Norman Stanley Fletcher, commonly nicknamed "Fletch", is the main fictional character in the BBC sitcom Porridge, and the spin-off, Going Straight. He was played by Ronnie Barker. In the pilot episode, Fletcher claims to Mr Barrowclough that he was sentenced for stealing a lorry which then crashed through garden walls and a tool-shed when its brakes failed. This turns out to be a shaggy dog story leading up to the punchline "I asked for six other fences to be taken into consideration". In other episodes it is stated that he was sentenced for breaking and entering and that he is a career burglar.