

All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five
8/8/2025 | 56m 19sVideo has Closed Captions
Go behind the scenes of Season 5 with the cast and creators of this beloved MASTERPIECE series.
Go behind the scenes of Season 5 with the cast and creators of this beloved MASTERPIECE series. Discover how the Darrowby community is pulling together during wartime and how young baby Jimmy is keeping everyone at Skeldale House on their toes while James is away at RAF Abingdon. Includes interviews with the cast and creators.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback

All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five
8/8/2025 | 56m 19sVideo has Closed Captions
Go behind the scenes of Season 5 with the cast and creators of this beloved MASTERPIECE series. Discover how the Darrowby community is pulling together during wartime and how young baby Jimmy is keeping everyone at Skeldale House on their toes while James is away at RAF Abingdon. Includes interviews with the cast and creators.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
How to Watch All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five
All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five is available to stream on pbs.org and the free PBS App, available on iPhone, Apple TV, Android TV, Android smartphones, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Tablet, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, and Vizio.
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship(cheerful piano theme) - [Narrator] "All Creatures Great and Small" on MASTERPIECE has lovingly captivated readers, viewers, and animal lovers for the past half century.
The timeless stories of James Herriot and his fascinating life as a veterinarian in the picturesque English countryside continue to enchant us with humor, romance, and kindness.
- [Siegfried] And your return is a very welcome change indeed, James.
(soaring orchestral music) - [Narrator] Season Five of "All Creatures Great and Small" picks up at the height of World War II and explores how our Skeldale House family and the Darrowby community support each other with a generosity of spirit.
In today's special, we'll meet many of the new characters and animals of Season Five.
We'll be reunited with some of our favorite friends and even play some games with the cast!
- What do you think, too long?
(Jimmy farting and laughing) No, you're right, it's perfect.
- [Narrator] Join us as we spend some time with James, Helen, Siegfried, Tristan, Mrs. Hall, Richard Carmody, Mrs. Pumphrey, and the newest member of the Skeldale family, Baby Jimmy.
We'll take a behind-the-scenes look at this joyous series as we hear heartwarming stories from the cast and creators about Season Five in this special presentation, "All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five."
(serene string music) - Excuse me, is this Darrowby?
- Aye.
(string music continuing) Aye, it is.
(bus door opening) (string music continuing) - [Nicholas] Coming back to play James Herriot, it's like putting on a comfortable pair of shoes or slippers-- you know, they've kind of molded to your feet a little bit.
- [Mr. Crabtree] Mr. Herriot, thanks for coming.
- Mr. Crabtree.
Hey, your herd's looking promising.
- Aye, building it up again, slowly but surely.
- [Rachel] It's a privilege to get to play the same character.
It's a real luxury in television that you get to return from beyond their journey through these life milestones.
And it's interesting, there's always something new.
(jingling bells) (Jimmy cooing) - [Helen] Yes!
(Jimmy laughing) You love it!
Ah, Doris!
- Mrs. Herriot.
Hello there, you.
- Everybody, i- in various different ways, is stepping into new roles.
Obviously you have Helen and James are parents now, and Siegfried and Mrs. Hall are kind of surrogate grandparents.
- It won't be easy for you though, first day on your own with him.
- Never get my wings unless I sit in the cockpit.
- [Siegfried] He's a baby, not a Blenheim bomber.
- [Mrs. Hall] Well, you haven't seen his nappies.
(all laughing) (Jimmy mewling) - [Samuel] Personally, the biggest story of the series is the return of Tristan.
(warm string music) - [Helen] I don't believe it.
(Tristan chuckling) - This isn't a mirage, Helen-- really is me.
Older, wiser, more handsome than ever.
(both laughing) - You have these lovely, touching, emotional moments, and then on a dime you're laughing out loud.
- We test for conditions before animals develop symptoms.
Notice anything?
(jar hitting table) - Oi!
- Uh... size of pellets.
- This season does feel, at times, incredibly epic.
- [Tristan] You won't have met many mules before now, but they're the animals you'll be dealing with mostly out in the field.
So you need to get to grips with them.
Trouble is... much like Yorkshire farmers, they're stoical buggers.
(soldiers laughing) - [James Anthony-Rose] All of these new roles that people are playing-- also in the war effort as well-- makes it an entirely sort of fresh perspective on the Skeldale unit.
- It's a little early, but I think a celebratory post pra- Oh, good God, what's all this?
- I decided I wanted to do a bit more for the war effort.
- Oh, I get a rather good outfit and a marvelous hat.
- [Bosworth] Typical air raid precaution round, complete.
What did you make of it?
- Very informative.
Looking forward to getting out on me own.
- [Nicholas] The things that viewers can look forward to this season is much and such what we've come to know and love about the show.
So we have the wonderful Yorkshire Dales, the lovely animals-- some returning and some new.
- [Callum] More animals, time spent in the Drovers.
More arguments between Tristan and Siegfried.
- That was completely unnecessary!
He'd already had the correct dosage.
- And it hadn't had the slightest effect.
- If you had even a modicum of patience-- (body thudding) (breeze blowing) - [Samuel] There's something wonderful about coming back to the Dales.
I think it's the happiest job I've ever had... and I don't really want it to stop.
(gentle piano music) - All fathers-- God, surrogate or otherwise-- share one common desire-- (plaintive string music) to help those under their care become the best version of themselves.
(string music continuing) - Job done.
- [Nicholas] It's largely the same crew, wonderful cast returning, and the animals... and back in the Yorkshire Dales, so it feels very comfortable, yeah.
- To things that never change.
(uplifting orchestral music) (Siegfried arguing in distance) - [All] To things that never change.
(glasses clinking) (uplifting music concluding) - [Narrator] Even though we love the things that never change, James's time in the Royal Air Force is full of changes as we see at the start of Season Five.
- Well done, Banerjee, that was much better.
- Thank you, but it was, as you said.
I needed to adjust more accurately for the wind speed.
- Aye, listen to the skipper, and you won't go far wrong.
- A couple more practice flights, and we'll be ready for our first long distance run!
- [Nicholas] We pick up this series with James at the RAF, and he's now doing his fully- fledged bomber pilot training with his team, with his squad, preparing to fight in World War II.
- [Whitely] Training mission or not, you need to treat tonight as the real thing.
You run into enemy aircraft, they won't make allowances.
- [Nicholas] He's got a very real role to play.
Being slightly older, I think he takes it very seriously because the young men around him are, you know, they're 18, 19, 20 years old, so he'll be taking men under his wing.
- I'm worried I will let you down.
(background typing) (footsteps) - Come on.
(indistinct background chatter) What you need is some fresh air-- come on.
- [Nicholas] He's got a lot more life experience.
So I think, yeah, he takes that very seriously too-- to make sure he's looking after his squadron.
