The end of T.I.T.s as we know it (Only Fools And Horses - Sleepless In Peckham (DVD))

Member Name: blissman70

Product:	Only Fools And Horses - Sleepless In Peckham (DVD)
Date:	26/05/09 (53 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: great humour, fine story and brillaint acting

Disadvantages: one or two scenes coul dhave been chopped off

Director Tony Dow
Producer Gareth Gwenlan
Writer: John Sullivan.
Stars: Jason David, Nicholas Lyndhurst, Tessa Peake-Jones and Gwyneth Strong.

This third in the trilogy of Christmas specials is 75 minutes long and was first aired on Christmas day 2003 and is the final ever episode of the Only Fools and Horses saga, being released on DVD in 2004.


**BRIEF PLOT...

Cassandra, (Gwyneth Strong) is heavily pregnant and her hormones are causing chaos in the Trotter flat, especially for the ever stressed Rodney, (Nicholas Lyndhurst).
Meanwhile, Del, (David Jason) and Raquel, (Tessa Peake-Jones) are becoming more nervous as the deadline for eviction is approaching, and with Del being unable to find the money for the Tax bill the Trotters future is not looking good at all.
And with everyone is trying to come up with money making ideas, such as Del and Rodney scripting the next blockbuster movie and even Trigger, (Roger Lloyd Pack) coming up with an idea involving two chopsticks and a hinge, the Trotter future is looking a little doomed

Also, rumours of wrong doings are soon circulating when Marlene, (Sue Holderness) and Denzil, (Paul Barber) are not being seen for a while, but when one of them turns up the rumours turn with murderous intent, until a surprise at an anniversary party in the Nags Head brings out a couple of rather large surprises.
And things get a little strange for Rodney when he is shown a photograph from one of the Jolly Boys outing in the 60's, with a young Del, Boycie, Trigger, Mike and the rest of the Nags Head regulars at the time, discovering something about his past.

So with the Trotters on the verge of homelessness, Rodney and Cassandra on the verge of parenthood and Rodney uncovering his true past, the futures looking to be the usual ups and downs for them all....

What will the finale to the Only Fools saga have in store for the Trotter family...???


** IN CONCLUSION...

It is another brilliantly funny show and I certainly enjoyed watching this one almost as much as others in the entire series, although it does have a few more negative points than many other episodes.

Firstly, let's talk about the positives...
It is the usual style of Sullivan, bringing in the bad luck to the ever so hard up and struggling Del 'Boy' Trotter and his younger brother Rodney.
Sullivan continues to write in the style that the Only Fools fans have become accustomed to over the many years that it has been on air, the way he manages to bring several mini stories into one brilliant tale, with so much comedy stuffed in and, in this one, a rather good twist towards the end.

Again, with Sullivan's style of writing, it is the little things that create the most laugh, and in this show is no different than that, with many little scenes with such hilarity, such as Del clearing the site around his mothers grave, wearing his marigolds and holding a tin, and the hilarious scenes in the Nags Head when a couple of surprises walk through the doors.

The characters have matured nicely, growing old gracefully, even Del seems to be settling down into his relationship with Raquel, and with Rodney and Cassandra becoming parents the ending is simply splendid and a nice ending for the Trotter saga.

The all round acting is again brilliant, even if the cast have aged somewhat, especially David Jason with his 'just for men' hair repair look, but he still manages to bring out the old style Del throughout the episode, continuing to do a brilliant job as the ducking and diving 'wide boy'.
Lyndhurst remains the serious brother, with a quick wit and a dry sense of humour, bringing many laughs throughout.
Peake-Jones and Strong continue to act their parts out brilliantly as the ruffled partners of the Trotter terrors, there quick comments and dry wit really do fit into the show very well indeed.

But as I have always said, it is the supporting cast that can make a show as popular and as comical as it is, and the supporting cast of Only fools have always been somewhat special throughout the saga, with this episode being no different.
Barber as the stressed out Denzil, Challis as the arrogant Boycie, Holderness as the dippy Marlene, Lloyd Pack as the not so clever Trigger. They all play there parts brilliantly well indeed, always have done and continue to do so.

Unfortunately, as I said, it has a few negative points, but nothing to really spoil the actual entertainment of the show.
In fact, whilst watching this I did sometimes feel that a few scenes were a little dragged out and could have been edited or even left out altogether, one scene in particular being Triggers incident with a UFO whilst in the Nags Head, this was just shear stupidity, even for Trigger.

In all, a rather brilliant finale to what has become a household name. This final show close the door on Trotter Independent Traders for ever, and also answers the question which many fans have been wanting to ask for many years...why do Del and Rodney look nothing like each other..???
It is a fine story, albeit a little dragged out in places, and it leaves the Trotters in our hearts and minds.

If you want to get a copy of this then get it from www.amazon.co.uk for less than £7.00, which, although having no extras on the Disc, is value for money in my book.

NOTE:
You can buy this episode together with 'If they could see us know' and 'Strangers on the shore' in a trilogy box set for less than £12.00, which for nearly four hours of fun on 3 DVDs is even better value for money.

Summary: The Trotter tale is at an end