Tessa Peake-Jones, the iconic star of Only Fools and Horses, has shared an exclusive and shocking insight into what it was like behind the scenes of the beloved BBC sitcom.
In an interview ahead of her upcoming stage role in the comedy drama Invisible Me, the actress, who played Raquel Turner, admitted that working on the show was “frightening” and never as easy as it seemed.
The beloved BBC show, which first aired in 1981, introduced us to the lovable Trotter family and became a national treasure. However, Tessa revealed that the pressure of performing in front of a live studio audience, coupled with the immense expectations, was no laughing matter.
“It’s really frightening because you have got several hundred people watching you. If people had seen us backstage before the show, they’d have seen people pacing up and down the corridors with nerves, including David [Jason] and Nick [Lyndhurst].”
The nerves were so palpable, Tessa confessed, “We cared so much, and we wanted to get it right, but one slip-up of a word could ruin that laugh.” She explained that the cast often didn’t laugh at the jokes in rehearsals because they had seen them so many times. “You don’t want to laugh because then you break the reality of it,” she said.
But as Only Fools and Horses fans know, the show’s charm lies in its well-timed humor, and Tessa revealed how difficult it was to maintain that magic in front of a live audience. “If you’re doing comedy, you find you don’t want to laugh because then you break the reality of it,” she said.
Reflecting on the special Only Fools and Horses: The Lost Archive documentary, which she filmed for U&GOLD, Tessa admitted that it was “torture” watching the footage from over 30 years ago. “We’re all a lot older now, so you just look so different,” she shared, admitting that it was a “weird experience” to watch herself from that time.
Tessa’s emotional reflection continued, recalling how hard it was for David Jason to look back on the show’s early days. “It was harder for David because some of that stuff for him is looking back 40 years,” she said, adding that both of them were often stunned by how much they had changed since the show aired.
Despite the challenges, Tessa revealed that their bond as a cast was unbreakable, and she enjoyed spending time with her co-stars. However, the process of revisiting the past brought back mixed emotions. “It was a bit like torture to be forced to sit on the sofa and watch this stuff back from 30 years ago,” she confessed.
The Only Fools and Horses 45th anniversary two-part special, set to air this summer, will feature never-before-seen interviews with the cast and crew, along with archival material from classic episodes.
Tessa also teased her upcoming play, Invisible Me, which explores romance and relationships later in life. The play inspired Tessa to reflect on the challenges of dating in your 50s and 60s, admitting that the process of finding love later in life can feel like a daunting task.
Tessa’s insight into the realities of Only Fools and Horses has given fans a deeper understanding of the dedication and hard work behind one of Britain’s most beloved sitcoms.
Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/