- [James] The first time I attended a call on my own, seeing an animal in pain and distress, knowing a farmer's livelihood depended on my knowing what to do... (planes buzzing overhead) I couldn't be more terrified.
(planes buzzing) But you know, it's a funny thing, when you have no choice but to focus on the job in hand, there's a kind of clarity.
(propeller winding down) Suddenly everything you've learned, all the knowledge, all the skills you've acquired, they just take over.
(industrial background noise) - And so was the animal saved?
(industrial noise) - She was, and I delivered my very first calf.
- He's a father now, so he wants to live.
It's a lot to juggle and a lot to deal with.
- Is that your boy?
- Aye, it is.
God, I can't believe how big he's getting.
- [Narrator] But right before a scheduled flight, James collapses and learns that he has contracted brucellosis from his encounters with infected cattle before he joined the RAF.
- I've been discussing your condition with the wing commander.
And, well, to cut to the chase, he doesn't think you're fit to fly.
- Well, no, not-- not at the moment, but- (murmuring in background) - Not at all, I'm afraid.
(somber string music) - [Narrator] Because of his illness, James is put on work detail and finds himself working on a farm where a cow is having a difficult time giving birth.
- The bloody legs are stuck under.
(distressed mooing) We've been trying for an hour to pull 'em out.
(cow snorting) (Mr. Edwards grunting) - Let me have a look.
For God's sake, man, I'm a vet.
(cow mooing) This is what I do.
(plaintive string music) - [Narrator] With his expertise, James saves the day and delivers the calf.
(hopeful orchestral music) - [Edwards] There we go.
(cow mooing) Okay.
(Calf falling to the floor) (uplifting orchestral music) - [Edwards] Well done that, man.
Guess you are a bleedin' expert after all.
(string music fading) - [Narrator] After learning that James is a qualified vet, his commanding officers send him home so that he can help his country by keeping the farms running.
- [Whitely] Your discharge papers.
- Sir?
- [Whitely] You're a trained vet, Herriot.
As I understand it, a very good one.
(somber orchestral music) There aren't too many of you around right now.
(bright string music) - [Nicholas] That desire to get back, to get back to Helen, to get back to Jimmy, to get back to Skeldale House and to be a dad and to be a father, I think is something that will be burning inside him.
(optimistic orchestral music) - [James] Hello.
(door closing) Who might you be?
(bag dropping to floor) Oh, you're a friendly chap, aren't you?
Mm?
(tail wagging) - [Nicholas] My hope for him is to get back, to get back to his family, to get back to little Jimmy and to continue that building of the foundations to raise his family.
- [James] Hello there, little man.
(Jimmy squealing) Not so little anymore.
(Jimmy fussing) - [Helen] Alright, I'm coming.
(footsteps) James!
I don't... What are you... - I've come home.
(uplifting orchestral music) (Helen gasping) (uplifting music crescendoing and concluding) (serene orchestral music) - [Narrator] As Season Five plays out, we see Darrowby come together as a community during wartime.
- To all our boys, may we see them soon.
- Hear, hear.
- [Mrs. Hall] Our boys.
- [Siegfried] Our boys.
- [Nicholas] Because we're now in 1941, and the war is raging on, we'll see a little bit more of its impact, especially within the community and people doing their bit.
- We are still in need of additional wardens for blackout duty!
- [Samuel] Things that were easy to get before become hard.
Everything feels a little bit held together with string.
(Jimmy objecting) - [Mrs. Hall] I know.
It's a poor show for your first Christmas, isn't it?
- [Helen] It's not the end of the world.
At least we'll have plenty of potatoes and sprouts.
- [Rachel] Many changes happen in Darrowby because of the war.
In Skeldale House in particular, there's somewhat of a new routine happening.
- [Mrs. Hall] Put the lights out!
- We're trussed up tighter than a mummy's- Oh, sorry!
(hurried footsteps) (curtain hooks sliding) (grunting) - [Samuel] Mrs. Hall's new role is overseen by an, an appalling jobsworth called Bosworth, who is... Siegfried's nemesis.
He couldn't have been designed to be more annoying to me.
- [Bosworth] We have to maintain standards, otherwise we risk panic and loss of morale.
- Mine's deserting me as we speak.
(Mrs. Hall chuckling) - I beg your pardon?
- [Siegfried] I said, "Thank goodness you're on duty all week."
- [Narrator] Another new character we meet this season is Doris, who is part of the Women's Land Army, an organization which recruited women from the cities to work on farms in order to help feed the country.
- I hear the WLA is not for the fainthearted.
- Oh, you heard right.
Suits me though, I don't mind hard work.
- Well, uniform's not so bad either.
- [Anna] In Darrowby, a lot of the young men have gone off to fight, so a lot of the farms are finding they don't have as much manpower as they had, so we're starting to... have Land Girls arrive in the community.
- Shall we fix this up?
Have a brew while we're at it.
- Thanks, Mrs. Herriot.
- It's Helen.
- [Rachel] We're lights out at a certain time, blackout curtains are pulled, food is less, all those kind of things but there's still very much the community spirit.
- Aye, you got your work cut out for you down here.
- Mm, there's a fair bit to do.
- [Rachel] There's an elderly member of the community called Dot Fawcett, who's been unwell following an operation and Helen takes it in her stride with a baby on her hip to take over her efforts in the victory garden.
- [Mrs. Pumphrey] Good heavens!
- [James] Are these all from the victory gardens?
- [Helen] And there's plenty more where that came from!
- Bumper harvest.
- I think Tristan's contributions to the war is that he's obviously done his bit already out in Egypt and now he's coming back to, sort of, train the next batch of people.
- [Tristan] When a horse has colic, you can see he's in pain, but your mule just soldiers on, So... what symptoms do we look for?
- A high pulse and a discolored membrane.
- And if we need further confirmation?
- Best thing is to listen to its gut.
- Give that man a coconut!
(soldiers laughing) - Another very big change is Mrs. Pumphrey's manor, which has become a convalescence house, which were really, really cool scenes to film.
- Mrs. Pumphrey, the lads think the world of Tricki and it's obvious that you care about them a great deal.
- Yes...
I do.
I always wanted this house to be a haven for them.
- [Patricia] Now that the war is on, she's moved out of Pumphrey Manor and she's living in a more modest circumstance and so the friendship has even more traction.
- We all need to do our bit.
Don't we, darling?
(Mrs. Pumphrey fussing over Tricki) Yes.
- [Rachel] I don't think Helen faces any challenges in the war effort but she's certainly very active in helping the community and I guess just a heightened awareness of the wider world.
- [Helen] Well, you were sent home before you finished your training.
But that's... fortunate in anyone's book.
- The training's as dangerous as the real thing.
Certainly felt that way when my crew was shot down.
(poignant piano and string music) - You never said.
(poignant music intensifying) - [Narrator] One of the biggest challenges Helen faces in Season Five is helping James through the struggles with post-traumatic stress from his time at the RAF.
