So Why does Andrew Duthie Love only Fools and Horses? He tells ofah.net…
There are many reasons that the title of this blog rings true for me. The writing; the acting; the stories; the sheer genius of it all but the main thing for me – the numerous laughs, most of them belly, that Only Fools and Horses provides.
This may seem to be obvious, Only Fools and Horses is a comedy, so surely the laughter is the best part? Well yes, but for me it is more than just because I find it funny. It is because my family find it funny.
The first time I can genuinely remember my Dad laughing, and I mean really laughing, uncontrollably, was watching Only Fools and Horses. The joy that gave me as a child, to see my Dad bent over in laughter, crying, made me become an Only Fools and Horses fan instantly. I began watching the repeats when they were on and I instantly became a fan myself.
It wasn’t just my Dad. When I first began work, I found myself still living at home with lots of disposal income. Lunchtimes were spent in Milton Keynes Shopping Centre (I never did bump into Raquel’s brother sadly), browsing the videos and creating my own collection of Only Fools and Horses episodes which only ended when I had bought them all, I have of course since bought them all on DVD and I will buy them all on whatever the new format is in 20 years time. Anyway, I digress, of an evening if I was not out, which to be honest, I wasn’t usually, I would sit with my Mum (Dad was usually asleep on the sofa) and watch episode after episode, night after night…and it is these memories that I treasure most dearly, both of us laughing together at a great programme.
Love of Only Fools
Since then I have had girlfriends, not all of whom shared my love of the show, but I am now married to my beautiful wife who is discovering the show in its entirety for the first time, so hearing her laugh for the first time at jokes I still laugh at, 50 viewings later, again takes me back to those days as a young child and the happiness it brings. When we got married, she even hired the three wheel van to drive me to the ceremony – a stroke of genius.
Now we are married, thoughts naturally turn to starting your own family. The roles will be changed, I will be the Dad, laughing away and I hope that my son or daughter will share in the same joy I felt all those years ago as laughter filled the room. I am sure it will happen, and for this reason Only Fools and Horses will be in the British public’s consciousness for so many years to come.
So it is for this, above all other reasons, that I love Only Fools and Horses. It is a part of my life. It brings with it numerous happy memories and just hearing the theme tune transports me to an oasis of joy. And for that, I thank everyone involved, John Sullivan for the stories and the actors for bringing it to life in such an outstanding way. No other programme has come near to it, or ever will, as far as I am concerned.
This is the great thing about Only fools and horses, your children will almost definitely love it, and they can enjoy watching through it all numerous times, and then in 30 years, they will pass it on to their children.
Only fools and horses is timeless, It can be enjoyed equally by a 10 year old and an 80 year old, it brings together families like no other Television show can.
I would compare Only fools and horses to watching old Camcorder Videos, they bring back happy memories, Funny Memories and even Sad memories, OFAH really is like family in some ways.
Nice Article.
Glad you enjoyed the article, the fact someone actually read it means a lot. You are right, OFAH brings back all sorts of memories. There is something in the whole series that you can associate to your own life – family, marriage, birth of children, relationship programmes, friends, lack of money and being flush. All of this while still being laugh out loud funny, and not being a ‘safe’ sitcom that so many of todays modern mainstream comedies are.