Labour might have it cushty at the ballot box in Peckham, but it’s Reform voters who’ve claimed Del Boy as one of their own.
Only Fools and Horses – the sitcom synonymous with south-east London – has been crowned Britain’s favourite sitcom in a new poll, with Nigel Farage supporters leading the charge for the Trotters of Nelson Mandela House.
The survey, commissioned by Richard Osman and Marina Hyde’s The Rest is Entertainment podcast, polled 2,000 people across the UK and found clear links between political leanings and comic tastes.
Participants were asked to choose their favourite British sitcom from each decade between the 1970s and 2000s. The winners from each era were then pitted against each other in a final round to determine the overall national favourite.
While Labour voters still turned out strong for Del Boy, it was Reform UK backers who gave the wheeler-dealer market trader his biggest share of support.
The BBC series, which ran from 1981 to 2003, starred David Jason as Del Boy and Nicholas Lyndhurst as his younger brother, Rodney. Across seven series and 16 Christmas specials, it regularly topped annual viewing charts – and reruns still draw millions.
In recent years, however, the show has faced content warnings for “dated attitudes and behaviours and racist language”, including on early episodes such as “The Russians Are Coming” and the 1985 Christmas special “To Hull and Back”.
The political split among sitcom fans was telling. Reform UK also scored highly among fans of Benidorm (44 per cent) and Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (48 per cent).
Lib Dem voters preferred Outnumbered (27 per cent) and Yes, Minister (22 per cent), while Labour found its base in The Young Ones (36 per cent) and Father Ted (33 per cent).
Mr Bean fans leaned Green – with 14 per cent backing the party, more than double its national polling. And The Vicar of Dibley skewed Tory, with 28 per cent of fans voting Conservative.
The poll results echo a recent YouGov survey from May, which put Reform UK in first place for voting intention – eight points ahead of Labour and 10 ahead of the Conservatives.
Farage’s party also made gains in May’s local elections, winning 677 seats and control of 10 local authorities.
Full analysis of The Rest is Entertainment poll will be published for subscribers on Friday 8 August.
