THEY’LL BE PLONKERS FOR TEARING IT DOWN
NELSON Mandela House should be a “cultural heritage site” says Only Fools And Horses’ greatest fan.
The block of flats that was home to Del Boy, Rodney and Grandad has been slated for demolition to make way for new buildings.
Residents and fans have been left gutted by the decision.
Super fan James Shackleton, who owns the original Reliant Regal van from the show’s first season, said: “They’d be plonkers to knock it down.
“It makes no sense to knock it down. It should be a cultural heritage site.
“I got the car about 28 years ago.
“I was organising the funeral for the owner and he didn’t have the money to pay for it.
“This was the collateral he had so that’s how I got it.
“It’s the original one.”
The car was registered in 1966, 15 years before the Only Fools And Horses pilot. It was one of many used in the show, but James, 62, has lent it back to the BBC now and again and ended up with a Del Boy coat, hat and briefcase.
Residents of the block in Ealing, west London, which is 13 miles from the Peckham setting of the show, are unhappy about the redevelopment. Brenda Hoult, a carer, 49, said: “I think it’s a right Del Boy scam to knock the tower down.
“It’s all about making money, selling the new flats.
Her brother Michael, 59, said: “I reckon some right Del Boys have lived here over the years.” Patrick Sanpo, a 59-year-old mechanic, did not realise that he was living in the original Mandela House until he saw it on the telly. He said: “I thought Nelson Mandela House was in south London. “But I was watching the show once and as the camera panned up I thought: ‘I know that building!’ ”