Mother Nature's Son (Only Fools and Horses)

Only Fools and Horses episode
"Mother Nature's Son"
Series	Christmas Special
Writer	John Sullivan
Director	Tony Dow
Producer	Gareth Gwenlan
Duration	65 minutes
Airdate	25 December 1992
Audience	20.1 million

"Mother Nature's Son" is a Christmas special episode of the BBC sit-com Only Fools and Horses. It was first broadcast on 25 December 1992.

Synopsis

With Christmas coming, Del's application to buy the Trotter family's council flat in "Yuppy Love" has finally been granted, albeit rather late and suddenly, meaning he now owns the flat but is not as able to pay the mortgage as he was in "Yuppy Love". He also inherits Grandad's old allotment and receives a summons from the council, ordering him to remove a public health hazard from his land. The health hazard turns out to be barrels containing an unknown yellow substance. Del enlists Trigger and Denzil to help him get rid of the yellow liquid by transporting it in Denzil's van to the "24 hour" council waste disposal depot (which is closed at night), although they ultimately dump it "in a pond."

Del accompanies Rodney to an organic health food shop owned by a wealthy gardening enthusiast named Myles. When he sees the high price of the store's produce, Del develops an interest in gardening and invites Myles to the allotment to advise him on growing vegetables. At the allotment, Myles notices a mysterious water source - which Del calls the Peckham Spring - and suggests that if the water is pure, it could be bottled and sold. However, unsighted by Myles, Rodney notices that the "spring water" is actually coming from a nearby tap connected to a hose and concealed by rocks. Del instructs Albert to take a sample of the water for laboratory testing but, being part of the scam, Albert uses bottled mineral water instead. The water receives a certificate of purity from Myles' committee, giving Del permission to sell it.

A production line is set up in the Trotters' flat, with Del filling up bottles from his kitchen tap. Peckham Spring Water quickly becomes one of Myles' biggest-selling products, and is given a trial at a major national supermarket. Sales are further boosted by the drought warnings issued by the local water board, who believe there is a serious underground leak due to the high volume of water being used by Del. The Trotters earn enough money for a Christmas holiday at the Grand Hotel, Brighton. In the final scene, as the Trotter family go to sleep in their hotel rooms, the BBC News reports that a local reservoir has been contaminated by the same yellow liquid dumped by Del, Denzil, and Trigger. As a blissfully unaware Del switches off the light, a bottle of Peckham Spring on his bedside table glows yellow.

Episode cast

Actor Role David Jason Del Boy Nicholas Lyndhurst Rodney Buster Merryfield Uncle Albert Tessa Peake-Jones Raquel Gwyneth Strong Cassandra Paul Barber Denzil John Challis Boycie Robert Glenister Myles Sue Holderness Marlene

Actor Role Kenneth MacDonald Mike Roger Lloyd Pack Trigger Robert Liddement Damien Denis Lill Alan Parry Tony Marshall Chris Patrick Murray Mickey Pearce Wanda Ventham Pamela Parry Richard Whitmore Newscaster

Episode concept

• The idea for the script was based on a real-life incident where people had their water supply closed as something had been dumped in a nearby reservoir.^[1]

See also

• Dasani, bottled water later found to be sourced from the water mains in Sidcup, and later still found to be contaminated with bromate.

• Robbie Williams appeared in this episode in the bar of the Nags Head wearing a wig to look like he had long hair.

Music

• Slade : Merry Xmas Everybody
• Carl Orff : O Fortuna from Carmina Burana
• Elton John : Crocodile Rock
• U2 : Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
• Take That : Could It Be Magic
• Bjorn Again : Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
• The Beatles : Money (That's What I Want)

Note: In the VHS/DVD versions, The Beatles' "Money" is replaced by a instrumental tune, and Carl Orff's "O Fortuna" is replaced by a similar sounding piece of music.

References

1. ^ Did You Know? ofah.net

External links

• "Mother Nature's Son" at bbc.co.uk

Preceded by "Miami Twice"

Only Fools and Horses 25 December 1992

Succeeded by "Fatal Extraction"