Sir David Jason reveals he’s ‘haunted’ by Del Boy as he struggles to shake off legendary character
HE played Only Fools And Horses’ Del Boy for over two decades of his career on screen – so there’s little surprise that David Jason has had some trouble shaking him off.
Now the actor has revealed he’s haunted by the legendary character.
David told the Radio Times: “You walk around with the ghost of Del Boy on your shoulder or behind you, peering over your shoulder saying, ‘Go on. Tell her Bonjour’.
“And I’m thinking, ‘Will you shut up!?’ But that is what the character would do. He’d say, ‘Well, bonjour, bonjour! Bonnet de douche?’”
The actor is haunted by the character in his career too, admitting he’s been struggling to shake off Del Boy, or A Touch of Frost’s detective Jack for something new.
David added: “I’m trying desperately to convince producers and directors that I’ve got many characters still left to play, because senior actors have got a tremendous amount to offer.
“My biggest reward has been having such a fulfilling career for so many years.
“That’s what drove Derek Trotter too; when he became a millionaire he didn’t have the same chase.
“He realised then that riches can be counted in so many ways. Although it does help to have a few ponies in the bank.”
David might have written about his life before, but he has been persuaded to add to his autobiographies by penning one more memoir, called This Time Next Year: A Life of Positive Thinking.
He has opened up on the discovery of a long-lost daughter and his first grandchild.
At the end of 2022, Jason received a letter from an actress called Abi Harris, then 52, who shared her hunch that he was her father – the result of a brief relationship with her mother, actress Jennifer Hill in early 1970.
Jason and his wife of 19 years, Gill, have welcomed Abi and her young son Charlie into the family following a positive paternity test. David added: “Time is helping with us all getting to know each other.
“Apart from the occasional mutual friend’s get-togethers, I hadn’t seen Jenny for many years.
“But it must be comforting for Abi to know that her true story had come full circle and her mum had confirmation before her death.”