History Trivia / OnlyFoolsAndHorsesS5E07ARoyalFlush

* OldShame: Nearly everyone involved with the show regards this to have been a huge misfire, to the point where John Sullivan admitted in an interview on the day that the show's GrandFinale was broadcast that he wished he had never written it.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In the original script for this episode, the Trotters' argument includes a mention of ''The Marble Arch at Dawn'', the painting Rodney did when he was 14, that Del later enters in an Art Competition in [[Recap/OnlyFoolsAndHorsesS6E04TheUnluckyWinnerIs "The Unlucky Winner Is"]].

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: It is possible that Del is harbouring some bitterness towards Rodney for using family ties to persuade him to turn down his opportunity with Jumbo Mills, and therefore his chance to become a millionaire, in the previous episode and said bitterness is part of the reason for Del's behaviour in this episode.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: It is possible that Del is harbouring some bitterness towards Rodney for using family ties to persuade him to turn down his opportunity with Jumbo Mills, and therefore his chance to become a millionaire, in the previous episode and said bitterness is the main influence behind Del's behaviour in this episode.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: It is possible that Del is harbouring some bitterness towards Rodney for using family ties to persuade him to turn down his chance to become a millionaire through his opportunity with Jumbo Mills in the previous episode and said bitterness is the main influence behind Del's behaviour in this episode.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: It is possible that Del is harbouring some bitterness towards Rodney for using family ties to persuade him to turn down his opportunity with Jumbo Mills in the previous episode and said bitterness is the main influence behind Del's behaviour in this episode.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: It is possible that Del is harbouring some bitterness towards Rodney for using family ties to persuade him to turn down his opportunity with Jumbo Mills in the previous episode.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: It is possible that Del is harbouring some bitterness over his lost opportunity with Jumbo Mills in the previous episode and blames Rodney for it.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In the original script for this episode, the Trotters' argument includes a mention of ''The Marble Arch at Dawn'', the painting Rodney produced when he was 14, that Del later enters in an Art Competition in [[Recap/OnlyFoolsAndHorsesS6E04TheUnluckyWinnerIs "The Unlucky Winner Is"]].

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In the original script for this episode, the Trotters' argument includes a mention of ''The Marble Arch at Dawn'', the painting Rodney produced when he was 14, that Del later enters in an Art Competition in [[Recap/OnlyFoolsAndHorsesS6E04TheUnluckyWinnerIs]].

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In the original script for this episode, the Trotters' argument includes a mention of Rodney's painting ''The Marble Arch at Dawn'' that Del later enters in an Art Competition in "The Unlucky Winner is..."

* Foreshadowing: In the original script for this episode, the Trotters' argument includes a mention of Rodney's painting ''The Marble Arch at Dawn'' that Del later enters in an Art Competition in "The Unlucky Winner is..."

** Version Two is the 59-minute revised version which has been on most DVD releases since 2004, and is the version usually broadcast by UKTV Gold. It has a canned laughter track. The main reason for the revision (including over ten minutes of footage being cut) was John Sullivan's dissatisfaction with the original longer version, as he felt that in retrospect, that it presented Del Boy in an overly negative light. Whereas Del was always seen to be a lovable rogue, in the original version, he just comes across as plain boorish and offensive.

* TroubledProduction:
** Creator/DavidJason, Creator/NicholasLyndhurst and Buster Merryfield left production in Dorset to make an appearance at the Royal Variety Performance, putting the episode behind schedule. Jason lost his voice and needed three days off to get it back. This was the only time Jason ever called in sick on an episode of the show. As soon as he recovered, Lyndhurst came down with the flu, throwing the production into a panic.
** There was no more time for edits so it couldn't be played before a studio or live audience, leaving the episode with no laughter track and no music. It got so close to the deadline that the final scene was nearly broadcast live on Christmas Day, 1986, a nerve-wracking prospect, what with performing the scene to 19 million viewers, and would have wrecked the cast's Christmas plans. Whenever anyone asked questions during the production chaos, the answer they got was "Fuck knows!"
** It was finished at the very last minute with editing continuing into the early hours of Christmas morning. Jason likened it to Santa's elves on amphetamines to get the episode finished on time. In the end, he thought it was patchy, but he was not surprised, just relieved it got made.
** When the episode aired, it got widely negative reactions which would have long-term repercussions for the series. The following year's ChristmasSpecial, "[[Recap/OnlyFoolsAndHorsesS5E08TheFrogsLegacy The Frog's Legacy]]" ended up being written as a [[SeriesFauxnale potential finale]] due to concerns that the show was running out of steam, and while the decision was made to carry on, the show got a major ReTool. Most of the cast and crew would go on to consider "A Royal Flush" to be the show's worst episode, with series creator John Sullivan openly admitting in a 2003 interview that writing the episode was his biggest regret about his time on the show.

** When the episode aired, it got widely negative reactions which would have long-term repercussions for the series. The following year's ChristmasSpecial, "The Frog's Legacy" ended up being written as a [[SeriesFauxnale potential finale]] due to concerns that the show was running out of steam, and while the decision was made to carry on, the show got a major ReTool. Most of the cast and crew would go on to consider "A Royal Flush" to be the show's worst episode, with series creator John Sullivan openly admitting in a 2003 interview that writing the episode was his biggest regret about his time on the show.

