981–83, 1985–86, 1989, 1990/91) and nineteen Christmas specials (1981–83, 1985–93, 1996, 2001–03)[2][3] until 25 December 2003, when the final episode was broadcast.[4] In total, 64 regular episodes of Only Fools and Horses, all written by John Sullivan, were produced. All are now available on both Region 2 and Region 1 DVD.
Additionally, six special editions of the show were made. Of these, two ("Licensed to Drill" and "The Robin Flies at Dawn") have never been broadcast commercially[5][6] and some have only recently been rediscovered.[5][7][6] The above six episodes are very rare and have never been released on DVD.
The list is ordered by the episodes' original air dates.
Summary
Series | Episodes | Originally aired | DVD Release | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Region 1 | Region 2 | Cover Art | |||||
1 | 6 | 1981 | 7 October 2003 | 20 November, 2000 | |||
2 | 7 | 1982 | 7 October 2003 | 2 April, 2001 | |||
3 | 7 | 1983 | 7 October 2003 | 4 June, 2001 | |||
4 | 7 | 1985 | 12 October 2004 | 1 October, 2001 | |||
5 | 6 | 1986 | 12 October 2004 | 30 September, 2002 | |||
6 | 6 | 1989 | 11 October 2005 | 22 September, 2003 | |||
7 | 6 | 1990—1991 | 10 October 2006 | 6 September, 2004 |
Series One (1981)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
01 | "Big Brother" | Ray Butt | Martin Shardlow | 8 September 1981 | 9.2 million | 30 minutes |
Despite joining Trotters Independent Traders, Rodney wants his independence so he leaves home. | ||||||
02 | "Go West Young Man" | Ray Butt | Martin Shardlow | 15 September 1981 | 6.1 million | 30 minutes |
Del sells a car with no brakes to an Australian | ||||||
03 | "Cash and Curry" | Ray Butt | Martin Shardlow | 22 September 1981 | 7.3 million | 30 minutes |
Del tries to seek profit from a dispute over an ornament | ||||||
04 | "The Second Time Around" | Ray Butt | Martin Shardlow | 29 September 1981 | 7.8 million | 30 minutes |
An old fiancee of Del's returns | ||||||
05 | "A Slow Bus To Chingford" | Ray Butt | Martin Shardlow | 6 October 1981 | 7 million | 30 minutes |
The brothers set up "Trotters' Ethnic Tours" | ||||||
06 | "The Russians Are Coming" | Ray Butt | Martin Shardlow | 13 October 1981 | 8.8 million | 30 minutes |
Anticipating World War III, the Trotters build a nuclear fallout shelter |
Christmas Special (1981)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
07 | "Christmas Crackers" | Bernard Thompson | Bernard Thompson | 28 December 1981 | 7.5 million | 35 minutes |
Del and Rodney attempt to meet some girls |
Series Two (1982)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
08 | "The Long Legs of the Law" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 21 October 1982 | 7.7 million | 30 minutes |
Rodney dates a policewoman | ||||||
09 | "Ashes to Ashes" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 28 October 1982 | 9.8 million | 30 minutes |
The Trotters try to dispose of Trigger's grandad's ashes | ||||||
10 | "A Losing Streak" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 4 November 1982 | 7.5 million | 30 minutes |
11 | "No Greater Love" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 11 November 1982 | 8.6 million | 30 minutes |
Rodney dates an older woman | ||||||
12 | "The Yellow Peril" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 18 November 1982 | 8.2 million | 30 minutes |
The Trotters decorate a Chinese restaurant with luminous paint | ||||||
13 | "It Never Rains..." | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 25 November 1982 | 9.5 million | 30 minutes |
The Trotters go on holiday to Benidorm | ||||||
14 | "A Touch of Glass" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 2 December 1982 | 10.2 million | 30 minutes |
The Trotters attempt to clean a priceless chandelier |
Christmas Special (1982)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 | "Diamonds Are for Heather" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 30 December 1982 | 9.3 million | 30 minutes |
Del dates a woman with a son |
Series Three (1983)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
16 | "Homesick" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 10 November 1983 | 9.4 million | 30 minutes |
Grandad is bedridden | ||||||
17 | "Healthy Competition" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 17 November 1983 | 9.7 million | 30 minutes |
Rodney goes into business with Mickey Pearce | ||||||
18 | "Friday the 14th" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 24 November 1983 | 9.7 million | 30 minutes |
Whilst on a fishing trip in Cornwall, the Trotters encounter an escaped axe murderer | ||||||
19 | "Yesterday Never Comes" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 1 December 1983 | 10.6 million | 30 minutes |
Del dates a posh antiques dealer | ||||||
20 | "May The Force Be With You" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 8 December 1983 | 10.7 million | 30 minutes |
DCI Roy Slater returns and arrests the Trotters for stealing a microwave | ||||||
21 | "Wanted" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 15 December 1983 | 11.2 million | 30 minutes |
Rodney is accused of rape and dubbed the "Peckham Pouncer", forcing him to go on the run | ||||||
