Nicholas Lyndhurst - wikipedia Nicholas Lyndhurst This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. ( September 2013 ) Nicholas Lyndhurst Nicholas Simon Lyndhurst ( 1961 - 04 - 20 ) 20 April 1961 ( age 56 ) Emsworth, Hampshire, England Occupation Actor Years active 1973 -- present. Known for Rodney Trotter in Only Fools and Horses and Gary Sparrow in Goodnight Sweetheart Television Going Straight ( 1978 ) Butterflies ( 1978 -- 83 ) Only Fools and Horses ( 1981 -- 2003, 2014 ) The Two of Us ( 1986 -- 90 ) The Piglet Files ( 1990 -- 92 ) Goodnight Sweetheart ( 1993 -- 99, 2016 ) After You 've Gone ( 2007 -- 08 ) Rock & Chips ( 2010 -- 11 ) New Tricks ( 2013 -- 15 ) Spouse ( s ) Lucy Smith ( m. 1999 ) Children Archie Björn Lyndhurst ( born 2000 ) Nicholas Simon Lyndhurst ( born 20 April 1961 ) is an English actor. He is known for playing Rodney Trotter in Only Fools and Horses, Gary Sparrow in Goodnight Sweetheart, Dan Griffin in the BBC drama New Tricks and Adam Parkinson in Carla Lane 's series Butterflies. Lyndhurst also prominently starred as Ashley Philips in The Two of Us, as Fletch 's son Raymond in Going Straight, the sequel to the classic British sitcom Porridge, Jimmy Venables in After You 've Gone, and Freddie ' The Frog ' Robdal in the Only Fools and Horses prequel Rock & Chips. Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Filmography 4.1 Television 4.2 Film 5 References 6 External links Early life Nicholas Simon Lyndhurst was born on 20 April 1961 in Emsworth, Hampshire, where he also grew up. He was a child student at Corona Theatre School. Career He appeared in a succession of television adverts and children 's films in the late 1970s. Lyndhurst first gained national recognition at the age of seventeen in the sitcom Butterflies written by Carla Lane, in which he played Adam Parkinson. He then played Raymond Fletcher, the teenage son of Norman Stanley Fletcher played by Ronnie Barker in Going Straight, followed by ' Dobson ' in the BBC TV series To Serve Them All My Days. He achieved national stardom in the series Only Fools and Horses in which he played Rodney Trotter, the younger brother of the main character Derek `` Del Boy '' Trotter. Only Fools and Horses started as a small comedy in 1981 and rapidly grew in popularity until it reached its peak in 1996 with its Christmas Day show in the UK. Lyndhurst appeared in the show from the very start, right up to its final airing at Christmas 2003. Only Fools and Horses reached No. 1 British sitcom ever in the BBC poll in 2004. In 1986 he had a minor part in the film Gunbus / SkyBandits. The film went straight to video and was never seen in British cinemas. During the 1990s, Lyndhurst also appeared in ITV 's The Two of Us with Janet Dibley and The Piglet Files, as well as in a number of stage performances. Between 1993 and 1999, he played the complex lead character of Gary Sparrow in the fantasy sitcom Goodnight Sweetheart. At around the same time, he was the face and voice on the TV and radio commercials for the telecommunications chain People 's Phone. In 1997, he was offered the lead role of Gary in The Full Monty, but declined. Between 1997 and 1999, Lyndhurst was the public face of the stationery chain store WH Smith, starring in their adverts as all four members of one family. He won a BAFTA for his acting in the adverts. In 1999, he played the villainous Uriah Heep opposite Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe and Dame Maggie Smith in David Copperfield. In 2006, he appeared as Cruella de Vil 's chauffeur, Reg Farnsworth, at the Children 's Party at the Palace. In 2007, Lyndhurst returned to the BBC with his first new sitcom in fourteen years, After You 've Gone, in which he plays a divorced dad moving back into the marital home to look after his daughter ( Dani Harmer ) and son ( Ryan Sampson ) together with his mother - in - law, played by Celia Imrie, after his ex-wife goes to work as a recovery nurse on a third world disaster relief mission. Lyndhurst played Freddie Robdal, the 1960s gangster father of Rodney Trotter, in Rock & Chips, the prequel to Only Fools and Horses. The show centres around Del Boy, Robdal and Joan Trotter in early 1960s Peckham. It was first broadcast on 24 January 2010, with another special transmitted on 29 December 2010, and the final episode at Easter 