Only Fools and Horses

Only Fools and Horses: How a dodgy haircut gave Trigger his name

Colin Ball is affectionately known as Trigger, but why?

Any Only Fools and Horses superfan might think that they know every little detail about the iconic BBC sitcom. But, did you know that Trigger’s nickname comes from a dodgy haircut?

Character Colin Ball, more commonly known as Trigger, is a childhood friend of Del Boy and is known for his petty crime and general stupidity, particularly because he believes Rodney’s name is actually Dave.

Rodney thought the name was to do with Trigger being linked to criminal activity (Image: BBC)

In the Only Fools and Horses prequel, Rock & Chips, we find out that Trigger went to school with Del Boy and a number of other characters.

He gained the nickname ‘Trigger’ after receiving a haircut that made him look like a horse, as Del explains to Rodney in the Only Fools and Horses pilot episode after Rodney thinks that his nickname is due to his criminal activity – a ‘trigger man’.

The name Trigger is a reference to the famous horse in Western films during the 1950s and 1960s alongside movie star Roy Rogers.

For those of us who have childhood nicknames that just stuck, we can relate to how Trigger’s name came out of a bad haircut, likely because his friends mocked him mercilessly.

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