While filming the iconic TV show , made no secret of his love for his co-star
But now, 21 years later, it appears their once close bond has taken an unfortunate turn as the legendary TV star, who played Del Boy, has revealed they are no longer as close as before.
Speaking to the Mirror back in 2022, the 84 year old TV star admitted: “He’s much more, how can I say, self-contained, perhaps, than he used to be.”
He added: “So, unfortunately, we don’t see each other as much as I’d like to. But that’s how things work out sometimes.”
However, he fondly spoke of his time filming the Peckham based comedy sitcom as he recalled: “I miss it terribly. It wasn’t like going to work. It was going to have some fun with your mates. We loved each other.”
Sir David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst had a close bond (Image: PA)
At the time of filming the series, which ran from 1981 through to 2003, Sir David lovingly compared both himself and Nicholas as “a pair of silly Buddhas”, according to close friends.
Sir David also preferred to abbreviate Nicholas’s name to simply Nick, as a clear sign of endearment. An example of their playful banter was witnessed before a live recording of the show when the pair brought a bag of bangers on set.’
They once loaded stacked chairs and cubicle doors to the toilets with the bangers. And when the production assistant, Tony Dow, unstacked the chairs, they went off in an explosive manner, leaving Tony in utter fear.
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Sir David Jason opened up about his relationship with Lyndhurst (Image: Getty)
While Tony understandably struggled to maintain his composure, Sir David and Nicholas doubled over in fits of laughter until a cleaning lady mopped the gents toilet and “nearly died of fright.”
Nicholas, 63, suffered excruciating tragedy four years ago after his beloved son at his west London home, following a brain haemorrhage as he slept.
The results from the second post-mortem, which was carried out in the Christmas of 2020, two months after his death, revealed he suffered an intracerebral haemorrhage.
This is said to have been caused by acute lymphoblastic lymphoma. The condition is believed to be incredibly rare. In a statement released at the time, both Nicholas and his wife said: “Lucy and I are utterly grief stricken and respectfully request privacy.”
Reaching out to fans on social media, Lucy wrote in November 2020: “It is with the heaviest heart that I write this post. Nine weeks ago our dearest boy Archie was taken from us way too early.”
She bravely continued: “We still have no answer as to what happened but wait patiently for the report to be written up in the next [ten] weeks. The pain of our loss is beyond anything we have ever felt before, and wouldn’t wish upon anyone.”
She added: “Archie was and remains our absolute world. He was the beautiful extraordinary human being we have ever known. To have him as our son has been nothing but an utter joy and honour.”