- Banerjee was a frightened boy, I talked him into flying, I persuaded him he was ready.
(birds chirping outside) - James, you helped that lad through the most frightening time of his life.
- But I wasn't there when he needed me because of this, this stupid illness-- I let him down, I let them all down!
(birds chirping quietly) (near silence) (handling linens) (soft footsteps) (sitting on bed) - I'm so sorry.
I didn't know you felt that way and here's me... thinking this illness was... a blessing.
- And it was.
Of course it was.
- Well, there's a bit more to it than that, i'n't there?
(birds chirping softly) - Aye, I suppose there is.
- [Samuel] The bonds of family and work and... care, I think, become even more important.
- "The key notes of a warden's conduct should be courage and presence of mind."
Well, that sounds like you all over, that does.
- Oh, now you're being daft.
- I've seen how folk listen to you, Mrs. Hall.
You're making a difference every day.
If you can't see that, you're the daft one.
(bright string music) - [Narrator] Of course, a fun part of Season Five is watching Helen and James adjust to their roles as new parents.
- Good morrow, young Jimmy, my handsome wee boy!
(Jimmy babbling) Just like his daddy!
- [Nicholas] James becoming a dad, I think, it can't not change you.
It would just make you even more compassionate.
- [James] Hey, my boy!
(Jimmy cooing and giggling) Let's see where those duckies have got to, shall we?
Eh?
- [Nicholas] It'll just be a great learning lesson for him as well, you know, you'd be learning all the time about how to deal with being a dad and how to go about that.
(Jimmy making noises) - [James] Oh, oh wait, wait, I th- I think something's happening.
(footsteps) (fabric rustling) (Helen sniffing) (Jimmy exclaiming) - When he scrunches his face up and goes red, that's how you know you're in danger.
- Scrunch.
Got it.
- [Rachel] Helen loves Jimmy and she loves to be with Jimmy, obviously, it's her favorite thing to do.
He's kind of her world now.
- [Helen] Hello, you!
(Helen cooing at Jimmy) (Jimmy making happy noise) Your daddy's feeling better.
- [Rachel] If you'd have asked her before, what would it be like having a child?
She'd have said, "It's gonna be fine, I'll get back to work and everything will be..." And actually, she's fallen in love with him and motherhood a little bit more than she ever thought she would, which is lovely.
- [Helen] Now, you and me had an arrangement, remember?
A nice walk and then a good long nap.
Yes.
(Jimmy gurgling) (hurried footsteps) All set?
- [Anna] It's lovely having that relationship with Helen where she's a new mom.
That nice juggle of handing jobs around and, and being part of making it all-- muddling through it all together.
(dramatic orchestral music) - [Helen] That's him changed and ready to meet his granny and granddad.
- Don't you look smart?
- Yeah-- he won't stay that way for long.
(both chuckling) - [Anna] They're able to support each other and, and meld their knowledge and their wisdom and their efforts to make it work.
- [Mrs. Hall] Well, I... don't mind having Jimmy... if you want to go.
- Oh, I can't give you another job.
- Jimmy's not a job.
(footsteps) He's my favorite.
- With the presence of baby Jimmy, we see a... more cheerful Siegfried.
- There he is, I was wondering where you'd got to.
(chuckling) - [Helen] Here we go.
- [Siegfried] Now then, have you had a good morning, young Jimmy?
- [Helen] He has.
So have I, thanks for asking.
- [Samuel] I feel at last that there's somebody who's intellectually my equal and about bloody time.
- Hemorrhagic septicemia is an acute general infection characterized by sudden onset high fever- - And extensive hemorrhaging of the internal organs.
- Does it always have to be gore?
- [Siegfried] Yes, it's his favorite.
- [Samuel] I'm appointed his godfather, which is an extremely important role, which to my surprise, I take quite seriously.
- [Vicar] Grant that this child receives the fullness of thy grace.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.
- [All] Amen.
- Would you please name the child?
- James Alexander.
(poignant music fading) - [Narrator] As James and Helen explore their role as new parents, they discover that there's a big learning curve to raising a little one.
- [Helen] Nappies are in here, give these ointments, stop him from getting sore, pins are in the front, powder in the back.
All set?
(birds chirping outside) - Tight but not tight.
Warm but not hot.
Ointment... piece of cake.
- [Narrator] But one day, when James takes baby Jimmy to work with him, he realizes he left something very important behind.
(tires squealing) - Whatever's the matter?
- Jimmy!
(suspenseful string music) - Oh, dear.
Good gracious.
- I forgot him!
(suspenseful music intensifying) (dog whining) (car engine starting) (car driving in reverse) - You're a dab hand with livestock, Mr. Herriot, but you've a way to go with the little one.
- No idea what came over me.
- [Carmody] If it's any consolation, my parents forgot I was at boarding school once for an entire summer.
I didn't turn out too badly, did I?
(pointed silence) (birds chirping) - Well, we should dash, he needs his feed.
- [Narrator] Although James is shaken up by the mistake, Helen reassures him that they will get through the challenges of parenting together.
(poignant orchestral music) - [Helen] Made plenty of mistakes of me own that way.
(poignant music continuing) - But you've been like a... duck to water.
- Headless chicken, more like.
(poignant music continuing) You'll get used to it.
Don't be so hard on yourself.
- [Samuel] What Jimmy represents to a country at war and a family is hope.
So we want him to look out with new eyes, because when we're next to him, we do the same.
- Good morning.
(phone ringing) - (singing) Happy birthday to you... - [James and Helen] Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday, dear Jimmy, Happy birthday to you!
- [Nicholas] James will see the world in a slightly different way again because you're seeing it through the eyes of a baby and it's that curiosity and, and everything that you latch onto again.
You almost see the world anew and it's something I think James is really looking forward to.
- Are you a dream?
(gentle orchestral music) (James laughing quietly) - (whispering) No, definitely not.
(gentle music continuing) (kissing) (sighing contentedly) (gentle music continuing) Feels like it, though, doesn't it?
- (whispering) Shh, come to bed.
(gentle music continuing) (kissing) (cheerful piano theme) - [Narrator] When we return, we look at Tristan's return to Darrowby as well as the constant challenges facing Siegfried and Mrs. Hall in "All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five."
(piano theme fading) (cheerful piano theme) - [Narrator] Welcome back to "All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five."
Coming up, we look at all the charming new animals in the latest season, and we'll discuss what's been going on with Siegfried, as well as Mrs. Hall.
But first, let's revisit one of the highlights of Season Five, Tristan's return.
(piano theme fading) (poignant orchestral music) - [Tristan] Aren't you going to say something?
(poignant music continuing) (music intensifying) - [Callum] It's been really, really nice returning to the show actually.
Coming back after lunch on the first day quite literally felt like I had never been away for a minute.
- Is that you, Mr. Farnon?
(birds chirping outside) (footsteps) (bright string music) - Which one were you looking for?
