John Sullivan (I)

We've known for a while that there wouldn't be any more Only Fools And Horses. But creator John Sullivan is happy to wind back the clock instead, taking us back 50 years for this feature-length comedy-drama, focusing on the Trotter family's early years.

Set in the less-than-swinging Peckham of 1960, the story centres on glamorous (in a low-budget kind of way) cinema usherette Joan Trotter, played by Kellie Bright, along with waste-of-space husband Reg (Shaun Dingwall) and their teenage lad Derek - hanging out with pals Boycie, Trigger, Denzil and Jumbo Mills and already showing entrepreneurial tendencies.

Only Fools' Nicholas Lyndhurst is "art connoisseur" Freddie Robdal, fresh out of jail and set to cause ructions in the Trotter household.

You won't get any clues from the terrible title, but this feature-length chunk of rosy 1960s nostalgia is a "prequel" to the beloved Only Fools and Horses, which left our screens for good in 2003. Doubtless there'll be a ready-made audience of millions for John Sullivan's fond look at the beginnings of Del and Rodney Trotter, and their hopelessly small-time business empire. As for anyone else, it will depend on your tolerance of cheery cockney wide boys and diamond geezers. There's no David Jason - Rock & Chips' Del Boy is a cheeky, mouthy fresh-faced teenager who's already a bit of a wheeler-dealer - as this is really the story of Del and Rodney's sainted mum, Joan (Kellie Bright), a beehived, brassy, hard-working woman who's married to a layabout. But Joan's head is turned with the return to Peckham of the suave crook Freddie Robdal after ten years in Dartmoor. He's played by Nicholas Lyndhurst and Only Fools devotees will be in on the joke straightaway, as they all know that Freddie "the Frog" was Rodders' dad. Don't expect broad Only Fools belly-laughs, though; just gentle smiles of recognition.

John Sullivan's one-off drama sees the return to TV of his most famous creations, the Trotters of Only Fools and Horses (which still holds the British record for biggest sitcom audience, over 24 million for the 1996 Christmas episode Time on Our Hands). Set in 1960, this focuses on the family's early years in Peckham, with Shaun Dingwall as bone-idle Trotter paterfamilias Reg, Kelly Bright as his wife Joan and James Buckley as a youthful Del Boy. Nicholas Lyndhurst (who played Rodney in the original Only Fools), though, is the undoubted centre of attention in the role of Freddie "The Frog" Robdal, a charming geezer-about-town whose roving eye has settled on the lovely Mrs T...

John Sullivan's 90-minute prequel to Only Fools and Horses turned out to be the wonderful surprise of the week. With no laughter track and a minimum of slapstick, it is very different in tone to Only Fools and Horses. Rather than going for broad laughter, it concentrates instead on an affair between the unhappily married Joan Trotter (Kellie Bright) and a local crook (Nicholas Lyndhurst) fresh out of prison. It is a simple and touching love story played out against the backdrop of a pre-Beatles Britain, when money was short and the chance to move into a high-rise tower block was seen as the epitome of luxury. Helped by a strong supporting cast that includes Phil Daniels and Shaun Dingwall, Rock & Chips works on its terms, and will explain much about why Del and Rodney turned out the way they did.

Do only fools and sci-fi writers make prequels?

Rock & Chips has presumably been made with an eye to turning it into a series. And here's hoping that happens. After all, given the hopelessly misjudged OFAH Christmas specials and The Green Green Grass, it seems fairly obvious that John Sullivan is determined to keep meddling with the corpse of Only Fools & Horses until it belches out another hit.

John Sullivan on Rock & Chips

Rock & Chips is advertised as the prequel to Only Fools and Horses, but it's much more than just a prequel. It's an opportunity to solve many mysteries, bury some lies and put a few ghosts to rest.

British sitcoms have gone downhill says John Sullivan

British sitcoms are in the doldrums and rely on swearing to get cheap laughs, according to John Sullivan, the creator of Only Fools and Horses.

It's the Trotters' Phantom Menace

In resurrecting classic and beloved characters with a poorly conceived prequel, is John Sullivan aping George Lucas?

How do we feel about this? Personally, the idea behind it doesn't sound too bad, but I have little faith in John Sullivan these days. Only Fools & Horses was a classic that was unwisely brought back for specials after the perfect ending of the 1996 special (where the Trotters finally became millionaires), but a lot of its early success was down to David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst and the rest of the cast.

I'm not sure how a prequel could ever duplicate the original cast's chemistry. Really, it feels like Sullivan is all out of ideas. He's already spent the past few years writing Only Fools spin-off The Green Green Grass (focusing on supporting character Boycie moving his family to a rural mansion), and that's arguably one of the worst sitcoms around today. The fact it enjoys fairly healthy ratings just beggars belief, but I guess there aren't many sitcoms catering for the over-50s today.

Oh well. I'm at least interested, because the idea doesn't sound too terrible on paper. If John Sullivan can somehow find his spark and they cast great actors in these roles, it stands a chance. In particular, they need to find someone who can do a passable Del Boy impression as the teenage Trotter, and it would be nice to imagine Jason himself agreeing to play his own screen father Reg. Or is he clever enough to keep his distance?

From Peckham to paradise

Will an Only Fools and Horses spin-off tickle our funny bones? The Independent talks to its creator, John Sullivan, and the cast.