An episode of the much-loved British sitcom Only Fools and Horses was taken off air for nearly 20 years due to its depiction of popular character Del Boy Trotter as a severe bully. The episode, named A Royal Flush, first graced our screens during the festive period in 1986, showcasing Rodney (played by Nicholas Lyndhurst) striking up a friendship with a duke's daughter.

His cheeky older brother Del (brought to life by Sir David Jason) tries to help him make a favourable impression on the upper crust but ends up botching it. The episode was finished just hours before its broadcast and was devoid of any audience laughter.

After it aired, the show's creator John Sullivan voiced his disapproval of the episode, saying that some scenes were overly dark and painted Del Boy in an uncharacteristic light. In one scene at a posh dinner party, Del Boy mercilessly ridicules Rodney in front of all the attendees.

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During an outing to the opera, he irritates other spectators by blocking their view and even threatens one man with physical harm. Sullivan resolved that A Royal Flush should never be shown again.

It was only in 2005 that he allowed the episode to be released on DVD, but not without substantial editing. Audience laughter was inserted to soften the tone during harsher scenes, and some scenes were completely cut out, reports the Express.

Chris Wadsworth, the editor, disclosed in the Channel 5 documentary Secrets and Scandals of Only Fools and Horses: "It's quite a cruel dark episode. John said 'This is not a good episode'."

Reflecting on an old episode of Only Fools and Horses, TV producer Richard Latto confessed: "The original where Del Boy is being quite cruel to Rodney.... it is a hard watch."

He also unveiled that there was an attempt made years later to tone down the character's image: "Some 20 years later he said 'Can we do anything to take out Del being nasty?' The episode was shown to an audience to get a laughter track but I don't think we succeeded completely."