- [Anna] It's lovely to have Tristan back.
(laughing) I gave him a rather long hug.
- [Callum] It might not be immediately noticeable, but I have actually grown a mustache for this series.
(door closing) - [Tristan] What's all this I hear about Jimmy stealing my thunder?
- What's all this growing on your top lip?
(James and Tristan laughing) (back slapping) - [Nicholas] Having Cal back is absolutely brilliant.
The show's missed Tristan.
We as a company have missed Callum.
We just couldn't wait for him to come back, and now he's back, it's been an absolute treat.
(Callum laughing) - [Callum] Tristan's just come home on leave.
He's been serving in Egypt with the RAVC.
He's traveled all around Africa looking after things like mules and camels.
- You back for good?
- I'm in Doncaster three days a week till I'm redeployed.
- But it's still Yorkshire.
Just.
(laughing) - Rest of the time is my own.
I'm a man of leisure.
- [Siegfried] Excellent, we could do with another pair of hands.
- Last time I checked, I actually don't work for you anymore.
- [Samuel] I love him, and I'm deeply pleased and relieved to see him alive.
And of course, as soon as that relief falls away, he's immediately annoying again.
(chuckling) - [Tristan] You know, I encountered my fair share of goats in Egypt.
There's a particular knack with them.
I could give you some pointers.
(sounds of steady driving) (car accelerating suddenly) - Anyone who has a deeply annoying sibling knows the feeling.
He can get under my skin like nobody on earth.
- Well, that'll be six shillings exactly.
(pub patrons murmuring in background) (cheeky orchestral music) - Tristan?
(cheeky music continuing) - Would you mind?
I've left my wallet in my other trousers.
- [Rachel] It's great fun for Helen to have Tristan back because they share the mischief.
There's eye rolls across the table.
There's those little looks between Helen and Tris.
- [James] Thanks for being so understanding about this, Tris.
Helen?
- Hey, I'd love a night off.
You'll be alright with Jimmy, won't you?
- I suppose I'll have to be.
Have a good time!
- [Callum] He sort of settles into his own ways back in Skeldale quite quickly.
Him doing all of his RAVC work sort of lounged around on the couch, whilst actually being quite productive during that time as well.
It's a brand new Tristan.
- [Siegfried] You've been having a productive day.
- I have, actually.
Been marking course papers and feeling rather chuffed with myself.
Managed to squeeze a lot more into their noggins than I thought.
- [Callum] We've definitely got the old Tristan back, but he has matured slightly.
He's a slightly more authoritative figure.
- [Robertson] How are they getting on?
- [Tristan] Very good, sir-- they're a bright bunch.
- And you?
- No, I wouldn't call myself bright, but I'm willing.
(Robertson chuckling) - [Callum] Tristan's with the RAVC now, and some of those sequences just feel really epic and quite important.
- For all the modern equipment and advanced technology, it's still these little birds that we rely on at the end of the day.
- For James, having Tris back, it's his brother in this surrogate family.
So they've got a huge bond.
- [James] Eh, speaking of responsibilities...
Finished that lecture of yours, have you?
- Oh, what, do you think I've been distracting you with cricket to avoid getting it done?
What about your playpen?
Shouldn't you be getting back to that, hmm?
- One more over.
- That's the ticket.
- [Nicholas] Day to day, we just have a lot of fun.
- We have so much, like, inside jokes, that to us they're absolutely hilarious.
- [Rachel] One of the funniest moments is watching Callum and Nick riff, because they just have such a shorthand, and they're very loud.
- [Tristan] Googly!
(bat smacking ball) Yes!
- I wasn't ready.
- [Tristan] And again!
- It just feels like coming back to a second sort of family.
It's really, really lovely.
- A first class education, and this is what you come out with it?
It beggars belief, it really does.
- [Tristan] Well, I'm a student of life, not the classroom.
- It's nice to see those two getting on so well.
(barking) - [Mrs Hall] Isn't it just?
(all softly chuckling) (cheeky music) (Tristan sighing) (gentle orchestral music) - [Narrator] And while Tristan and Siegfried are back at it, we always love to see the new animals that find their way into the stories of "All Creatures."
- [Carmody] Good boy!
(soft barking) - (gasping) Will you look at that?
- [Siegfried] That's most impressive.
Though it does explain why there's never any cheese.
- [James Anthony-Rose] We have a new dog that's part of the home, called Hamish.
- [Carmody] He's a remarkably intelligent animal.
I'm not surprised his owner was so sad to leave him.
- [Mrs. Hall] Well, at least he knew he were going to a good home.
- [Rachel] He has to do some pretty impressive tricks, and on paper, I read it, feeling like, "Really?"
Every single time this little dog did every trick it was asked to do.
- Hamish, sit.
Speak.
(Hamish barking) - I was constantly trying to get Hamish into my shots so that I could be cuddling him.
- What?
Helps me think.
(Hamish groaning) - [James Anthony-Rose] I've never had a dog before, um, and it's the first time I can honestly say, "Oh, this is why people have dogs."
And it is this sort of unbound affection and attention that they give you.
- [Carmody] It'll just be you, me, and the big city.
(Hamish panting and licking) Ready for a new palette of sniffs?
- There was another little poodle that we had who was absolutely gorgeous as well.
- Helen's right.
Her mammary glands are definitely swollen.
- So it is a phantom pregnancy?
Oh, I'm impressed.
- [Samuel] We had Miss Grantley's pygmy goats, and I'm a huge fan of pygmy goats.
I really want some.
They're so fluffy!
They're just tiny and sweet, and they jump around like springs.
- It's something of a mystery.
Lice?
- A mystery?
- Don't worry, we're not talking the lost treasure of Darius.
(goat bleating) (both chuckling) We'll soon have an answer for you.
- [Narrator] Some other animals we've been introduced to in Season Five include Frisk the cat, David the ferret, and Barley the pony.
- [Siegfried] So this is Barley.
Hello.
You're very good-natured, aren't you?
- He's a little love.
- [Narrator] But one animal in particular slithered their way onto the screen and into our characters' hands.
- [Carmody] About that snake.
- [Tristan] Oh, for the last time, it doesn't exist.
- You might want to reconsider that hypothesis as he seems rather determined to prove you otherwise.
(cheeky string music) - [Callum] On the other end of the spectrum, you have, uh, the snake, which is my one and only phobia in the world.
- You're ophidiophobic.
Petrified of snakes.
- (scoffing) I'm not petrified of anything.
(birds chirping outside) I just avoid them at all costs.
- I wasn't scared about working with...
I was intrigued to how it would all work, and it was a really great experience actually to work with this python.
You don't even actually have to hold them like that.
It's, it's because they're used to just coiling themselves around trees.
They just use you like a tree.
So you just sort of hold your hands there and they anchor themselves.
(snake hissing) - Led us on quite the merry dance, haven't you, Mr. Python?