* TroubledProduction: Hoo boy. A combination of other engagements (Creator/DavidJason, Creator/NicholasLyndhurst and Buster Merryfield leaving the location filming in Dorset in order to appear in the Royal Variety Performance) and actor illness (David Jason subsequently lost his voice and Nicholas Lyndhurst went down with the flu -- the only time in the show's entire history when the latter called in sick) put this episode well behind schedule. With no time for edits, it could not be played before a studio audience, hence the lack of a laughter track on the original version. Editing lasted until ''the early hours of Christmas Day itself'', and at one point an emergency plan was made for the final scene to be ''filmed live'' (a nerve-wracking prospect, given that a viewership of around 19 million was expected). Although that last one didn't happen, it was a close-run thing. John Sullivan knew it was patchy, but at the time he was just relieved that they'd got it finished in time.

** Version Two is the 59-minute revised version which has been on most DVD releases since 2004, and is the version usually broadcast by UKTV Gold. It has a canned laughter track. The main reason for the revision (including over ten minutes of footage being cut) was John Sullivan's dissatisfaction with the original longer version, as he felt that in retrospect, that it presented Del Boy in an overly negative light. Whereas Del was always seen to be a lovable rogue, in the original version of "A Royal Flush" he just comes across as plain boorish and offensive.

* TroubledProduction: Hoo boy. A combination of other engagements (David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst and Buster Merryfield leaving the location filming in Dorset in order to appear in the Royal Variety Performance) and actor illness (David Jason subsequently lost his voice and Nicholas Lyndhurst went down with the flu -- the only time in the show's entire history when the latter called in sick) put this episode well behind schedule. With no time for edits, it could not be played before a studio audience, hence the lack of a laughter track on the original version. Editing lasted until ''the early hours of Christmas Day itself'', and at one point an emergency plan was made for the final scene to be ''filmed live'' (a nerve-wracking prospect, given that a viewership of around 19 million was expected). Although that last one didn't happen, it was a close-run thing. John Sullivan knew it was patchy, but at the time he was just relieved that they'd got it finished in time.

** Version One is the longer 76-minute original Christmas Day broadcast which has no laughter track and was the original VHS release. It can also be found on the DVD that came with issue 13 of ''The Only Fools and Horses DVD Collection'' magazine. This version may sometimes be found on certain video streaming websites.
** Version Two is the 59-minute revised version which has been on most DVD releases since 2004, and is the version usually broadcast by UKTV Gold. It has a canned laughter track. The main reason for the new edits (which includes over ten minutes of footage being cut) was John Sullivan's dissatisfaction with the original longer version, as he felt that in retrospect, that it presented Del Boy in an overly negative light. Whereas Del was always seen to be a lovable rogue, in the longer episode there were some scenes where he came over as plain boorish and offensive.
* TroubledProduction: Hoo boy. A combination of other engagements (David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst and Buster Merryfield leaving the location filming in Dorset in order to appear in the Royal Variety Performance) and actor illness (David Jason subsequently lost his voice and Nicholas Lyndhurst went down with the flu -- the only time in the show's entire history when the latter called in sick) put this episode well behind schedule. With no time for edits, it could not be played before a studio audience, hence the lack of a laughter track. Editing lasted until ''the early hours of Christmas Day itself'', and at one point an emergency plan was made for the final scene to be ''filmed live'' (a nerve-wracking prospect, given that a viewership of around 19 million was expected). Although that last one didn't happen, it was a close-run thing. John Sullivan knew it was patchy, but at the time he was just relieved that they'd got it finished in time.

* CreatorBacklash: It's no secret that John Sullivan ''hated'' this episode, to the point where he stated in more than one interview that his biggest regret about ''Only Fools and Horses'' was that this episode got made. Creator/DavidJason didn't like it either.

** Version Two is the 59-minute revised version which has been on most DVD releases since 2004, and is the version usually broadcast by UKTV Gold. It has a canned laughter track. The reason for the new edits and cuts to delete material was John Sullivan's dissatisfaction with the original longer version, as he felt in retrospect that it presented Del Boy in an overly negative light. Whereas Del was always seen to be a lovable rogue, in this longer episode there were some scenes where he came over as boorish and offensive.

* TroubledProduction: Hoo boy. A combination of other engagements (David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst and Buster Merryfield leaving the location filming in Dorset in order to appear in the Royal Variety Performance) and actor illness (David Jason subsequently lost his voice and Nicholas Lyndhurst went down with the flu -- the only time in the show's entire history when the latter called in sick) put this episode well behind schedule. With no time for edits, it could not be played before a studio audience, hence the lack of a laughter track. Editing lasted until ''the early hours of Christmas Day itself'', and at one point an emergency plan was made for the final scene to be ''filmed live'' (a nerve-wracking prospect, given that a viewership of around 19 million was expected). Although that last one didn't happen, it was a close-run thing. John Sullivan knew it was patchy, but he was just relieved that they'd got it finished in time.