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David Jason - Maturity and success

David Jason - Maturity and success: Encyclopedia II - David Jason - Maturity and success

In 1981 he created his most enduring and popular role, that of Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses, a wide-boy who makes a dubious living in Peckham, south London, trading in shoddy and counterfeit goods with the assistance of his brother Rodney (played by Nicholas Lyndhurst) and Grandad (played by Lennard Pearce) or, latterly, Uncle Albert, played by Buster Merryfield. In this role David popularised some slang words; examples being the mild insults "dipstick ...

David Jason: Encyclopedia II - David Jason - Maturity and success

David Jason - Maturity and success

In 1981 he created his most enduring and popular role, that of Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses, a wide-boy who makes a dubious living in Peckham, south London, trading in shoddy and counterfeit goods with the assistance of his brother Rodney (played by Nicholas Lyndhurst) and Grandad (played by Lennard Pearce) or, latterly, Uncle Albert, played by Buster Merryfield. In this role David popularised some slang words; examples being the mild insults "dipstick" and "plonker" and the celebratory "lovely jubbly".

He soon earned acclaim for a string of serious roles, for example as Skullion in Porterhouse Blue, Detective Jack Frost in the TV series A Touch Of Frost and acted with Catherine Zeta-Jones in the rural Kentish tale The Darling Buds of May (based on the H. E. Bates novel).

He has also worked as a voice artist for Cosgrove Hall on a number of children's television productions, providing voices for Dangermouse, B.F.G, Count Duckula and Toad from The Wind in the Willows, as well as several other cartoon voice-overs and advertising work.

In 1993, David Jason was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), and twelve years later, in the Queen's Birthday Honours list of 2005, he was knighted (i.e., made a Knight Bachelor) for services to acting. On the day his knighthood was announced, many British newspapers used the headline "Arise Sir Del Boy" or similar, in reference to his most famous role.

He nursed long-time partner Myfanwy Talog prior to her death in 1995 after a long battle with breast cancer. He then found happiness again with Gill Hinchcliffe, with whom he has a daughter who was born in 2001. The couple were married in a secret ceremony at the Dorchester Hotel in London on 30 November 2005.

On 1 December 2005, David Jason received his knighthood from The Queen at Buckingham Palace. The actor said he was "humbled" by the "fantastic tribute".