Strained Relations

"**Strained Relations**" is an episode of the BBC sitcom, *Only Fools and Horses*. It was the second episode of series 4, and was first screened on 28 February 1985.

## Synopsis

It is a day full of sorrow for Del Boy and Rodney, as their Grandad has died. They attend Grandad's funeral, along with Mike, Boycie, Trigger, and the North London branch of the Trotter Family.

Back at the wake in Nelson Mandela House, Rodney is extremely upset to find that Del is cheering himself up by telling his friends some jokes. Del and Rodney also meet Grandad's younger brother, their Uncle Albert, who also tells Del that he and other brother George flipped a coin to decide who would become Del's godfather.

Later that night, everybody had gone home, and it's just Del and Rodney alone in the flat, until they find Albert in the bathroom. He tells his nephews that their cousins, Stan and Jean, went home to North London and left Albert behind. Del decides to let Albert stay for the night, but doesn't allow him to sleep in Grandad's bedroom, since it's now a shrine to him and a storage area.

The next morning, Albert follows Del back to the flat to tell him and Rodney that Stan and Jean moved again because they have a mobile home. Del decides that Albert should go to the Seaman's Mission. As Albert goes off to the kitchen to have a quick cup of tea, Rodney berates Del for treating Albert like this and not caring when Grandad died, but Del snaps back at Rodney, explaining that he doesn't know how to grieve, due to having become a figure of great (but false) admiration, something Del resents greatly. Rodney finally understands and apologises.

Later, at *The Nag's Head*, Albert shows up again, claiming that the Seaman's Mission has been torn down. Del finally gives in, decides to let Albert stay with him and Rodney, and a new era for the Trotters begins. As they leave to get a curry, Mike quickly gets a hold of Albert and informs him that the Seaman's Mission just called saying they have a room available. He's quickly told to be quiet by Albert.

## Featured characters

* Del Boy
* Rodney
* Uncle Albert (first appearance)
* Mike Fisher
* Boycie
* Trigger
* Maureen (barmaid)
* Stan
* Jean

## Other notes

### Continuity errors

* In "Homesick", Grandad told Del that he wanted to be cremated, but he is buried in this episode.

### Production goofs

* There is an error in the scene back at the flat after Grandad's funeral, when Del is sadly staring through a doorway. He is called by Mike and the camera angle changes to be facing across the living room and you can clearly see the shadow of the camera used for the preceding scene in the doorway.

### Miscellaneous trivia

* This episode was added in at the last minute, due to Lennard Pearce's death. The new first episode called "Happy Returns" was also added in so the fourth series didn't begin with a funeral, therefore leaving the producers with eight episodes instead of the standard six episodes in this series. "From Prussia With Love" was moved to the fifth series, leaving seven episodes in the fourth series.

"Go West Young Man" ·
"Cash and Curry" ·
"The Second Time Around" ·
"A Slow Bus To Chingford" ·
"Ashes to Ashes" ·
"A Losing Streak" ·
"No Greater Love" ·
"The Yellow Peril" ·
"It Never Rains..." ·
"Healthy Competition" ·
"Friday the 14th" ·
"Yesterday Never Comes" ·
"May the Force Be with You" ·
"Wanted" ·
"**Strained Relations** ·
"Hole in One" ·
"It's Only Rock and Roll" ·
"Sleeping Dogs Lie" ·
"Watching the Girls Go By" ·
"The Miracle of Peckham" ·
"The Longest Night" ·
"Tea for Three" ·
"Video Nasty" ·
"Danger UXD" ·
"Chain Gang" ·
"The Unlucky Winner Is..." ·
"Sickness and Wealth" ·
"The Chance of a Lunchtime" ·
"Stage Fright" ·
"The Class of '62" ·
"He Ain't Heavy, He's My Uncle" ·
"Diamonds Are For Heather" (1982) ·
"Thicker than Water" (1983) ·
"Licensed to Drill" (1984) ·
"To Hull and Back" (1985) ·
"A Royal Flush" (1986) ·
"The Frog's Legacy" (1987) ·
"Dates" (1988) ·
"The Jolly Boys' Outing" (1989) ·
"Rodney Come Home" (1990) ·
"Miami Twice" (1991) ·
"Mother Nature's Son" (1992) ·
"Fatal Extraction" (1993) ·
"Heroes and Villains" (1996) ·
"Modern Men" (1996) ·
"Time On Our Hands" (1996) ·
"If They Could See Us Now" (2001) ·
"Strangers on the Shore" (2002) ·
"Sleepless in Peckham" (2003)
"Beckham in Peckham" (2014)