You'll be safe and warm in here.
That's it.
(Tristan shuffling feet) - And then make, make, make sure he can't get out.
- [James Anthony-Rose] Like working with all the animals on this show, it's, it's so much about just being at ease around them.
- [Siegfried] My favorite new animal is Frances the Fox.
- It's not a good idea to handle wild animals.
- I know, but it kept going into my garden.
- It's a dilemma, 'cause as I say to the boy who brings him in, "Many people think these are vermin."
And he very cleverly says, "Well, some people say the same about rats."
- Well, that was hardly sensible.
Most people consider foxes to be vermin, especially farmers.
- A lot of people say the same about rats.
- [Samuel] 'Cause he knows I've got one.
But he gets me, so I treat it.
- [Jill] The little fox, Frances, she was a rescued fox hand-reared from a very tiny age.
I got her when she was about five weeks old.
She absolutely adores me.
It's a lovely, lovely show to work on, and the animals are just super, and I think that shows through and other people can relate to it and feel what we are feeling.
- I have to take him back out into the wild.
(fox softly panting) - You could always put him in woods.
That way, he's not near many farms.
(fox yawning) - That's not a bad idea.
(removing gloves) - And I could come with you.
(fox panting) - Yes, I suppose you could.
(serene orchestral music) - [Narrator] As Season Five unfolds, it seems as though we are watching a changed Siegfried.
(serene music continuing) - You know, if I were you, I would've blown my top a long time ago.
- I'm trying to be a better person, more tolerant.
- Think I miss the old Siegfried (Siegfried chuckling) - [Samuel] I like to think that Siegfried's now getting to the age where the sort of mottos of his youth were beginning to look a bit tired.
- [Siegfried] I'll have you know, I'm very adaptable.
I relish change... (car engine humming) given the time to become accustomed to it.
- [Samuel] I think, "Oh, God, am I getting old and set in my ways?"
But the return of Tristan kicks me up the bum a bit, and that's quite useful.
- [Siegfried] I will never utter a cross word to that boy again if he comes home in one piece.
- [Callum] Tristan and Siegfried's relationship... looks like it's gonna be incredibly loving.
And then just very, very quickly devolves straight back to constantly bickering with each other.
- [Tristan] The quickest route would be to go cross-country.
- [Siegfried] Nonsense.
- [Tristan] It's the most direct route... as the crow flies, and all that.
- [Siegfried] "Flies" being the operative word.
We, however, are on foot.
- There's one bit where we go and see Biggins together and I realize that we can still do it.
- [Siegfried] I can't believe he lied to my face... just to worm his way out of paying.
(cheeky orchestral music) - [Tristan] Maybe it's time we give him a taste of his own medicine.
Don't you think?
- I would like it if he could find love.
I think he deserves it.
And almost immediately I meet somebody who completely fascinates me.
- This is Mr. Farnon.
(dogs panting) (both chuckling) - Catherine Grantley.
- [Samuel] I think he's getting to the point now where he thinks the next one's gotta be real.
- I sometimes wonder what I missed out on.
- Yeah, but you've lived on the other side of the world.
You must have seen so much.
- There were forks in the road... and you never do find out what might have happened going the other way.
(poignant string music) - No, you don't.
- [Samuel] You need somebody who gets Siegfried's geekery and forgetfulness and intransigence... and there's quite a long list, actually.
How long have you got?
(laughing) - Mr. Farnon's just solved it.
- Oh?
- He's such an accomplished vet.
All in all, he's clever, dependable, the kindest of men-- (birds chirping) (dogs barking) and not currently in a pair bond.
- I think one of the nicest things that's come out of Season Five is my relationship with Jimmy, who is by far the most sensible person in Skeldale House.
I mean, people think he just babbles, but I speak Jimmy.
- [Siegfried] Well, good afternoon.
At last, a chance for some intelligent conversation.
So tell me, Jimmy-- (phone ringing) what wonders have you... - [Mrs. Hall] I'll get it.
- [Siegfried] encountered today?
- [Rachel] I think Jimmy's helped Siegfried.
He's usually the first one to greet him in the morning, come up with a nursery rhyme, feed him sometimes.
So that's nice.
- [Siegfried] Doesn't that make a good noise?
Yes.
(Jimmy banging) - [Samuel] I want to be a good godfather to Jimmy.
That's more important than I expected it to be.
- How are you getting along with the speech for the christening?
- Oh, I'm rather pleased with it, actually.
- A- and how long is it exactly?
- I've written a really good speech that I want people to hear, which nobody hears.
- [Siegfried] I thought I'd start by talking about the emperor penguin.
- Ah, that might be where you lose your audience.
- [Samuel] Callum and I have just finished a week of walking through the Dales, getting gradually drunker and drunker after our car breaks down, and it gets very silly.
And that's good fun.
- [Tristan] Watch this.
(grunting) - Oh yes, that's much better.
- Sorry.
- [Samuel] There are some delightful sequences and a beautiful piece of coincidence where we needed to cross a stream and some ducks swam into shot.
- [Tristan] I'll give you a piggyback.
- [Siegfried] Oh, don't be absurd.
- [Tristan] There's no point in us both getting wet.
(stream gurgling) (whimsical music) (laughing) (splashing) - [Samuel] We finally get to say some of the things that we've needed to say to each other.
- I was just looking forward to you coming home... to us.
You know, being able to talk, man to man.
- Well, we've never really been big talkers.
- Well, why couldn't we be?
- The dear octopus of the family needs to be held tighter and tighter to keep us together, so on those three fronts-- personal, romantic, and veterinary... Progress!
- Just occasionally, it wouldn't kill you to spend an evening at home.
(ducks quacking in background) - All right.
- I'm not saying every night.
- [Tristan] Well, no, obviously.
- [Siegfried] I just... (forest noise and wind) I would enjoy your company.
- I'd like that too.
(serene orchestral music) - [Narrator] More than ever, the season involves many challenging storylines revolving around Mrs. Hall.
(serene music continuing) (dog barking) (phone ringing) - Darrowby 2297.
- To come back to Series Five, You just think, wow, you get to explore so many more facets of your character that you might not have explored if you'd only had one series.
So, it's a privilege.
- [Mrs. Hall] I do like it when the house is full and happy.
- So do I.
- [Anna] Mrs. Hall, this season, decides to take a more active role in the community, contributing to the war effort.
- [Mrs. Hall] I wish to volunteer to be a blackout warden.
- [Bosworth] Oh, uh... oh no, I'm sorry, uh... that's out of the question.
- I beg your pardon.
- Well, you, you can't possibly, w- we can only accept male volunteers.
- [Anna] We've told the story of her being in the Wrens in World War I, and that that was a very important time in her life and something she was very proud to have done.
- I were a female when I joined the Wrens in the last war, and when I learned to fire a rifle and operate a wireless telegraph.