22 | "Who's a Pretty Boy?" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 22 December 1983 | 11.9 million | 30 minutes |
Del agrees to decorate Denzil's flat |
Christmas Special (1983)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
23 | "Thicker than Water" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 25 December 1983 | 10.8 million | 30 minutes |
Del and Rodney's estranged father returns and calls into question Del's paternity |
Series Four (1985)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
24 | "Happy Returns" | Ray Butt | Susan Belbin | 21 February 1985 | 15.2 million | 30 minutes |
Del thinks he has a daughter | ||||||
25 | "Strained Relations" | Ray Butt | Susan Belbin | 28 February 1985 | 14.9 million | 30 minutes |
Grandad's funeral; Uncle Albert joins the cast | ||||||
26 | "Hole in One" | Ray Butt | Susan Belbin | 7 March 1985 | 13.4 million | 30 minutes |
Uncle Albert falls down the Nag's Head cellar to claim compensation | ||||||
27 | "It's Only Rock and Roll" | Ray Butt | Susan Belbin | 14 March 1985 | 13.6 million | 30 minutes |
Rodney joins an aspiring rock band and Del wants to be their manager | ||||||
28 | "Sleeping Dogs Lie" | Ray Butt | Susan Belbin | 21 March 1985 | 18.7 million | 30 minutes |
Del and Rodney "babysit" Marlene's Great Dane | ||||||
29 | "Watching the Girls Go By" | Ray Butt | Susan Belbin | 28 March 1985 | 14.4 million | 30 minutes |
Rodney wagers that he can get a date | ||||||
30 | "As One Door Closes" | Ray Butt | Susan Belbin | 4 April 1985 | 14.2 million | 30 minutes |
Del and Rodney attempt to catch a rare butterfly |
Christmas Special (1985)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
31 | "To Hull and Back" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 25 December 1985 | 16.9 million | 90 minutes |
The Trotters travel to Amsterdam to smuggle diamonds |
Series Five (1986)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
32 | "From Prussia With Love" | Ray Butt | Mandie Fletcher | 31 August 1986 | 12.1 million | 30 minutes |
The Trotters take in a pregnant German girl | ||||||
33 | "The Miracle of Peckham" | Ray Butt | Mandie Fletcher | 7 September 1986 | 14.2 million | 30 minutes |
Del witnesses a miracle at the local church | ||||||
34 | "The Longest Night" | Ray Butt | Mandie Fletcher | 14 September 1986 | 16.7 million | 30 minutes |
The Trotters are held hostage at a supermarket | ||||||
35 | "Tea for Three" | Ray Butt | Mandie Fletcher | 21 September 1986 | 16.5 million | 30 minutes |
Del goes hang gliding to impress Trigger's niece | ||||||
36 | "Video Nasty" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 28 September 1986 | 17.5 million | 30 minutes |
Rodney gets a council grant to make a film | ||||||
37 | "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 5 October 1986 | 17.5 million | 30 minutes |
Del is invited to set up business with an old friend in Australia |
Christmas Specials (1986-1988)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
38 | "A Royal Flush" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 25 December 1986 | 18.8 million | 80 minutes |
Rodney dates the daughter of a Duke | ||||||
39 | "The Frog's Legacy" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 25 December 1987 | 14.3 million | 60 minutes |
The Trotters learn of a hidden gold legacy | ||||||
40 | "Dates" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 1988 | 16.6 million | 80 minutes |
Del meets Raquel through a dating agency |
Series Six (1989)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
41 | "Yuppy Love" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 8 January 1989 | 13.9 million | 50 minutes |
Del becomes a yuppy; Rodney meets Cassandra | ||||||
42 | "Danger UXD" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 15 January 1989 | 16.1 million | 50 minutes |
The Trotters acquire some sex dolls filled with an explosive gas | ||||||
43 | "Chain Gang" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 22 January 1989 | 16.3 million | 50 minutes |
The gang buy some gold chains from a retired jeweller | ||||||
44 | "The Unlucky Winner Is..." | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 29 January 1989 | 17 million | 50 minutes |
Rodney wins a holiday to Spain | ||||||
45 | "Sickness and Wealth" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 5 February 1989 | 18.2 million | 50 minutes |
Del spends time in hospital | ||||||
46 | "Little Problems" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 12 February 1989 | 18.9 million | 50 minutes |
Rodney and Cassandra get married |
Christmas Specials (1989-1990)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
47 | "The Jolly Boys' Outing" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 1989 | 20.1 million | 85 minutes |
The Nag's Head regulars go on a day trip to Margate; Del meets Raquel again | ||||||
48 | "Rodney Come Home" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 1990 | 18 million | 75 minutes |
Rodney leaves Cassandra |
Series Seven (1990)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
49 | "The Sky's the Limit" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 30 December 1990 | 15 million | 50 minutes |
