Only Fools and Horses

The Only Fools and Horses episode which was David Jason’s ‘favourite’ to make because he got to play two different characters

This episode Miami Twice was a spark of genius

David Jason loved his starring role as Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses, which he proudly played throughout all seven seasons of the old school BBC sitcom. In fact, David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst (aka Rodney Trotter) were so diligently dedicated to their roles they ended up being the only actors who appeared in all 65 episodes of the comedy.

But all good actors like a new challenge now and again, and Jason has admitted his favourite episode of Only Fools they ever filmed was one in which he got to play another character, as well as Del Boy. The comedy veteran said he absolutely loved playing two different characters in the 1991 special episode ‘Miami Twice’.

In the hilarious outing, the title of which is a play on the the 80s American TV series Miami Vice, the Trotters take a trip to Miami, where they hire a camper van and set off on a road trip. Predictably, it’s not long before the trouble-prone brothers find themselves in a sticky situation, inadvertently wrapped up with the Miami-based Mafia.

In a spark of genius, Del Boy ‘just happens’ to be a dead ringer for Miami Mafia boss Don Vincenzo Occhetti. Del is spotted by the Don’s sons, who hatch a plan when they realise their dodgy dad has a cockney doppelgänger in town. The boys figure, if they play their cards right, they could use Del to get their lookalike old man off the hook for the many crimes he’s on trial for.

David Jason as the Del Boy lookalike Mafia boss Don Vincenzo Occhetti in 'Miami Twice'
David Jason said he loved playing both roles in the episode (Image: BBC)

Revealing their plan to their terrifying Mafia boss dad, played brilliantly by a thick-accented David Jason, one of them tells the Don: “This guy looks just like you,” as an unimpressed Jason replies: “Last year I went to the zoo and I saw a camel that looked just like your mother but I didn’t invite it home and put it in the guest suite. So there’s a guy who looks like me, what’s the big deal?”

But the Don soon realises what the “big deal” is, when the boys share their plan to have Del Boy dressed up as the Don and publicly bumped off, apparently by a rival family, with the cops watching. The real Don could then slip quietly off the radar for a couple of years, they explain, have some plastic surgery, and return as “Uncle Carlos.” Watch the clip here.

David Jason as Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses
David Jason as Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses (Image: BBC)

As the brilliant plot unfolds, David Jason smashes both roles as he plays the murderous Mafioso boss and an unwitting Del Boy dodging various assassination attempts as he and Rodney are forced to go on the run. It’s no wonder the episode went on to become David Jason’s favourite they ever filmed.

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