- I suppose you would've been- - [Mrs. Hall] And I were most certainly a female when I were on the crew of an harbor launch, assigned to mine-spotting duties, many of which, as I recall, took place at night.
- I see, but the thing- - [Mrs. Hall] So, I feel fairly confident I can manage to ride a bicycle around Darrowby and tell people to close their curtains.
- An opportunity comes along that she embraces and goes out and finds new friendships through it as well.
- [Bosworth] Remember, don't just look out for light, i- - [Mrs. Hall] But anything that don't seem right.
- [Bosworth] You're a quick learner, Mrs. Hall.
- You certainly drummed it in, Mr. Bosworth.
- [Anna] She's out and about and leaving the residents of Skeldale to fend for themselves a little bit more.
(chuckling) - [Mrs. Hall] That's not a bomb, that's a flight crate.
- [Bosworth] No, don't, don't-- it, it, it might be munitions!
We don't know what's inside.
- Oh, but we do, actually.
(chuckling) Tinned potatoes.
- Mrs. Hall is an employee, and not only does Skeldale revolve around her, but it doesn't function without her.
We all have to try and do our bit, but we don't always do it with the best of grace, I don't think.
- [Siegfried] Is the man an imbecile or some sort of enemy agent?
Ah, Mr. Bosworth, how convenient.
- [Samuel] I have no respect for Bosworth whatsoever.
And I completely overstep the mark in trying to protect Mrs. Hall from his tedium.
- [Mrs. Hall] Mr. Farnon, please.
- [Bosworth] My primary concern is the welfare of this community - [Siegfried] Then may I suggest you return to them and stop monopolizing my housekeeper.
- [Samuel] And eventually she says, "Look, I can fight my own battles."
And that is what we call a learning experience.
- [Mrs. Hall] If he's at fault, it's my business.
- Understood.
- I can fight me own battles.
- I'm more than aware of that.
- [Narrator] But in the season finale, Mrs. Hall's world is turned upside down when she learns that her son Edward's ship has been attacked.
- What's wrong?
(radio playing softly in background) - I'm afraid there's some bad news.
(radio continuing) The Repulse came under enemy attack.
She's gone down off the coast of Malaya.
(somber orchestral music) - [Narrator] Mrs. Hall visits one of Edward's wounded shipmates hoping to understand what her son's chances of survival were.
- I've been checking in the papers every day.
- So have I.
- So if he were down in the engine room... when the ship were hit... (Mrs. Hall catching her breath) - He wouldn't have stood a chance.
- [Samuel] The possible tragedy of the Christmas episode and the extraordinary acting of Anna Madeley just blew me sideways.
(hesitant string music) - (softly) Edward?
- [Edward] (on telephone) Aye, it's me.
(sobbing) - Merry Christmas, son.
(gasping and sobbing) Where are you?
(string music intensifying) (sobbing and laughing) - [Narrator] When Mrs. Hall learns that her son has survived the attack, the Skeldale family embraces her with the same love she has given them throughout the years.
(patting) - He's all right.
(Mrs. Hall crying) He's injured.
(string music continuing) But he's all right.
(music fading) - [Narrator] The scene serves as a reminder that even during the most difficult times, the Skeldale family unit sticks together.
(sobbing and laughing) - I think we all need a festive drink.
Sherry, Mrs. Hall?
- Oh that would be lovely.
(laughing) - Whiskey for me, and a double for the wee man.
- [Narrator] When we return, we'll take a look at the newest member of the Skeldale family as well as Carmody's departure from the Dales.
We'll also play a few games with the cast in "All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five."
(cheerful piano theme fading out) (cheerful piano theme) - [Narrator] Welcome back to "All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five."
Coming up, we'll continue a look at Season Five, including playing a few games with the cast.
But first, let's take a few minutes to recognize the most recent member of the cast, Baby Jimmy.
- [James] How is it they know, do you think?
- [Mrs. Hall] What's that?
- To dirty everything at the precise moment you get them cleaned.
- Babies are a law unto themselves.
(Jimmy gurgling) You'll get used to it.
- It's gorgeous having the babies on set.
It makes everybody behave very well, um, and work fast and very quietly.
(serene orchestral music) - [Mrs. Hall] Yes, how's that?
- [Samuel] We have several different babies of different ages.
When a baby is concentrating on something, nobody's looking anywhere else, so we all lose the scenes.
If Jimmy's in it, it's Jimmy's scene.
- [James] Wee Jimmy.
- You're a bonnie little pudding, aren't you, love?
Eh?
You helping your daddy?
- I doubt he'll last-- far too much sleeping on the job.
- [Rachel] We have Lorenzo, Remy and Winter-- they're all brilliant.
My favorite moment was always trying to get their attention for long enough before they spotted the boom.
Because once they've spotted the boom, that's it, it's over.
I don't see the boom, but I'll know exactly where it is because Lorenzo will be... like, following it, like a cat, you know?
- [Nicholas] What's this?
What's this?
(Callum gasping) What's this?
What's this?
(Callum whistling) - [Nicholas] It was funny just seeing how they developed, 'cause they were brought onto set and obviously it's, there's a lot of new people and all the machinery.
Give them a couple of weeks, it was like old friends.
They would come on and you would say, "Hi," and they would light up, you know, their little faces would light up.
It was just wonderful, so you... you did have this little, little bond with this little person.
- [James] A day with Daddy.
How does that sound, wee man, eh?
We'll get on famously, won't we?
- [Samuel] The bit where I bring him in, doing "This is the way the farmer rides" to make him laugh, that was written slightly differently in the script and I said, "Do you mind if I do the one that my grandmother taught me?"
And they said, "No, do what you know."
- [Siegfried] This is the way the farmer's boy rides.
Hobble de hoy, hobble de hoy, hobble de hoy, and down into the ditch.
- I'd have to carry little Winter or Remy and they would just be staring at you, like smiling or kind of playing with your face and things like that.
So it was really nice to see that development.
- Need to mend this today.
- [James] Absolutely, I'll see to it.
But first sustenance, sustenance.
(snorting) (Jimmy cooing) - I was holding Winter a lot, which was one of our Jimmys, and he never cried in my arms once, and there was even times where he was crying and got passed to me and then was happy.
- [Tristan] What did you think?
Do you have any notes?
No, no notes?
(exaggerated laughing) (Jimmy giggling) - And I've also wanted to steal every single one of his 1930s period toys, because they're just so cute.
- [Helen] I think he'll love it... thank you.
Here we go-- look, look.
- They've got a fascination with the animals, so when Jess and Dash come in, no matter what's happening in the scene, whether it's needed or not, they're making a beeline for the dogs.
So they're both su- a- real animal lovers, so they fit in perfectly in Skeldale House.
(gentle orchestral music) - Oh, don't mind me, Siegfried... don't mind us.