Del purchases a satellite dish stolen from Gatwick Airport | ||||||
50 | "The Chance of a Lunchtime" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 6 January 1991 | 16.6 million | 50 minutes |
Raquel announces she is pregnant; Rodney quits working for Cassandra's father | ||||||
51 | "Stage Fright" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 13 January 1991 | 16.6 million | 50 minutes |
Del hires a singer with a speech impediment to perform for a birthday party | ||||||
52 | "The Class of '62" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 20 January 1991 | 16.2 million | 50 minutes |
Roy Slater returns for a school reunion | ||||||
53 | "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Uncle" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 27 January 1991 | 17.2 million | 50 minutes |
Uncle Albert gets "mugged"; Rodney rejoins the company | ||||||
54 | "Three Men, a Woman and a Baby" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 3 February 1991 | 18.9 million | 50 minutes |
Raquel gives birth to Damien |
Christmas Specials (1991-2003)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
55 | "Miami Twice: The American Dream" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 24 December 1991 | 17.7 million | 50 minutes |
Damien's christening; Del sells "pre-blessed" communion wine | ||||||
56 | "Miami Twice: Oh To Be In England" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 1991 | 14.9 million | 95 minutes |
Del and Rodney go to Miami, where Del is mistaken for a local Mafia boss | ||||||
57 | "Mother Nature's Son" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 1992 | 20.1 million | 65 minutes |
Del sells tap water as "Peckham Spring" | ||||||
58 | "Fatal Extraction" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 1993 | 19.6 million | 85 minutes |
Raquel leaves Del temporarily; Del is stalked by a "jilted" woman | ||||||
59 | "Heroes and Villains" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 1996 | 21.3 million | 60 minutes |
The brothers attend a fancy dress party; Raquel meets her parents again | ||||||
60 | "Modern Men" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 27 December 1996 | 21.3 million | 60 minutes |
Del tries to change his image; Cassandra miscarries | ||||||
61 | "Time On Our Hands" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 29 December 1996 | 24.3 million | 60 minutes |
Raquel's parents visit; the Trotters become millionaires | ||||||
62 | "If They Could See Us Now" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 2001 | 20.3 million | 71 minutes |
Uncle Albert dies; The Trotters lose their fortune | ||||||
63 | "Strangers on the Shore" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 2002 | 16.3 million | 75 minutes |
Del and Rodney go on a booze cruise to France to honour the memory of Uncle Albert | ||||||
64 | "Sleepless in Peckham" | Gareth Gwenlan | Tony Dow | 25 December 2003 | 15.5 million | 75 minutes |
Rodney and Cassandra have a baby; Rodney discovers the truth about his father |
The Story of Only Fools and Horses (2003)
Title | Airdate | Synopsis | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|
On location at 23 Nelson Mandela House and at the Nag's Head, we discover the behind-the-scenes stories, the stars reveal their own favorite memories and we learn just how they went about making us love Britain's biggest plonkers! |
Miscellaneous (1982-1997)
# | Original Title | Producer | Director | Original airdate | Original TV Audience | Running Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
TBA | "Christmas Trees" | Ray Butt | Ray Butt | 27 December 1982 | 7.2 million | 8 minutes |
Mini-episode produced for the 1982 Christmas show, The Funny Side of Christmas, presented by Frank Muir, which also featured mini-episodes of Yes Minister, Last of the Summer Wine and Open All Hours. It sees Del trying to sell Christmas trees | ||||||
TBA | "Licensed to Drill" | Malcolm Taylor | Malcolm Taylor | N/A | N/A | 20 minutes |
Educational episode made in 1984 and only shown in schools. Del, Rodney, and Grandad discuss oil drilling | ||||||
TBA | "White Mice" | TBA | TBA | 24 December 1985 | N/A | 5 minutes |
In a spoof documentary, Del is investigated by a BBC consumer expert. Shown on BBC Breakfast Time in 1985. | ||||||
TBA | "Royal Variety Show" | TBA | TBA | 27 November 1988 | N/A | 10 minutes |
Whilst delivering some dodgy goods, Del, Rodney and Uncle Albert inadvertently walk in to the Royal Variety Show | ||||||
TBA | "The Robin Flies at Dawn" | Gareth Gwenlan | TBA | N/A | N/A | 15 minutes |
Del, Rodney and Uncle Albert deliver a goodwill message to British troops serving in the 1990-91 Gulf War | ||||||
TBA | "Comic Relief Special" | TBA | TBA | 14 March 1997 | 10.6 million | 10 minutes |
An appeal for donations for Comic Relief |
Notes
- ^ "Big Brother". BBC.
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- ^ "Sleepless in Peckham". BBC.
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References
- Clark, Steve (1998). The Only Fools and Horses Story. BBC Books. ISBN 0-563-38445-X.
- Webber, Richard (2003). The Complete A-Z of Only Fools and Horses. Orion. ISBN 0-7528-6025-9.