Three decades after its debut on UK TV screens, sitcom Only Fools and Horses is to be remade in the US.
Steven Cragg and Brian Bradley (writer-producers of Happy Endings and Scrubs) will adapt John Sullivan’s classic comedy for the ABC network. As in the BBC series starring David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst, the project will revolve around the misadventures of two brothers and their aging grandfather as they concoct outrageous, morally questionable get-rich-quick schemes in a bid to become millionaires.
Only Fools and Horses isn’t the first British success story to receive a transatlantic transfer – Sanford and Son (based on Steptoe and Son) ran for six seasons between 1972 and 1977) and All in the Family (the US Till Death Us Do Part) aired from 1971 until 1979. Currently, the American incarnation of The Office is into its eighth season
Less notable cases include The Rear Guard (a version of Dad’s Army), which didn’t make it beyond the pilot stage in 1976, while three different takes on Fawlty Towers (Chateau Snavely, Amanda’s and Payne) all failed to make an impact.