2011. Lyndhurst 's stage performances have been relatively few, but he received good critical notices for his performance as Norman in Sir Ronald Harwood 's The Dresser, directed by Peter Hall, and for his Trinculo in The Tempest. In 2013, he joined the cast as a regular of Series 10 of New Tricks. In 2014, Lyndhurst revived his Only Fools and Horses character Rodney Trotter in a return Sport Relief Special which aired on 21 March 2014. In 2016, Lyndhurst revived his Goodnight Sweetheart character Gary Sparrow in a one - off special episode, which aired on 2 September 2016. Personal life He lives in West Sussex with his wife Lucy, a former ballet dancer ( married in Chichester, West Sussex, 1999 ). They have a son, Archie. Lyndhurst 's hobbies include underwater diving and piloting his own aeroplanes. Lyndhurst is the grandson of Francis Lyndhurst, a theatrical scenery painter and film director, who set up an early film studio at Shoreham - by - Sea. Filmography Television Filmography Year ( s ) Title Role Notes Heidi Peter Anne of Avonlea Davy Keith 1976 The Prince and the Pauper Prince Edward / Tom Canty 1976 Peter Pan Tootles 1978 The Tomorrow People Karl Brandt 1 episode : `` Hitler 's Last Secret '' 1978 Going Straight Raymond Fletcher 4 episodes 1978 Play of the Week : Fairies Brian Grant 1978 -- 83, 2000 Butterflies Adam Parkinson 4 series and 1 special 1979 Fathers Day Philip Television film 1980 To Serve Them All My Days Dobson 4 episodes 1981 Spearhead Private Wilson 4 episodes 1981 -- 1996, 2001 - 2003, 2014 Only Fools and Horses Rodney Trotter 7 series and 15 specials 1982 Play for Today : A Mother Like Him Young Police Constable 1986 -- 90 The Two of Us Ashley Philips 4 series 1990 -- 92 The Piglet Files Peter Chapman 3 series Stalag Luft Chump Cosgrove 1993 -- 99, 2016 Goodnight Sweetheart Gary Sparrow 6 series and 1 special Gulliver 's Travels Clustril 1999 David Copperfield Uriah Heep 2 - part television serial 2000 Thin Ice Dr Graham Thin One - off BBC drama 2002 The Life and Times of Aly Martin - Smith Aly Martin - Smith 2003 Murder in Mind Alan Willis 1 episode : `` Landlord '' 2007 -- 08 After You 've Gone Jimmy Venables 3 series 2010 -- 11 Rock & Chips Freddie Robdal 3 episodes 2013 -- 15 New Tricks Dan Griffin 3 series 2013 Peter Panzerfaust Significant cast member 2017 The Story of Only Fools and Horses Himself 6 episodes Film Bequest to the Nation Bullshot Endless Nights Gunbus Lassie A United Kingdom Radio My First Planet References Jump up ^ `` Birthday 's today ''. The Telegraph. 20 April 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2014. Mr Nicholas Lyndhurst, actor, 51 Jump up ^ New Tricks at BBC Media Centre. Retrieved 2012 - 12 - 26 Jump up ^ Goodnight Sweetheard at BBC Media Centre. Retrieved 2012 - 12 - 26 Jump up ^ Nicholas Lyndhurst : ' I wanted to be an actor from the age of eight ' - Profiles - People - The Independent Jump up ^ Lyndhurst : I said no to diving show - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk Jump up ^ `` Film Studio ''. Shoreham Fort. Retrieved 16 November 2017. Jump up ^ Wall to Wall - New Tricks Series 10 External links Nicholas Lyndhurst on IMDb Nicholas Lyndhurst at the British Film Institute 's Screenonline Only Fools and Horses List of episodes Characters Derek Trotter Rodney Trotter Grandad Uncle Albert Trigger Boycie Marlene Mike Raquel Cassandra Damien Denzil Mickey Pearce Roy Slater Merchandise Home video DVD Collection See also Awards The Green Green Grass Rock & Chips VIAF : 6892518 LCCN : nb99156935 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nicholas_Lyndhurst&oldid=819276417 '' Categories : 1961 births Living people English male film actors English male television actors People from Gosport British male comedy actors Hidden categories : BLP articles lacking sources from September 2013 All BLP articles lacking sources Use British English from March 2013 Articles with hCards No local image but image on Wikidata Use dmy dates from October 2010 Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Bosanski فارسی Français Gaeilge Hrvatski עברית Nederlands Simple English Српски / srpski Edit links This page was last edited on 8 January 2018, at 13 : 17. 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Question: who played rodney in only fools and horses
Answer: Nicholas Simon Lyndhurst