Birmingham Hippodrome – until 12th April 2025
Reviewed by Emma Millward
5*****
First hitting British TV screens in 1981, John Sullivan’s Only Fools and Horses soon cemented its place as one of the nation’s most beloved sitcoms. The show still holds the record for the biggest UK audience for a sitcom, when 24.3 million viewers tuned in to watch the 1996 episode ‘Time on Our Hands’. It was somewhat inevitable that the show would take to the stage. Although John Sullivan had toyed with the idea before his death in 2011, his son Jim Sullivan decided to make it a reality and approached Paul Whitehouse to join him on writing duties for both the script/score and lyrics for the show, with additional lyrics by Chas Hodge of Chas & Dave fame. They took on the task of condensing 64 episodes of the show into a two-hour play. The show premiered in 2019 at Theatre Royal Haymarket, London.
Set in Peckham in 1989, the show tells the story of Derek ‘Del Boy’ Trotter (Sam Lupton), his younger brother Rodney (Tom Major, making his professional debut), and their Grandad (Paul Whitehouse) and the weird and wonderful people that surround them. As the lights went down, we were immediately greeted with familiar sights and sounds from the TV show. The Nags Head pub in the background, the marketplace where Del sells his dubious wares, and of course the Trotters’ flat in Nelson Mandela House were among the cleverly used revolving sets (designed by Alice Power) and video backgrounds (designed by Leo Flint).
The main storylines centre around Del meeting his future wife Raquel (Amanda Coutts) through a dating agency, Technomatch. We also get to see Rodney and Cassandra (Nicola Munns) planning their upcoming wedding. Del lands himself in trouble when he does an ill-advised deal with local hardmen, Danny Driscoll (Christopher Arkeston) and Tony Driscoll (Darryl Paul), to get Rodney and Cassandra the money for a deposit on the flat of their dreams. There are references to the original show throughout, from the era-appropriate costumes (Liz Ascroft) to Trigger’s famous broom, a chandelier, and a certain yellow vehicle may just make an appearance too.
Along the way, we see plenty of well-known characters from the show: the eternally confused Trigger (Lee VG), Denzil (Bradley John), and Boycie (Craig Berry) and his flamboyant wife, Marlene (Nicola Munns in a dual role). Some characters get their own songs, such as the charming ‘Tadpole Song’ that Boycie and Marlene sing at the fertility clinic. While Trigger slightly baffles everyone with ‘Gaze into My Ball,’ a song about fortune telling! I think they hit the perfect balance with the songs: the mix of lively ‘knees-up’ music mixed with heartfelt ballads, with a few old, familiar tunes thrown in for good measure, including ‘Lovely Day’ by Bill Withers and ‘Holding Back the Years’ by Mick Hucknall (sang beautifully by Gloria Acquaah-Harrison). Of course, it wouldn’t be Only Fools and Horses without the original theme tune ‘Hooky Street’ and some classic Chas & Dave tunes thrown in!!
The show has an incredibly versatile ensemble cast, many of whom play dual roles. However, Sam Lupton as Del Boy inevitably steals the show. His performance and mannerisms are spot on. He manages to avoid going down the impressionist route of just mimicking David Jason. All in all. It’s a show filled with laughter, questionable French phrases, and songs that will remain stuck in your head for a very long time!