"Licensed to Drill"

Never broadcast

This special episode was only recently discovered by an "Only Fools and Horses" fan. In it, Del has a scheme to buy an oil rig and become a millionaire.

The episode is shot entirely on film and has no laughter track. There is a special theme tune, "Licensed to Drill", sung by John Sullivan.

The last time Del had a surprise for Rodney, he ended up "in protective custody" [this refers to an unseen adventure]. Rodney has a deep-sea divers watch [a reference to the episode "The Yellow Peril"]

Nobody knows when the episode was made (and therefore when it’s set), but it features Grandad and so must be from before Season 4. The documentary that Del shows Grandad and Rodney mentions "11 years" from "1973" meaning it’s 1984 or later. So I’d suggest an end-of-Season 3 setting.

Grandad was "in the RAF at Wellington" and was known as the "grey baron". Rodney has "2 GCE’s and an evening course in binary bingo" (whatever that is). The Trotter’s eat cornflakes and read The Sun (but we could have guessed that!).

Del mentions visiting "Dirty Doug’s Caff", so perhaps he isn’t yet a regular in Sid’s Café?

"Don’t you get septic with me Rodney!"

"What have all these things got in common?" (points to an assortment of household items made from crude oil). "They’re all nicked?" tries Rodney.

Del buys an oil rig which is stored in a lock-up! Some boxes with "Tefal" on them are seen in the flat.

"A bloke down the Caff who’s just finished working on the North Sea" gives Del the idea for his latest scheme, and "Paddy the Deep-Sea Diver" swindles him out of the money to fund it.

"Deux se le plait!"

Rodney’s stripy pyjama bottoms.

Del buys an oil rig for £400. He was offered $400 but preferred to stick to a familiar currency! Think about it…

…. and he thinks Norway is in Sweden!

A bizarre full-length episode that no-one knew existed until recently. Quite why or when they filmed it is a mystery perhaps indebted to the fact that it appears to have been made by "Maureen Oil Consortium" instead of the BBC, which might explain the different theme tune and lush filmed recording. And why Del suddenly becomes an overnight expert on oil production, waxing lyrical about hydrocarbons all the way through it! He winds up a wally in the end though, so at least some continuity is maintained.