It is 1937, and newly qualified veterinarian James Herriot travels to Yorkshire to apply for the post of assistant in Siegfried Farnon’s practice. He soon learns the facts of country life but struggles to overcome the prejudices of the Darrowby locals who are sceptical of the novice vet's ability. In between “cases,” Herriot courts pretty farmer’s daughter Helen Alderson and finally marries her.
James is busy with tuberculin testing but is summoned to the Ministry of Agriculture when the test results don't quite add up. Siegfried has to deal with a dog owner who only believes in strict discipline in dealing with his dog. He also has to deal with dying sheep, but the owners may not have the means to save them. Helen gets a job as a secretary, but James isn't quite sure he approves. Siegfried, on the other hand, thinks it's a wonderful idea. Tristan is less than enthused however when he realizes he will have to take over Helen's duties in the partnership. Mrs.Hall tells Siegfried that she has to leave to help her brother, who is now alone to work his farm.
Siegfried bumps into Mr. Beresford, the manager of the local bank whose dog behaves badly in the car. Tristan woos the lovely Marjorie Simpson and Siegfried meets Sarah Raworth. James treats the elderly Mr. Bailey's dog who has developed a bad case of bronchitis and Siegfried criticizes James when he waives the fee. Siegfried, however, has trouble following his own advice. Tristan rescues a severely injured cat and then convinces James to treat him rather than put him down. Helen promptly adopts him and nurses him back to good health but is devastated when she learns the cat belongs to the Gibbons family. Everyone celebrates Tristan's birthday.
Mr. Biggins tells James about his cowhand, Ned Finch, who goes drinking every night and is drawn to the bright lights of the big city. All James ever sees is an amiable fellow having a quiet drink in his local pub. Mrs. Hall is all aflutter with the visit of Mr. Barge, the loquacious pharmaceutical representative. Mrs.Pumphrey is worried when her new boxer, Cedric, proves to be overly flatulent. James finds a perfect solution. Mr. Beresford's dog is still misbehaving in the car. Siegfried suggest a new sedative, but it unfortunately doesn't have the desired impact.
Tristan and Siegfried meet Roddy, a hobo and his dog who are passing through the area. Mrs. Hall needs to visit sick relatives for a few days and Tristan is assigned chief cook and bottle washer. He also has to do the spring cleaning, cook the meals and put in his time in the surgery. Siegfried is less than sympathetic when Tristan complains. Granville Bennett stops in wanting the vets to care for his dog, Phoebe, who needs an minor operation. He invites James and Siegfried to lunch the next day and James once again over imbibes. Helen practices her first aid skills on James.
Tristan has had a rather late night and Siegfried takes him to task over his bad habits. Tristan announces that he has a steady girlfriend, Deborah Mount and will reform his wild ways. Turns out Deborah's father doesn't know anything about the relationship and may not approve. When he does hear of it, he has serious doubts about Tristan's character. Tristan doesn't help his case with his silly pranks. James has several encounters with a street urchin, Wesley Binks, whom he'd earlier caught stealing. James nonetheless helps Wesley out when his dog contracts distemper. Siegfried reacts badly when the Weeting brothers tell him they are off to join the military.
James and Helen are about to celebrate their first wedding anniversary and Tristan suggests to James that they go to the Harlequin, a modest restaurant that opened recently. It turns out to be anything but and is in fact one of the poshest restaurants in the area. Siegfried starts seeing Margery Egerton. Tristan, now a free man since being forbidden to see Miss Mount, sets his sights on previous conquests. Siegfried and Tristan ask James to arbitrate when they both want the same evening off. James has to pay several visits to Mr. Bailes whose dog seems to take great delight in scaring the wits out of him.
