Three Men, a Woman and a Baby

"Three Men, a Woman and a Baby" is an episode of the BBC sit-com Only Fools and Horses. It was the final episode of series 7, and was first broadcast on 3 February 1991. This is the last episode of the last regular series, although Christmas specials were broadcast intermittently until 2003. In this episode, the birth of Del and Raquel's baby is imminent. Damien Trotter appears in the show for the first time in the episode's finale.

Synopsis

Rodney enters the lounge with another hangover, and Albert tells him that Raquel is in the late stages of pregnancy, and Del Boy will soon become a father. As Rodney and Albert talk about the baby being either a boy or a girl, Raquel enters, soon followed by Del, who is carrying a large cardboard box with its printing on the side reading "Crowning Glory, wigs of distinction", which he acquired from Mustapha from the Bangladeshi butcher's shop. Del then reminds Rodney that he's taking Cassandra to Hampton Court that afternoon.

Later that day, at the Nag's Head, there is a contest to guess what the name of Del and Raquel's baby will be. Del and Albert enter with plenty of wigs to flog, and Rodney tells them that his day out with Cassandra did not go well, because they argued about which way to go in a garden maze.

Back at the flat, Del is seething, because the wigs he bought from Mustapha are men's wigs. Raquel and Rodney both get a laugh out of it. One week later, as Rodney and Albert watch an ecological disaster documentary, Del and Raquel return from having attended an antenatal class about the importance of pregnancy. Later that evening, Del tells Rodney that earlier today, he bumped into Stephen, the man that used to be Cassandra's boss at the bank but got promoted, and the same person who Rodney hit on the nose back in "The Jolly Boys' Outing". Del saw Stephen wearing a clip-on ponytail. Raquel enters carrying a baby's name book. The Trotters suggest plenty of names, until Rodney snidely suggests naming the baby Damien. To his horror, Del and Raquel love the name. Rodney desperately tries to get them to change their mind and name the baby Derek, leading to their baby's full name: Damien Derek Trotter. Uncle Albert points out that would make his initials DDT, but Del and Raquel are unconcerned, with Del remarking that "there'll be no flies on him." Just then, Rodney gets a phone call from Cassandra, and decides to go see her.

Rodney (secretly sporting one of the clip-on ponytails) heads over to his and Cassandra's flat to see his wife, and Cassandra tells her husband that clip-on ponytails aren't very cool. Upon hearing this, Rodney removes his ponytail. Then, Cassandra says that she spoke to her solicitor, who suggested that she and Rodney try and repair their marriage by raising a pet. Rodney doesn't want to raise a dog, since he got bit by a Jack Russell as a child. Cassandra does not want to raise a cat, because she is allergic to fur. As Rodney prepares to leave in a huff, Cassandra screams upon seeing the discarded clip-on ponytail, thinking that it's a rat. Rodney seizes the opportunity to "save the day" and eventually gets rid of the thing, winning back Cassandra's heart.

Meanwhile, back at Nelson Mandela House, Del discovers that the men's wigs are falling apart, and Raquel goes right into labour. Cassandra and Rodney are informed, and Rodney heads off to the hospital.

At the hospital, Del and Raquel wait in the delivery room, while Rodney and Albert wait in the corridor. A group of hospital staff enter the delivery room, and they and Del help Raquel finally give birth to a beautiful baby boy. Albert and Rodney enter the delivery room to meet Del and Raquel's newborn son, Damien Derek Trotter. Rodney reacts horrified as Damien looks at him (as O Fortuna plays in the background). Del then takes his son, walks up to a window, opens the blind, and looks outside into the night sky. Del tells the spirit of his late mother Joan about her first grandchild, as well as tell Damien that he has got a loving family, and that this time next year, they will be millionaires. After the credits, there is a group shot of Del Boy, Rodney, Raquel, Albert, and Damien.

First appearances

• Damien Trotter

Music

• Hothouse Flowers: "Movies"
• Dusty Springfield: "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me"
• Roxy Music: Street Life
• Sinéad O'Connor: "Nothing Compares 2 U"
• Carl Orff: "O Fortuna" from Carmina Burana
• Antonio Vivaldi: "Largo" from Concerto for Lute in D Major, RV 93

Note: In the VHS/DVD versions, Carl Orff's "O Fortuna" is replaced by a similar-sounding piece of music.

External links

• "Three Men, a Woman and a Baby" at bbc.co.uk
• Three Men, a Woman and a Baby at ofah.net
• Episode Script