Sickness and Wealth

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Only Fools and Horses episode
"Sickness and Wealth"
Series 6
Writer John Sullivan
Director Tony Dow
Producer Gareth Gwenlan
Duration 50 minutes
  • 49:07: (iTunes)
  • 56:43 (extended version, DVD)
Airdate 5 February 1989
Audience 18.2 million

"Sickness and Wealth" is an episode of the BBC sit-com, Only Fools and Horses. It was the fifth episode of series 6, and was first broadcast on 5 February 1989. In the episode, Del is suffering from stomach cramps, but refuses to see a doctor. Elsewhere, Del organises a seance.

Synopsis

Del Boy is suffering from a mysterious illness that is giving him stomach pains, but he refuses to admit to it or go to see a doctor because he is scared of them. He is also under a great deal of stress; his recent line in awful women's summer fashion hasn't been selling well with all the frost and sleet and he so has not been able to pay the rent on the flat. In spite of the fact that he, Rodney, and Albert are facing the possibility of eviction, Del is still living the yuppy lifestyle, eating in the curry houses and bistros, and drinking and buying rounds in wine bars and pubs, all on the slate, causing further debts.

Over a Chinese Del learns that Albert's new girlfriend Elsie Partridge used to be a medium in the 1960s and thinks their toilet is haunted (though it could be because the council have put their extractor fan in the wrong way around), and he instantly sees it as a chance to make money and the answer to his financial worries.

Having convinced Elsie Partridge, Del holds a 'dummy run' séance with all the regular cast (Trigger, Boycie, Rodney, Mike and Uncle Albert) in the hall above the Nag's Head pub. Mike is concerned about 'messing with the forces of darkness' but Del and Boycie laugh off his and Rodney’s concerns. At the séance Elsie gives Boycie a message from his father that Boycie must look after his child (it was previous established that Boycie and his wife Marlene could not have children) and then gives Del a message from his late mother Joan prompting him to go to doctors. Del still refuses to believe in Elsie until Marlene announces she's pregnant, thus confirming his fears that he may be genuinely ill (the message from Joan was actually a plot by Albert to make Del see sense, as he tells Elsie that the only person Del would ever listen to was his mother).

Del goes to see his GP, Dr. Meadows, only to find he's left general practice and gone to work at the local hospital, and a young Indian woman has taken his place. Del's nervous jokes fail to impress her and during the examination he lies to her repeatedly about his life-style, pretending he is a tee-total, celibate health-nut and non-smoker. She sends him to hospital thinking he might have a grumbling appendix but after testing Del the doctors prove this false and can't seem to find what's wrong him. In a discussion in the Nag's Head, Uncle Albert suggests it might be Green Parrot Disease.

Rodney, Albert, and Cassandra visit Del in hospital, and Del worries that he might have caught AIDS (although he never states the illness by name) from his promiscuous past (and a male hairdresser called Jason). He also finds out that the 'pukka seance' went badly wrong after a mix-up because of Del's posters, which led people to think they were seeing an Iron Maiden-esque band instead of Elsie Partridge (though as Rodney quips "Fortunately she remained in a trance throughout the riot!").

Whilst still worrying about his health, Del is finally approached by his former GP, Robbie Meadows. Having heard Del's name crop up in conversations with his colleagues, Meadows has asked to see Del's medical file and has subsequently been put in charge of his case, being as Del is his former patient. Knowing Del as he does, and that he is not in fact the celibate health-freak he has made himself out to be to the other doctors, Meadows is quickly able to diagnose Del with having Irritable Bowel Syndrome caused by his stressful, unhealthy lifestyle. Meadows mildly scolds Del for lying to his GP, telling him that because he had not been truthful about his lifestyle, Del had confused the doctors handling his case since they believed they were dealing with the "perfect man", and had he been honest from the start his diagnosis would have taken far less time. Warning him to actively lead a healthier lifestyle, Meadows then reveals that he has phoned the Council and got them to give Del some breathing space with regard to his rent arrears. He then discharges Del, who after an initial macho posture of claiming that he knew he was really alright, breaks down in relief.

A few days later, back at Nelson Mandela House, a housebound Del is disgusted at his Muesli diet and taking it easy but is getting better, until Rodney comes home and announces he is getting married.

Story arc

  • The character Elsie Partridge, mentioned in the previous episode "The Unlucky Winner Is...", makes her only appearance in this episode. She would be continued to be mentioned throughout the series as Albert's "girlfriend", and in "If They Could See Us Now", it was revealed the pair had moved to the coast together.
  • Mickey Pearce and Jevon tell Boyce in this episode that they have started trading together, it is them that sell Del the phones that get him into trouble with the Driscoll Brothers in the following episode "Little Problems". Likewise Rodney announces his marriage which takes place in the same episode.
  • This episode also began the sub-plot of Marlene's pregnancy, changing it from Boycie and Marlene's desperation for a child. Their son Tyler would later make a number of appearances in the show and later was a character in the spin-off series The Green Green Grass.

Edits and Alterations

A repeat that aired on 5th March 2013 on BBC One removed around two seconds of dialog referring to the disgraced TV and Radio personality Jimmy Savile. This was done as a response to sexual abuse allegations against the late DJ. However, subsequent repeats of the episode have aired intact on the digital Channel G.O.L.D.

Music

Further reading

  • Clark, Steve (1998). The Only Fools and Horses Story. BBC Books. ISBN 0-563-38445-X. 
  • Webber, Richard (2003). The Complete A-Z of Only Fools and Horses. Orion. ISBN 0-7528-6025-9. 

External links

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