The possibility of war is on everyone's mind with Helen preparing for the privations ahead and Tristan tasked to tape the windows in the event of bombing. Siegfried decides that they should conserve food and heating by eating their meals together, but Mrs. Hall takes his instructions to economize a bit too seriously. James treats Hamish, a sick dog who requires an operation and Tristan, who is tasked with overseeing his recovery, loses him. The vets forgo a posh evening out to treat a stray dog who has had an accident. Tristan is aghast at Siegfried's attempt to pair him with Deirdre Headingley, one of his crony's less-than-attractive daughters.
The vets visit a modern dairy farm and are left to wonder who benefits from the cold efficiency. Miss Westerman returns with her dog Hamish and Tristan tries to avoid her, given that he misplaced her dog the last time she him in the vets' care. She is concerned at the rumors that all dogs will need to be destroyed if war is declared but Tristan sets her mind to rest. The vets agree to spay a cat for a minimum fee, but find they may have gotten more that they bargained for. Siegfried treat Herbie Hinchcliffe's aging horse Dolly and becomes emotionally involved in the case when he has to put
Siegfried has become a bit horse shy given his recent experience with Dolly. James has to deal with the very unpleasant Ralph Beamish, an arrogant horse owner who continually ignores his advice. Siegfried visits a local pig farmer and fears his animals may be infected with foot and mouth disease. Mrs. Beck continues to complain about her with the vets bill and is now worried about how her cat might survive a gas attack should war be declared. Germany has invaded Poland and the British government has given Germany an ultimatum to leave or they will be at war.
Mrs. Hall is away visiting a cousin and James agrees to fill in for Stewie Brannon while he's on holidays. Siegfried and Tristan make the best of it but Tristan's culinary skills have not improved over the years. He does make an excellent bangers and mash, for every meal, everyday. James treats a severely injured dog and has a bit of difficulty with the local dialect.
The Darrowby Bell Ringing Society is suspending its operations for the duration of the war and they have one, final "meeting" at the local pub. James and Tristan go to the bell tower with not unexpected results. The vets have to deal with a series of dog poisonings. They soon identify the farmer responsible, but not before several more animals die. Siegfried treats Joan Clifford's dog Saxon, but the case has very specific implications for her. James treats Mr. Hanson's pigs but it's Mr. Hanson who is most entertaining in that he always speaks at the top of his lungs.
James treats Paul Cotterell's dog Theo, who has been losing weight and is diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease. James recommends that Theo be put down and Paul agrees. James doesn't realize the impact this has on Paul and the tragic results that ensue. James meets Lord Hulton, a hard working farm owner despite his aristocratic background. Hulton takes a liking to a horse that has wandered onto his property from the nearby military depot. At the Billings farm, James finds young calves who are wasting away. He thinks they have ingested an irritant of some kind, but the vets simply can't isolate it.
Siegfried takes Tristan to task for not mending a hole in the fence. Tristan announces that he now refuses to subject himself to Siegfried's tyranny but he is given 24 hours to mend the fence or face the consequences. Tristan tries to recruit James in his battle with Siegfried, but James will have nothing to do with it. Siegfried comes up with the perfect response. James operates on a sick calf but those assisting him are worse off than the calf. As a result, James comes down with a bad case of the flu. James is also concerned at having to give bad news to Andrew Vine about his dog, given his recent experience with Paul Cotterell.
England is at war and the time has come for James and Siegfried to join their military units. Their last day at the practice is a busy one and James is repeatedly called out when he had hopes to spend a last, quiet evening at home with Helen. Siegfried surprises James with a small gift. Mrs. Hall also has a surprise announcement for everyone and Tristan receives shocking news from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
James has his eye on a little semi-detached property coming up for sale, with the notion it would make a pleasant surprise for Helen. Unknown to him, however, Helen has grander ideas. There is trouble from a local farmer, which ironically leads Calum to celebrate his departure from the Herriot household.
The week leading up to the Darrowby Show proves to be a difficult one for James. He finds that he has been asked to judge the dog section at the show, an invitation he can't refuse. Since Mrs. Pumphrey will inevitably want to enter Tricky Woo, James expects to be put in a very embarrassing situation.
