Sir David Jason admitted he had been left disappointed by Only Fools and Horses writer John Sullivan after he made a key change to the show in the later series. The 1996 Christmas Special, Time On Our Hands saw the Trotter brothers, Derek and Rodney (played by Nicholas Lyndhurst) become millionaires after selling an 18th Century Harrison marine watch at Sotheby's for £6.2 million, marking the fulfilment of Del's promise that “this time next year we'll be millionaires.
However, Sir David, who portrayed Del Boy, feels that this development was a misstep by writer John Sullivan, as Del's struggle to make ends meet was a key element, and it was hard to keep the show going once it had been achieved. John Sullivan brought back the sitcom for three more Christmas specials between 2001 and 2003. The later episodes saw Del and Rodney lose their fortune due to poor investments and return to their flat in Mandela House in Peckham, these episodes failed to recapture the original series' magic.
David shared at a fan convention: “It wasn't that John had run out of steam so much, but he was so used to working mentally with all of the characters, the style of the cut and thrust of learning to survive on the edge of disaster, as it were.” At a fan convention, he stated: “There was nowhere to go after the Trotters became millionaires and it all worked out. “It was the end of a journey and the journey was that struggle for survival.
“The struggle for the family, the way that they b.