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All Creatures Great and Small to be rebooted

Classic UK series about a veterinary surgeon is on the comeback trail.

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UK drama series All Creatures Great and Small was recently announced for a reboot by Channel 5 and PBS.

Based on the books by James Herriot the series about a veterinary surgeon in rural England originally ran from 1978 to 1980 and 1988 to 1990, starring Christopher Timothy.

“Revisiting James Herriot’s beloved stories is an immense privilege and we are honoured that Alf Wight’s family have entrusted us with his legacy. It is a responsibility we take very seriously,” said executive producer  Colin Callender.

“At a time when the country feels more divided than ever, Herriot’s glorious books remind us how to connect and belong again. The series will embrace the fun and the nostalgia of revisiting the England of the past, while celebrating Herriot’s values that, despite all our current upheaval, still underpin British life today.”

The series will shoot on location in Yorkshire, later this year, ahead of the 50th anniversary of the original publication of the books in 2020.

Six episodes and a Christmas special will be produced, an Australian broadcaster is yet to be announced.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

6 Responses

  2. Wasn’t there a ‘Young James Herriot’ series a few years back? The original was such a joy that I can’t see a remake being a success on anything like the same scale. There were also a couple of films made prior to the series that come on TV here on a regular basis.

    1. Young James Herriot (2011), was a BBC series that was not based on the books, but loosely on some of Herriot’s diaries and university archives from his time at vet school. It was terrible and starred Ian De Caestecker.

      All Creatures Great And Small (1975) was a film with Simon Ward and Anthony Hopkins that covered the first two books. It Shouldn’t Happen To A Vet (1976) was a sequel covering books 3 & 4 with only Lisa Harrow as Helen returning.

      The BBC then made the TV show based on the books. It also starred Robert Hardy as Siegfried and Peter Davidson as Tristan in his first major role. They then brought it back for a Christmas special, which turned into 4 more series with original scripts. This added up to 90 eps that ran over and over on the ABC when I was a child.

  4. Revisiting England of the past sounds like England of today isn’t worth speaking about, certainly the post war period of All Creatures Great and Small was when Britain was recovering from rationing and beginning a period of economic austerity to pay for their Empire, it is a fascinating time tailor made for stage trained actors who relish British eccentricity and pomposity. Christopher Timothy did get intimate with a few cows in the original show, will this be a challenge in this new series.

    1. ‘All Creatures’ started in the pre war depression era, went through the Second World war, and only in later seasons was set post war.

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