A Losing Streak

Del Boy's poker face.

"A Losing Streak" was the 3rd episode of the 2nd series of Only Fools And Horses, airing on the 4th November 1982 with a viewing figure of 7.5 million. Derek "Del Boy" Trotter tries his hands at poker with Boycie, but is Boycie cheating?

Synopsis

Del Boy has been into the gambling game recently but keeps losing and puts it down as a losing streak. He is also trying to sell some perfume, to no avail. At The Nags Head, Del says he has some money. Rodney Trotter says they can put the heating on and buy some food but Del says he is not wasting it on grub, it is the stake money for tonights game. Rodney says they sold no perfume, well once but the lady bought it back and got a refund. Del is playing tonight against Boycie. They place a few bets with each other beforehand and in both cases Del loses. At one time Rodney and Trigger restrain Del, thinking he is going to get aggressive with Boycie but Del wants to stitch him up. At this go, which was the second go, Del has a double headed coin (given to him by Grandad, who had previously gotten it from a Scottish man during the war), hoping Boycie will call tails, but he calls heads and Del loses the bet.

Del explains to Rodney why he has to play the poker game tonight: Rodney doesn't remember the day their father Reg left home after their mother Joan died, because he was only a small infant at the time. Del came home that evening and found out that Reg had packed his bags and gone for good. He left them with nothing, and even opened Rodney's piggy bank. The only thing that Reg didn't get was the money Joan had left her sons, because Del hid it too well. And it was Del's birthday; Reg even took his cake. From that day forward, Del swore that he would never run away from anything in his life, and that's why he has to play the poker game with Boycie later tonight. Rodney understands it all eventually and says he will take back the empties from last weeks disco to get more stake money. Ahwn he leaves, Del comments to a gormless Trigger how much of a 42 carat plonker Rodney is.

That night, Del is dressed up and ready for Boycie and Trigger to arrive. Del persuades Grandad to lend him some money for the game. Trigger and Boycie do arrive, and start the game. Del and Boycie flip a coin to decide whose pack of cards they will use. Del flips the double-headed coin and Boycie calls heads again. So they use Boycie's cards. Del loses all his stake money, including the measly £4 from the empties Rodney took back. Del then uses some money his mum left him when she died 18 years before. He has hidden it inside the phone. Throughout the evening, Boycie easily overcomes both Del and Trigger with his marked cards. Trigger soon backs out.

Del and Boycie agree to a no limits game. When Del runs out of money, Boycie trumps him with a £1000 bet to see his cards. Del says that he is willing to raise £1000 with all his jewellery, the stereo and the TV's, the beds, wardrobes, their clothes, all to see Boycie's cards. Boycie says he has 4 Kings and Del only has 2 Pairs. Boycie seems to win, as he collects his money, Del reminds him that according to the rules, all cards must be shown before the winnings are collected. Boycie agrees, and Del shows everyone else that his 2 pairs are indeed 2 pairs of Aces. Del wins the game, he says to Boycie he knew he was cheating all along.

With that said, Del and Rodney begin collecting up the money. As Boycie prepares to leave defeated, Rodney convinces Del that he is now on a winning streak, so Del decides to flip a coin with Boycie for £200, but with Rodney calling for him. Rodney, forgetting about the double-headed coin, calls tails, leaving Boycie with the last laugh.

Cast

Main cast

• Derek "Del Boy" Trotter - David Jason
• Rodney Trotter - Nicholas Lyndhurst
• "Grandad" - Lennard Pearce
• Boycie - John Challis
• Trigger - Roger Lloyd Pack

Guest cast

• Julie The Barmaid - Julie La Rousse
• Customer In Pub - Michael G. Jones

Observations

• The idea for the script was based on John Sullivan's father's gambling sessions.

Blunders

• Del says that Boycie is a second hand car dealer from Lewisham, indicating Boycie is not from Peckham, and is just a friend of Del who met him through work and lives in Lewisham. Yet in later episodes, it is said that Boycie went to school with Del and knew him all his life.
• Del uses money that has not been touched for 18 years since 1964, surely by 1982 monetary values and appearances of notes would have changed so the money Del uses for the game would no longer be legal tender.

Locations seen

• The Trotters flat (living room)
• The Nags Head (main bar)