(Jimmy giggling) - [Narrator] Now let's play a quick-fire game where we ask the cast, "Which animal are you most like?"
- Well, I suppose in the show, we've had puppies, and some people have said I'm like a puppy apparently.
So I'll take- (laughing) I'll take that-- they're great.
- [James] And who do we have here, then?
- This is Lucy.
(door closing) - Ah, she's a fine looking dog, eh?
Yes.
- Oh, I mean, it's easy-- it's Ernie, who plays Jess.
I am just a complete golden retriever.
That is, that is who I am.
- [Tristan] No, Maggie, you're a married woman.
(soft orchestral music) Oh, Jess, it's just you.
- I always go back to Jess-- overexcited, anything for food.
(laughing) - [Mrs. Hall] Following me around isn't going to get you fed any sooner.
- Little Dash-- she quite likes peace and quiet.
She loves a cuddle and a biscuit, and I'm like, well that's kind of like me.
You know, if you're feeling a bit down, usually a cuddle or a biscuit will fix it, so...
Dash.
- [Mrs. Hall] Dash, you can't just barge in uninvited.
- I don't mind-- come in.
- Well, I have to say my pet is the animal I most closely identify with, Vonolel.
I've always liked their inquisitiveness and their bravery.
So it would always be the rat.
- [Mrs. Hall] Mr. Farnon, he's a vet.
He even has a pet rat.
- Does he?
- Don't go giving him ideas.
- Oh, it's, it's quite sweet once you get to know it.
- [Narrator] He's grown so much in his short time at Skeldale House.
Let's take a quick look at how Season Five plays out for Richard Carmody.
- Now what's the saying?
When the student is truly ready, the teacher will disappear.
You've improved in leaps and bounds since I left.
- No, I've still an awful lot to learn.
- [James Anthony-Rose] Carmody is very much settled in to the Skeldale home.
That of course is something that he didn't expect to find when he came to Skeldale.
- I don't understand-- the injection we gave him- - Was obviously just the tonic.
- [Dowson] Just like you said.
You're a miracle worker, Richard.
- [James Anthony-Rose] Even the postie knows Carmody's name.
So, you know, once the postie knows your name, you think, "Right, okay, I'm fully established here now."
(door opening) - [Postwoman] Morning!
Parcel for you, Mr. Carmody.
- [Carmody] Thank you so much.
- [Postwoman] Bye!
- [James Anthony-Rose] He is in his final year at the Royal Veterinary College, so he's got his exams coming up, but he's also, of course, helping out with the surgery.
- [Siegfried] So now you've managed to lose a dead cat.
That's assuming it was actually dead.
I take it you examined it.
- Well, I took a quick peek.
- A quick peek?
- [James Anthony-Rose] He is obviously doing his bit to help around the house, particularly now that Mrs. Hall's got new duties with the war effort.
- [Carmody] Scrambled eggs, tiny bit congealed, sorry.
- A triumph for time management.
- [James Anthony-Rose] Carmody, for the first time, has feelings that he doesn't really understand.
- [Doris] Hello.
- He- hello.
- [Doris] Thanks for stopping.
Uh, any chance of a lift?
- [James Anthony-Rose] It's quite a funny thing to see him when he's confronted with Doris, who... he's never met anyone quite like her before.
- I've treated her for the pain and inflammation.
- Bit of a hero, aren't you?
(whimsical orchestral music) (Carmody tripping) - [James Anthony-Rose] He doesn't quite know what to do with those feelings, so he has to turn for advice.
- When she's near, I exhibit certain symptoms.
My heart rate goes up, my pupils dilate.
Mr. Farnon, my diagnosis is that I'm developing romantic feelings for Doris.
- That would also be my diagnosis.
- Tristan comes home and meets Richard Carmody for the first time.
- Tristan Farnon-- Richard Carmody.
- The famous Tristan Farnon-- how do you do?
- Hello.
My replacement, we meet at last.
- Technically I was James's replacement.
- [James Anthony-Rose] It's a really funny meeting of minds because... they seem like such polar opposites.
- Honestly, why do I feel like I'm about to spend my precious time off in a library?
- It won't be that bad.
- No, easy for you to say.
You don't have to share a room with the man.
- [Callum] Tristan's very annoyed that he's sleeping in his bed.
He's sort of relegated to the cupboard once again.
- He has commandeered my bed.
- It was mine before!
- [Tristan] It's in my room and in my house.
- [James Anthony-Rose] They can't quite understand each other at first, but having to work through a difficult situation, they start to find that there is actually a nice, uh, relationship that blossoms from that.
- My parents... spent most of the year abroad... so I grew up in boarding school.
It's been novel to put roots down somewhere.
(sighing) - Then you'll stay... and we'll share.
- [Narrator] But not long after, Carmody is awarded an opportunity that would force him to leave Skeldale.
- It says here I got a distinction.
- Oh, Richard.
- [Siegfried] Oh, bravo!
- It's a hard one for him, because he has found this family, which he doesn't want to leave, of course.
- I hope you know there's always a place here for you.
- No, see if I took the Warner's, I'd be leaving practice to do research primarily.
- I don't mean as a vet.
- [Samuel] Eventually what happens is that I have to persuade Carmody that he's loved, because he's never had a family like that.
- After some consideration I've decided to accept.
(poignant orchestral music) - [Tristan] That's bloody marvelous, old chap.
- [James Anthony-Rose] He's encouraged by his newfound family that that was what he was always working towards, that his, you know, dream was always to go off and then he jumps at it.
- It must have been a tough decision, pal, but I see great things ahead.
- Oh, come here-- blooming wonderful news!
- Place won't be the same.
(poignant music continuing) - Rather wish I could take you all with me.
- Well, that'd be some suitcase.
(Carmody laughing) (bright orchestral music) - [Narrator] We decided to ask the cast a few questions about each other, and tabulate the result in this cast quiz.
Who is the funniest?
- Me.
(bell dinging) (Callum laughing) No, Nick, Nick.
(bell dinging) Nick's the funniest.
- Callum.
(bell dinging) - Callum.
(bell dinging) - Callum.
(bell dinging) - I'm not going to answer that, because everybody is funny (bell dinging) in their way, and... (multiple bells dinging) I think it wouldn't work if they weren't.
But probably Callum.
(bell dinging) - How many times did you fall in love?
- Ah, just once-- Layla, my Arabian camel.
She was exotic, feisty.
She did have a tendency to get the hump, though.
- Tristan.
- Sorry, Vicar.
(soft orchestral music) - [Narrator] Who is the least like their character?
- Nick.
(bell dinging) - Anna, I think.
(bell dinging) - Anna.
(bell dinging) - Anna.
(bell dinging) - Me?
(bell dinging) - I'm afraid there was an incident with Arkwright's sow.
- So I see.
Is it just mud?
- I can't promise.
- Bucket's on the landing.
- [Narrator] Who is best with the animals on set?