Trying to save the life of a badly injured, much-loved cat, James and Tristan seek the help of Granville Bennett, who runs a small animal hospital. The fruits of Bennett's practice are clearly much richer than the hard graft of the Dales, and James is intrigued to find that Bennett is looking for a partner.
Andrew Bruce, an old school friend of James' comes to stay for a long weekend. Andrew, a city bank manager, is rhapsodic about the idyllic countryside and Yorkshire Dales courtesy, and he cannot understand why James should want to change such an ideal lifestyle -- until he finds himself in a rural nightmare.
Harvest Sunday proves to be a trying time for the practice. Seigfreid seizes the opportunity to teach Callum cleanliness by example, forcing him to watch "the perfect operation" on a sick cow. Unfortunately, the operation doesn't go according to plan. When Callum is chased by a bull, James goes to his aid.
With Helen still bedridden, there is a dramatic increase in domestic chaos. While James struggles manfully with both chores and children, Siegfried and Tristan praise his noble efforts -- and do precisely nothing. Tristan nfuriates Mr. Bushy, a redoubtable farmer, by treating a dog instead of Busby's cow, by sleeping in, and finally by treating a bull instead of Busby's dog!
James meets Basil Courtney, a cowhand for a local farmer. Basil has worked in a circus, been a teacher, has knowledge of art and a nose for good wine! James is intrigued until he discovers that Basil has not been giving the farmer's calves their treatment and, as a result, they are showing no signs of improvement.
The romance between Calum Buchanan and Deidre McEwan flourishes. Siegfried has been hoping that the love affair 5 would quiet down but instead it seems to be going full blast. However, the course of true love never runs smoothly, and it is left to Siegfried to help solve the young couple's problems.
When Lady Hulton's cat falls ill, Siegfried embarks, with typical zeal, on updating the practice to cater for such refined clients. Lady Hulton, however, catches him out at every turn. James' problems lie with an affable but lazy farmer, Vernon Harker, whose plans to save himself from work even extend to marrying a tower of strength with a grown son to match.
James is persuaded to play for the "Gentlemen's" team in the annual village cricket match. The village players are to be captained by he young, and already legendary, Freddie Trueman. Siegfried persuades Freddie to bowl flat out at the pompous Colonel Jenkins, captain of the "Gentlemen's" side. He lives to regret this when James is injured fielding and Siegfried is himself forced in to bat against "Fiery Fred".
An old friend of James and Siegfried, an itinerant raveler called Roddy Travers, arrives in Darrowby. He appears to be stealing instruments from the practice but Siegfried and James are relieved to discover that Roddy's recently acquired lurcher dog, Murphy, is the culprit. However, the situation turns serious when an elderly local farmer accuses Murphy of sheep killing.
Siegfried insists on singing the praises of his new time- management system, a personal diary, much to the annoyance of James. James is particularly put out by Siegfried's successful demonstration to his bete-noir, the redoubtable Mr. Ripley. However, Siegfried's morning is spoiled when he has to deal with Humphrey, an exuberant Great Dane.
Siegfried is perplexed when the usually-caring Grandma Clarke snubs her neighbor, Franco Pedretti, who is the new shepherd on the estate where she is a tenant farmer. It soon becomes apparent that she blames Franco for the untimely death of her son in Italy during the war and the subsequent death of his wife in childbirth.
Life at the Yorkshire veterinary practice continues to challenge the partners, whether by neglected animals or tight-fisted farmers. There are domestic challenges for Tristan, however, when James and Helen play a practical joke with a "Welcome Home" card from an old female admirer. Life is never simple when true love or the demon drink rule Tristan's life, and he is soon in trouble with Siegfried. A new housekeeper, Mrs. Alton, has been recruited by Siegfried to keep a watchful eye on Tristan, who, dispatched to tie up the details of her employment, is delighted to discover that Mrs. Alton is a rather attractive young widow. But this is not the Mrs. Alton that Siegfried had in mind.
