Del - Brace yourself, Rodney. Brace yourself.
Where do you start on an episode as iconic as this one?
Before we get on to the climax of the episode, series and one of the greatest comedy scenes of all time, let’s explore the character builds and jokes that build this episode up to make that moment as funny as it can be.
Similar to the beginning of the series when it’s cop vs robber, this episode has the contrasts dialled up to 11 in a different way. In fact, there is fantastic juxtaposition throughout this entire episode. The porcelain cat compared to Lady Ridgemere’s Dresden, the (now randomly exploding) three-wheeled van and the flat in a tower block contrasted to the Lord & Lady’s car and Ridgemere Hall, the educated establishment vs the working class, Wallis the Butler and Grandad as different examples of elderly characters...
All of this, as per The Long Legs of the Law, brings out the best in our main characters and how they behave, react and deal with the scenarios that their counterparts offer them. After 2 series of Del’s image and status obsessed life, we have him mixing in with the elites, and his aspirations get carried away so much so that he would so anything to grab a slice of the action. Del, the eternal optimist, sniffs an opportunity form the get go “there’s gotta be an earner in it!”
There’s a nice balance between Del and then Rodney and Grandad who are far more suspicious and sceptical - both in that his Lordship would accept them into his life in any manner, and whether they have the capability of doing what is required and also fitting into that way of life. These points are brilliantly demonstrated in the two pieces of dialogue below:
Grandad - No, they think we’re peasants!
Del - Peasants? What do you mean ‘peasants’? They may think that you two are peasants! Well come to that I think you two are peasants!
Grandad - ‘No bodging’. I think he lacks faith in you, Del Boy!
As we get to the final famous scene, it is a failure on all parts that leads to the catastrophe of the wrong chandelier coming down. There have been numerous shows discussing this detail at length, such as how they only had the one chandelier to break and so one take to shoot, and had to hold in their laughter on the set. David Jason mentions wanting to make the audience think that the chandelier was going to make them fall off the ladder.
What I have found to be most unbelievable is that the story for this scene comes from John Sullivan’s father, a plumber who recalled having to take down 2 chandeliers down in a large manor house due to the extent of their work. The moment occurred just as it did in the episode where one team was unscrewing the wrong chandelier. It’s a lesson for us all in communicating clearly with others.
Series 2 ends with a literal bang. It is the culmination of all we have seen to from the characters summed up in one 30 minute episode. You could even show this episode to brand new watchers and they would understand all that they needed to know about Only Fools.
Next episode: Diamonds are for Heather (1982 Christmas Special)
No comments:
Post a Comment