Sir David Jason is open to an Only Fools and Horses revival.
Sir David Jason is open to an Only Fools and Horses return
The veteran actor played Derek 'Del Boy' Trotter on the beloved comedy series from 1981–2003 and while he doesn't think anyone can match the "genius" of late showrunner John Sullivan - who died in 2011 - he would play the character again if the right script was sent his way.
He told the Daily Telegraph newspaper: “But the problem [with a TV revival] is that the man who created it is no longer with us.
"He wrote every episode and just happened to be a genius. I’m not so sure that we have a writer clever enough to take on his mantle. No one could write the characters like he could.”
But asked if the right script did come along, he added: “Well yeah, providing we have a good script, let’s go for it!”
David lamented the fact very few comedy shows are filmed in front of a live audience these days.
He said: “I learnt the trade in front of a live audience in the theatre.
"Only Fools and Horses and Open All Hours, those were in front of a live audience. And that gives you a flavour of a real-time audience reaction, which teaches you two things: what works and what doesn’t, and how to time certain things.
"Because when a line gets a reaction, you’ve got to know how to handle that so that you remain real for the audience while also timing the next piece that comes along. It’s quite a complicated process.”
And the 86-year-old actor criticised the fact audiences are "too sensitive", leading to comedy being censored and losing its way.
He said: “You should be able to laugh at a character, regardless of where you come from in society.
“But people are too sensitive now. Yet if we can’t laugh at ourselves, we are in danger of losing our sense of comedy, which is old-fashioned British joke-telling in the nicest possible way. Too many people have too much influence. You can get a person sacked simply by what you say [about them] on the internet. It’s a difficult one.”
But his own work, including on Open All Hours, has avoided such criticism.
He said: "Not one person has ever complained about any show that I have done. No one has said they didn’t believe in it or didn’t enjoy it.”
Tagged in John Sullivan Sir David Jason