Ashes to Ashes (Only Fools and Horses)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources. (January 2008)
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.


Only Fools and Horses episode
"Ashes to Ashes"
Series	2
Writer	John Sullivan
Director	Ray Butt
Producer	Ray Butt
Duration	30 minutes
Airdate	28 October 1982
Audience	9.8 million

"Ashes to Ashes" is an episode of the BBC sit-com, Only Fools and Horses. It was the second episode of series 2, and was first screened on 28 October 1982. The episode title was based on the Christian funeral service sentence "ashes to ashes, dust to dust."

[edit] Synopsis

As Del Boy and Rodney are at business as usual, Trigger comes up and asks them if they'll attend the funeral of his grandmother Alice. After discovering that they will be the only other mourners, the Trotters agree.

Later, after the funeral, Del, Rodney, Trigger, and Grandad hang out at Alice's house, and Trigger tells the Trotters that his father died a few years before he was born, as well as the story of how Alice flirted with someone else while her husband Arthur was away fighting in the war. Among the many things in the house are two urns that Del can sell.

That night at the flat, as Del comes to the conclusion that the urns are valuable, Grandad looks in one of the urns to see the ashes of Trigger's grandfather Arthur. Then, Grandad comes clean as he tells his grandsons that he was the other man who Alice flirted with while Arthur was away, because his wife had left him at the time. And when Arthur found out, he pointed a bony finger at Grandad and told him: "Trotter, someday, somehow, I'm gonna come back and haunt you!" Del and Rodney do not believe that Arthur's ghost could've found Grandad, and go to bed.

Later that night, at 3:00am, Del comes out of the bathroom, just to eavesdrop in on Grandad talking to the urn with Arthur's ashes in it. Del decides to wind Grandad up by talking through a traffic cone, making Grandad think that Arthur's ghost is really talking to him. But unfortunately, Rodney is awakened by the noise and scares Del from behind. Grandad finally has enough and demands that Del and Rodney get the ashes out of the flat. But, Del and Rodney can't get hold of Trigger, since he's on holiday in Ireland. Grandad suggests scattering Arthur's ashes at his old hangout, the Peckham Bowling Green tomorrow night.

The next night, at the bowling club, Del and Rodney decide to scatter the ashes evenly while saying a prayer, but unfortunately, they don't get to do so as the clubhouse lights up and the players arrive. The Trotter brothers quickly leg it into the night.

The next morning, Del Boy and Rodney try to pour Arthur's ashes into the water at St Katharine Docks, but are stopped by the river police from doing so.

After failing to pour the ashes into a cement mixer, the Trotters get lucky when a council cleaning lorry sucks up the ashes from the urn. Del is convinced that it makes sense since Arthur used to be a roadsweeper, but Rodney isn't sure.

When they get back home, Grandad tells Del and Rodney that Trigger received their calls, since he's fogbound at the airport. Trigger tells Del something that Grandad forgot to mention: Trigger's grandmother Alice was married twice! Del then shows Grandad the other urn which of course is full of ashes.

[edit] Episode cast

Actor	Role
David Jason	Del Boy
Nicholas Lyndhurst	Rodney
Lennard Pearce	Grandad
Roger Lloyd Pack	Trigger
John D. Collins	River policeman
Terry Duggan	Cleansing lorry driver