Planting a syringe full of anti-abortion vaccine into a farmer's backside creates something of a crisis for Tristan. Farmer Nat Briggs is convinced that his chances of starting a family have been ruined by Tristan's clumsiness, and he hangs threateningly around the Drovers waiting for a chance to confront Tristan. But it is Siegfried who gets a letter threatening court action. James, meanwhile, keeps Helen guessing about his mysterious visits to a local joiner, whose pet, Helen knows, died some time ago.
Tristan's heart is all a flutter because of the lovely Jane Mercer. When he discovers that she sings in the choral society, Tristan develops a fresh interest in matters musical. But strong-willed Jane takes a donkey's owner to task for neglecting the animal, much to the embarrassment of Tristan. Farmer Biggins, meanwhile, baffles all three partners with his strange behavior. A legendary non-payer of vets' bills, he finally meets his match when Granville Bennett - "the finest small animal practitioner in the north" attends his tom cat and manages to get Biggins to settle his outstanding account in full.
Tragedy strikes Bill Shadwell when his herd of dairy shorthorns contracts Johne's disease. As Shadwell approaches retirement, his son is keen to move into more profitable Friesian dairy cattle -- a move which means both James and Siegfried are caught up in the family's battle of wills. Mr. Grimsdale's bull poses problems of a different kind when Siegfried is convinced it has swallowed a dangerous metal object. But tightfisted Grimsdale is not convinced that an operation is needed. Tristan's new metal detector could prove to be the solution to a tricky dilemma.
The mysterious Mrs. Donovan poses problems for all three partners. Siegfried rashly dismisses her as "a warm-hearted woman who loves animals" -- until she starts interfering with his patients. From sheep to piglets, a howling dog to a hibernating tortoise, there seems to be no limit to her homespun remedies. Tristan has big trouble on his hands when cadging college pal St. John turns up looking for a bed -- and a small loan. Can Tristan keep St. John's presence a secret from Siegfried and the fearsome Mrs. Alton? Lovely Rosemary Brocklehurst attracts the romantic attention of Tristan when she brings in Esmerelda, a tortoise, which won't come out of its shell. Perhaps Mrs. Donovan has the answer...
Queen Elizabeth II's Coronation is cause for Darrowby celebrations on a grand scale. James and Helen's 12-year-old daughter, Rosie, is due to be crowned, too -- as Darrowby's pageant princess -- by her reluctant elder brother, Jimmy. But a severe cough could put a fast end to her starring role in the festivities. Helen is keen to try Mrs. Alton's herbal remedy, but James tells her to give penicillin a chance first. Siegfried also resorts to traditional cures when he tackles a sheep with liver fluke, and is all too eager to pass on to James a rather smelly problem afflicting a dog called Wolfie.
Buffoon Stewie Brannen, an old friend of Siegfried's, has invited the distinguished Professor Norton to a black tie dinner, and prevails upon Siegfried to host it at Skeldale -- and lend him a dinner suit. But disaster looms when Siegfried and Stewie are called out for a calving, in full evening dress, and James has to hold the fort with an irascible Mrs. Alton.
There's unusual friction in the Herriot household when 12- year-old daughter Rosie announces that she wants to become a vet -- against her father's wishes. James goes out of his way to show her the arduous, dirty and dangerous side of his work, while Helen thinks he ought to encourage her. But treating her best friend's pony, which has tetanus, may prove too much even for the determined Rosie. Siegried, meanwhile, manages to lose Mrs. Pettinger's kitten Prudence, which escapes from the surgery and hitches a ride to Hull, causing consternation in Darrowby and mirth for Tristan.
