Only Fools And Horses: 10 Times Del Boy Was ALMOST A Millionaire
8. Diamond Smuggling
The scheme:
In the first feature-length special for the show, 'To Hull And Back', Del Boy finds himself drawn into a diamond smuggling operation between Amsterdam and the UK, with the promise of £15,000 to work as a courier for his pals Boycie and Abdul. After a few complications, the Trotters decide the best way over is by boat, where the customs checks weren't as strict as the airports at the time.
It should have all been so simple really: Del travels to The Netherlands, picks up the diamonds, returns home, hands them over and job done. A few more trips like that and the Trotters could have had some serious cash coming in to them (not that this author would ever condone their actions).
What went wrong:
This one was doomed from the start in reality.
After a few obstacles along the way (including getting stuck in the back of a lorry, getting lost at sea etc), Del, Rodney and Uncle Albert get back to Peckham just in time to find out the whole operation was a set up by Del's old school nemesis and police inspector Roy Slater, who was secretly set to receive the diamonds the whole time.
The whole thing leads to a game of cat and mouse between the smugglers and the police. There is a light at the end of the tunnel though - Del still manages to get away with his £15,000 share. That is, until he chucks the whole wad of notes off the balcony of Nelson Mandela House, misatakenly believing them to be fake.