(bright orchestral music) - I think everyone's quite good with the animals on set in very different ways.
(multiple bells dinging) - Cal.
(bell dinging) - Rachel.
(bell dinging) - Me... and Callum.
(bells dinging) (giggling) Can I say myself?
I've said it.
- Oh, she won't keep still!
(dog panting) - Why did she come back here?
- [Narrator] Who is the most like their character?
(peaceful orchestral music) - I think probably Rachel is most like her character.
(bell dinging) - Sam.
(bell dinging) - Sam.
- I think Nick.
(bell dinging) - Nick.
(bell dinging) - What have you been feeding him?
- Dave is not even my biggest.
- Got yourself a Goliath, have you?
(both chuckling) - [Narrator] Who is the best shoulder to cry on?
(serene string music) - Any of them.
(multiple bells dinging) They're all brilliant listeners.
- Rach.
(bell dinging) - Anna.
(bell dinging) - Anna.
(bell dinging) - Why don't you stop a minute?
I brought us some tea.
(serene music continuing) - [Narrator] Who is the perfectionist?
(bright orchestral music) - Anna.
(bell dinging) - Rachel.
(bell dinging) - Sam.
(bell dinging) - Sam.
(bell dinging) - Sam.
(bell dinging) - Me.
(bell dinging) - It's fine-- it's not like it's an exact science.
- Well, that's as may be, but... you, you still have to calculate an approximate dose and then administer it a few drops at a time.
- Only if you insist on erring on the side of caution.
- Oh, come on-- It's a- it's basic procedure.
- [Narrator] Who do you trust with your secrets?
- Ooh... Anna.
(bell dinging) - Anna.
(bell dinging) - Anna.
(bell dinging) I do-- frequently.
(chuckling) - Rachel.
(bell dinging) - Rachel.
(bell dinging) - Rachel knows quite a few of my secrets.
(chuckling) (bell dinging) - Listen, if you're set on going somewhere else, I won't stop you.
(touching piano music) I just want it to be your decision.
(music fading) - [Narrator] Who do you miss most between seasons?
- Cal.
(bell dinging) - (giggling) Anna.
(bell dinging) - Anna or Sam, just because I see (bells dinging) a lot of Rachel and Nick.
- I... miss them during seasons.
I text them saying, "It's horrid.
Where are you?"
Or, "You're there and I'm not."
I mean, it's, I just send it to everybody.
(multiple bells dinging) - All of them.
(multiple bells dinging) - All of them.
(multiple bells dinging) (laughing) Jess.
(bell dinging) (laughing) - [Siegfried] Flying man.
- Feather!
Feather!
- [Siegfried] B- B- Birds- birds of a feather!
- [Tristan] Oh, for God's sake, it's "Midsummer Night's Dream."
- [Jenny] Oh!
- [Siegfried] What's all the flapping?
- [Tristan] Clearly, I was being a fairy!
(Helen laughing) - [Siegfried] I see.
("Joy to the World" recording playing in background) - [Narrator] More than anything, Season Five of "All Creatures Great and Small" leaves us with a sense of kindness and understanding.
- How did he get on at Mr. Dowsons's with Jimmy?
- Er, a slightly longer crash course could be in order.
- [Nicholas] James is at a building phase in his life and has been for the last couple of years in that he's building the foundations on which to raise a family.
- [James] It says "J. Herriot and Son" on the front.
(parts clattering) - [Helen] Aw!
- [James] So he can take it along with him on visits.
- [Rachel] I really hope in Season Six that we see Helen and James having fun again, because I think they've been through such a lot together.
- I'm just the girl that dragged you away from Glasgow.
- Corrupted me, lured me to the dark side.
(Helen chuckling) - [Callum] Would be nice for James and Helen to have another baby, would be nice if-- for them to maybe have a daughter.
I don't know, something like that would be cool.
(chuckling) Quietest baby in all of Darrowby.
- Should pick you up from the bus stop more often.
(Tristan chuckling) - Uncle Tristan, happy to be of service.
- [Anna] Moving forward, you want... everyone to get back to normal life.
For the vet practice to thrive again.
- I'm in your way-- I'll find somewhere else.
I did intend to offer, but...
I confess, I've grown rather fond of the place.
- Skeldale tends to have that effect on people.
- It does.
- [Rachel] We'd all like to see something wonderful happen to Mrs. Hall.
I feel like she's quietly there for everybody else, isn't she?
And she deserves all the good stuff.
- I feel for the boys-- they just want their own comfort.
- Mm.
- [Mrs. Hall] Or perhaps that's it.
- What?
- I could try making it more comfortable for 'em.
- It's like a home away from home.
And these characters are, they're so close to you now.
- (laughing) Wait, I-- this is the same cat you nearly had cremated?
- Uh, well, yes, but, um- - [Mrs. Hall] No, it were an honest mistake.
- [Callum] We're now on Season Five of this, and the cast and crew is pretty much unchanged.
- [Nicholas] The cast get on incredibly well.
We go out for family dinners once a week and all, and it's just lovely.
- Morning!
- Morning.
(Jimmy babbling) - Did I sleep through breakfast?
- [Siegfried] No, we've put something of a new regime in place today.
- (kissing) All hands on deck so Audrey can get the tea on.
- [Samuel] I feel enormously lucky and privileged to be part of an ensemble that get to play these parts over and over again, mostly because people seem to enjoy us doing it.
- [Tristan and Siegfried] Beware the Jubjub bird.
- They're all as puddled as each other.
- [Tristan and Siegfried] And shun the frumious Bandersnatch!
(all laughing) (thudding) (bucket clattering) - You can't help but be on set on "All Creatures Great and Small" and not be inspired by the people that are around you, cast, crew, everyone.
- [Crew Member] Standby!
(clapperboard clacking) - [Director] Action!
(laughing) - These... past few weeks... (poignant string music) been the hardest of me life... and I don't think...
I'd have got through them... without your kindness.
(poignant music continuing) And your understanding.
So I just wanted to say from the bottom of me heart, (catching her breath) thank you.
(poignant music continuing) And more importantly, today is someone's special day.
(all chuckling) So I just wanted to say to young Jimmy, "Happy birthday."
- [All] Happy birthday to you!
- And Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas!
- [All] Merry Christmas!
(glasses clinking) - [Narrator] Thank you for joining us for this comprehensive look at Season Five of "All Creatures Great and Small" on MASTERPIECE.
We hope you will join us again soon in the Yorkshire Dales for all the kindness, understanding, and charming animals we find in these timeless tales from James Herriot.
This has been "All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five."
(cheerful piano theme fading) (delightful "All Creatures" piano theme) (delightful "All Creatures" piano theme fades)
All Creatures Great and Small: Chapter Five Preview
Video has Closed Captions
Preview: 8/8/2025 | 30s | Go behind the scenes of Season 5 with the cast and creators of this beloved MASTERPIECE series. (30s)
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