Siegfried is determined to discover who shot Korean War veteran Jacob Pearson's dog. The suspect is Captain Crawford's willful and surly 20-year-old son, Hugh -- a young man with problems beyond his pompous father's control. Both James and Siegfried have extraordinarily little success in extracting payment from wily farmer Dennis Pratt -- until they discover he may be sneaking his cows onto a neighboring farm to enjoy better grazing.
Siegfried takes a close friend to task for wasting his own talents as a veterinary surgeon. Ewan Ross -- "the best horse man north of the Humber" has let his career slide gently into the whiskey bottle after the death of his wife. But Siegfried is determined to make use of his considerable skills. A valuable racehorse with a strangulated hernia could provide Siegfried with not only a way of striking back at "vets in Bentleys", but also putting Ewan on the straight and narrow. James, meanwhile, is strangely reluctant to take on responsibility for Mrs. Pumphrey's beloved Tricky-Woo when she announces that she is off to France. But Siegfried caves in under the persuasive skills of Mrs. Pumphrey and Tricky-Woo moves into Skeldale.
Siegfried is laid up at Skeldale with his foot in plaster. His dreams of mouthwatering meals prepared by Mrs. Alton are soon shattered by her regime of a strict diet "for an invalid". Tristan falls for the dark, sad-eyed beauty, Angela Mortimer, Mrs. Pumphrey's great-niece, who has been jilted by her fiance. Fortunately, the demanding dog Tricky-Woo provides an ideal excuse for Tristan to make a number of house calls. James impresses three hero-worshiping locals with his cow-curing abilities, and he learns to value their support when he has to judge the Darrowby Vegetable Show, with disastrous results.
It's raining cats — literally — when Tristan has to face the terrors of an enormous sow, Our Gracie, and her litter of piglets, who are due to be castrated. When the farm cats take a fancy to the anesthetic-stuffed offcuts, they start to doze off in some very unlikely places. Mrs. Clarke, a very determined old lady, is struggling to keep her farm running until she can hand it over to her young granddaughter, Mary. But she is reaching the stage when she can no longer handle the pressures, even with her elder granddaughter, Katherine to help — and Katherine is planning to pursue a nursing career in Africa...
Christmas 1955 is fast approaching but the vets are dealing with their usual assortment of diseased animals and entertaining locals. James is particularly proud of Frank Gillard's farm. Gillard also keeps racing pigeons and Mr. Biggins accuse the birds of importing hoof and mouth disease. When Gillard's cattle develop the dreaded disease, he has no choice but to destroy his herd. Tristan buys himself a fancy Daimler coupe but then can't quite pay back the money he borrowed from Sigfried who gives him until Christmas day to settle up or he will take possession of the car. Tristan once again joins the bell ringers but more because he's interested in Miss Marston, the new teacher who is also a member of the group. James and Sigfried find themselves acting as references in court for the feuding Bradley brothers, David and Jonathan. This is the last ever episode of the show.
Dale Winton brings together cast members from popular TV shows of the past, taking them on a trip down memory lane and reliving some of their best and worst moments. He begins by assembling Christopher Timothy, Carol Drinkwater, Lynda Bellingham and Robert Hardy : stars of long-running rural drama All Creatures Great and Small : and discovers what each has been up to since the series ended.
Creature Comforts unveils the inspirations behind Alf Wight`s beloved vet character, James Herriot, in the BBC`s most successful TV series of all time, All Creatures Great and Small. Featuring a special appearance from Christopher Timothy who played Herriot in the Emmy nominated show and hosted by Simon Ward from the 1975 TV film.
Archaeology series unearthing the history and anecdotes behind cult Sunday night dramas looks at All Creatures Great and Small. With its mix of stunning countryside, eccentric characters and romance, the show formed a template for Sunday night television. Interviewees including Christopher Timothy, Peter Davison, Robert Hardy, Carol Drinkwater, Lynda Bellingham, John McGlynn, producer Bill Sellars and writer Johnny Byrne reveal the struggles behind the success