- Dates (Only Fools and Horses)
-
Only Fools and Horses episode "Dates" Series Christmas Special Writer John Sullivan Director Tony Dow Producer Gareth Gwenlan Duration 80 minutes - 1:19:47 (DVD)
- 1:19:53 (iTunes)
Airdate 25 December, 1988 Audience 16.6 million "Dates" is the seventh Christmas special episode of the BBC sitcom, Only Fools and Horses, first screened on 25 December 1988.
Contents
Synopsis
The Trotters have been earning a lot of money recently, and Albert's birthday is coming up, though Del Boy and Rodney pretend to have forgotten. Meanwhile, after being impressed by a girl Trigger has met through a local dating agency, Del himself decides to sign up for it. Styling himself "Derek Duvall", managing director of a successful import and export business, he meets an aspiring actress named Raquel Turner. The two get on well and agree to meet again. Del asks Raquel to join him at Albert's upcoming birthday party, but she declines, citing an acting class she has to attend.
Rodney also arranges a date, with Nag's Head barmaid "Nervous Nerys", and is tricked into leading a wild and dangerous persona by Mickey Pearce to impress her. Rodney dresses as James Dean and drives recklessly as they are pursued by a gang of punks, which leads to a high-speed chase. They race past two police officers at temporary traffic signals. The police officers vow to apprehend the driver of the 'yellow, three-wheeled van'.
For the entertainment at Albert's party, it emerges that Del has hired a stripper, who turns out to be Raquel. The two recognise each other, and, humiliated, Del storms out of the pub and tells Raquel he doesn't want to see her again before changing his mind again. Raquel tells him that she plans to go and work in the Middle East, and that if he is still interested in her, he should visit her before the flight leaves. Del plans to go, but encounters the two police officers still looking for the owner of the yellow van (he had been pointed out by someone else). Believing the female police officer to be a stripper hired by Albert, Del rips her blouse open, and is arrested.
Heartbroken, Raquel leaves for the Middle East just as Del is taken into custody.
First appearances
- Raquel Turner
- Nerys (barmaid)
Music
- Status Quo : Burning Bridges
- Sade : Nothing Can Come Between Us
- Sade : Clean Heart
- Sade : Haunt Me
- Aswad : Smokey Blues
- The Christians : Sad Songs
External links
Preceded by
"Royal Variety Show"Only Fools and Horses
25 December, 1988Succeeded by
"Yuppy Love"1980s "Christmas Crackers" (1981) · "Diamonds Are for Heather" (1982) · "Thicker than Water" (1983) · "To Hull and Back" (1985) · "A Royal Flush" (1986) · "The Frog's Legacy" (1987) · "Dates" (1988) · "The Jolly Boys' Outing" (1989)1990s "Rodney Come Home" (1990) · "Miami Twice" (1991) · "Mother Nature's Son" (1992) · "Fatal Extraction" (1993) · "Heroes and Villains" (1996) · "Modern Men" (1996) · "Time On Our Hands" (1996)2000s Categories:- Only Fools and Horses episodes
- Christmas television episodes
- 1988 television episodes
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