4 days ago
Meet Sarajevo's real-life Del Boy and Rodney
The real-life Rodney and Del Boy can be found not in Peckham, but in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The Fatic brothers – two businessmen obsessed with Only Fools and Horses – make a living as home appliance salesmen and drive around the Balkan city in a replica of the three-wheeled Reliant Regal from the classic television show.
'We are definitely the local version of the series,' Tarik Fatic, the younger of the brothers, said. 'We were always dealing in something, we would buy whatever we can and then sell it.'
With a nod to one of Del Boy's most well-known catchphrases, Mirnes Fatic said: 'We hope and believe that this time next year, we will be millionaires.'
Just like the Trotter brothers, 'We always tried to make profit and regardless of how many times we failed, we just moved on,' Tarik said.
Born in a working-class family, the brothers grew up in Bosnia after it was devastated by the 1992-95 conflict, and say the situation is still 'disorganised and unstable'.
Only Fools and Horses ran from the early 1980s to 2003 and wrung its humour from the get-rich-quick schemes of the south London market traders.
As many people in what was then Yugoslavia traded in odds and ends to make ends meet, the show became a huge it.
Murals with images of main characters from the sitcom have been painted on walls, while many cafés have been named after the series, while visiting actors were greeted with frenzy.
Speaking about the process to replicate the trademark yellow Reliant Regal, Mirnes said the vehicle was imported from Manchester six months ago after a long search.
'It is a very nice feeling. It's a joy every time I go for a ride in the city,' he said, admitting that it also was 'a great advertising move'.
