One of the last remaining 'Pearly Kings' who was the inspiration behind Del Boy is fighting to keep the Cockney tradition alive - saying there are only around 12 left.
George Major, 86, who was crowned The Pearly King of Peckham more than 65 years ago, said there were once more than 400 like him.
But he says he is now only one of around a dozen left carrying the torch.
He still wears his original pearls with pride to welcome visitors six days a week at the world's only Cockney museum that he set up four years ago.
But he said the younger generation were shying away from the east end Victorian tradition - and it was now in grave danger of dying out for good.
And launching his new campaign to 'save the pearlies' he said it was vital more awareness of its history and meaning was passed down.
George grew up working on the market in the south-London suburb from the age of four and was such a major inspiration behind the classic sitcom Only Fools and Horses he was named “Del Boy the First”.
He recalls being followed at the time by the show's writer John Sullivan while he worked as a costermonger with 'Granddad Fred' and a 'lanky bloke' they called the 'plonker.'
The similarities don't end there - with multiple tales of his exploits being used on the show.
He famously once sold 'Cockney smog' - milk bottles filled with exhaust fumes - to American tourists - that's believed to be the inspiration behind the famous 'Peckham Spring' episode.
He was crowned the Pearly King of Peckham aged 20 - and has been collecting items ever since.
George now spends his days showing visitors around his museum near Epsom, Surrey, and taking his cheerful pearly way to groups, events and nursing homes - but said he was sad schools no longer invited him in for talks.
He said: “In 1930 there were around 400 genuine pearlies but now there are only about a dozen or so of us left.
“The museum helps to keep the Pearly tradition alive by teaching new generations about it.
"I was born a Pearly Prince which comes from my mum's side. My grandfather was the Pearly King of Mile End but when I was a one we moved to Peckham.
"I had always wanted to carry on tradition and have been very concerned about this going back many years
"We are losing our identity and it is incredibly sad how much the numbers have shrunk
"It is my family background and I am determined people will not forget our tradition
"That is why I had a dream - soon after being crowned Pearly King of Peckham aged 20 - of having a Cockney museum to documenting our history. That dream took more than years to become a reality but it was in my brain all that time."
George was already 82 when it opened and he continues to work six days a week showing people around and maintaining the exhibits.
He added: "Everyone who comes here loves it and finds it very educational.
“It’s important for people to learn about history – especially the younger generation – and to see how hard people, especially children, had i
George Major, 86, who was crowned The Pearly King of Peckham more than 65 years ago, said there were once more than 400 like him.
But he says he is now only one of around a dozen left carrying the torch.
He still wears his original pearls with pride to welcome visitors six days a week at the world's only Cockney museum that he set up four years ago.
But he said the younger generation were shying away from the east end Victorian tradition - and it was now in grave danger of dying out for good.
And launching his new campaign to 'save the pearlies' he said it was vital more awareness of its history and meaning was passed down.
George grew up working on the market in the south-London suburb from the age of four and was such a major inspiration behind the classic sitcom Only Fools and Horses he was named “Del Boy the First”.
He recalls being followed at the time by the show's writer John Sullivan while he worked as a costermonger with 'Granddad Fred' and a 'lanky bloke' they called the 'plonker.'
The similarities don't end there - with multiple tales of his exploits being used on the show.
He famously once sold 'Cockney smog' - milk bottles filled with exhaust fumes - to American tourists - that's believed to be the inspiration behind the famous 'Peckham Spring' episode.
He was crowned the Pearly King of Peckham aged 20 - and has been collecting items ever since.
George now spends his days showing visitors around his museum near Epsom, Surrey, and taking his cheerful pearly way to groups, events and nursing homes - but said he was sad schools no longer invited him in for talks.
He said: “In 1930 there were around 400 genuine pearlies but now there are only about a dozen or so of us left.
“The museum helps to keep the Pearly tradition alive by teaching new generations about it.
"I was born a Pearly Prince which comes from my mum's side. My grandfather was the Pearly King of Mile End but when I was a one we moved to Peckham.
"I had always wanted to carry on tradition and have been very concerned about this going back many years
"We are losing our identity and it is incredibly sad how much the numbers have shrunk
"It is my family background and I am determined people will not forget our tradition
"That is why I had a dream - soon after being crowned Pearly King of Peckham aged 20 - of having a Cockney museum to documenting our history. That dream took more than years to become a reality but it was in my brain all that time."
George was already 82 when it opened and he continues to work six days a week showing people around and maintaining the exhibits.
He added: "Everyone who comes here loves it and finds it very educational.
“It’s important for people to learn about history – especially the younger generation – and to see how hard people, especially children, had i
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FunTranscript
00:00My name is George Major, the Pearly King of Peckham. I'm 86 years of age. I started off
00:11as a baby, as a pearly prince of Peckham. And when I was 20, I became and crowned the
00:22Pearly King of Peckham. I'm sitting in my Cockney Museum, and I had a dream, because
00:31I was going to a lot of pearly funerals. And because of that, I noticed the D'Aspenys,
00:39which is kids in Cockney, were not carrying on the tradition. And to me, our tradition
00:47is very important. So, after I was crowned the King of Peckham, I then had a dream. It
00:59came out of the blue. And this museum is the result of my dream. Being a pearly king, first
01:09of all, you've got to be a happy-go-lucky geezer. I've met all the royal family, I'll
01:14levy all of them, right? Down with the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh. My favourite was
01:22Princess Margaret. When you think that in 1930, there was 300 kings, queens, princesses
01:31and princesses in one group. Today, two handfuls. That's how it's lost its tradition. And that
01:43I don't want. That's why I built my Cockney Museum, to keep it alive. It's declined because
01:50the D'Aspenys, which is kids, are not interested. They're more interested in their bloody phones
01:58and computers, right? Than helping other people. The generation that's still around, where
02:08their great-grandfathers were pearly kings and grandmothers were pearly queens, I'd like
02:15them really to come back on board and to do their bit to keep the number up. That's important.
02:25Because you see, there's no doubt about it, as a pearly, you change people's lives. You
02:32really do. I go to, for instance, a lot of nursing homes. They always insist on seeing
02:39the bedridden ones first, because they can't join in the fun. One of the patients came
02:45up to me and said, can I have a cuddle? Of course you can't. I said, I'll give you a cuddle.
02:51Which I've done. And you know, she held on to me all this while I was in that nursing
02:57home. And I was talking to her and she was talking to me. And when it was time to go,
03:05I'd say goodbye and she had a few tears in her eyes. And the nurse came up to me quietly
03:15and said, how do you get her to talk, George? We've been trying for ages to get her to talk.
03:23I said, it ain't me, my darling. It's my pearls. That's what does it.