A blue plaque has been unveiled to commemorate the creator of the popular long-running television series Only Fools and Horses.
The plaque, remembering the writer John Sullivan, was unveiled by his widow Sharon at their old seafront home, Prince of Wales Court, at 227-229 Kingsway, Hove, yesterday (Thursday 10 November).
Sullivan, who died aged 64 in 2011, crafted several memorable characters, scenes and catchphrases – not just in Only Fools and Horses. His first TV comedy series was Citizen Smith and his others included Just Good Friends.
The actress Sue Holderness, who played Marlene in Only Fools and Horses, remembered Sullivan fondly at a windswept ceremony at the bottom of Langdale Gardens.
He wrote several episodes of the sitcom – starring David Jason as Derek “Del Boy” Trotter – at his flat in Hove in a building that bears no comparison with the Trotter family home in Nelson Mandela House.
He even gave the Trotters a luxury break in Brighton on the back of their success selling Peckham Spring water in one of the show’s Christmas specials.
Sharon Sullivan said: “John, the family and I always enjoyed our long weekends in Hove. Although it was his ‘winding down’ place, John still loved to write there.
“We would like to thank our lovely neighbours for arranging this plaque in John’s memory. We are all so proud of him and miss him every day.”
The idea for the plaque came from neighbour Joni van Oortmarssen and was arranged with the Brighton and Hove Heritage Commission.
She and fellow organisers Pat Fortin and Liz Pile raised £1,500 to cover the cost of the plaque’s installation.
Pat Fortin said: “We know that John loved living here by the sea and we thought a blue plaque was a lovely way for fans to say thank you for all those wonderful characters he created, who gave us all so many laughs over the years.”
In 2005 Sullivan was made an OBE for services to drama. As well as Only Fools and Horses, he also created and wrote Citizen Smith, Just Good Friends, Sitting Pretty, Over Here, Heartburn Hotel, Micawber, The Green Green Grass and Rock and Chips.
He was born in Balham, south London, in 1946, and left school at 15 with no qualifications. After working as a messenger, car cleaner, delivery driver, plumber’s mate and second-hand car trader, he landed a job as a sceneshifter at the BBC.
Inspired by the work of Charles Dickens, Sullivan spent his evenings writing scripts. And, while working at the BBC, he met Ronnie Barker, who asked him to write sketches for The Two Ronnies, and producer Dennis Main Wilson, who commissioned him to write Citizen Smith.
The shows that followed included Just Good Friends, starring Paul Nicholas and Jan Francis as Vince and Penny who have an on-off relationship. The “will they, won’t they” romantic comedy ran for three series.
But it was Only Fools and Horses that remains Sullivan’s finest creation. It ran from 1981 to 2003 and the Christmas specials attracted some of Britain’s biggest TV viewing figures.
The high comedy was interwoven with moving moments, poignant scenes and sensitively written doses of harsh reality – but the laughs outnumbered the tears.
Catchphrases such as “lovely jubbly”, “cushty” and “you plonker” became part of the language along with “this time next year we’ll be millionaires” and “he who dares wins”.
His legacy continues. Only Fools and Horses – The Musical, written by Paul Whitehouse and Jim Sullivan, John Sullivan’s son, is enjoying its third year in residence at the Theatre Royal Haymarket.
And now, on Hove seafront, is another reminder of John Sullivan, a comedy genius who brought – and continues to bring – laughter to millions
