'All Creatures Great and Small' Will Return in January
Can't get enough of Masterpiece PBS's All Creatures Great and Small? You're in luck. The period show based on the books of James Herriot has already been confirmed for a second season.
Here's what we know so far.
All Creatures Great and Small was renewed for a second season in late 2020.
James Herriot will return once again to Farnon's veterinary practice in Darrowby. Per Deadline, season two is set to begin filming in the Yorshire Dales in early 2021, but production will undoubtedly be impacted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and a premiere date has yet to be set.
"I know that filming was planned to go ahead in springtime of 2021," actress Rachel Shenton, who plays Helen on the series told Town & Country in late December 2020. "So, hopefully that's still going to be the case. We live in a bit of a strange world at the moment, but hopefully that can still happen."
It will return to PBS in January.
Go ahead and mark your calendars for Sunday, January 9, 2022 at 9/8 central. Watch a sneak peek of what's to come here:
Executive producer Colin Callender sees the delay in production as an "odd silver lining."
"There is a bizarre, slightly odd silver lining for us, because we are using this time to commission Ben Vanstone [the writer] and the writing team to work on season two, with the hope of getting back into production in the New Year on the second season," Callender said, per Radio Times. "And so we’re able to use this lockdown period to work on the development and script development."
All the show's major players are all set to return.
There is one major exception, though: All Creatures Great and Small was one of Dame Diana Rigg's final film roles. Rigg, who played Mrs. Pumphrey, passed away in September at the age of 82. Back in December, Callender told Radio Times "final decisions" have yet to be made about how to handle the character in the future.
"For those of you who are already asking the question, ‘What are we going to do as we go forward,’ as we’re thinking about season two we’re looking at what we will do with the character of Mrs Pumphrey and Tricki Woo," Callender said. "So we haven’t made any final decisions on that yet."
And in 2021, it was confirmed that the character will continue to be featured in the series, and will now be played by Patricia Hodge (A Very English Scandal).
There's plenty of source material.
The real life James Herriot (a.k.a James Alfred Wight) wrote numerous books, including All Creatures Great and Small, All Things Bright and Beautiful, and All Things Wise and Wonderful, so there's plenty to mine for future episodes. And Herriot's children are excited for the series to continue.
“We thought series one of the new All Creatures Great and Small was excellent. It was an immensely enjoyable adaptation of Dad’s books, very professionally acted and produced, and absolutely true to the ‘Herriot ethos,’” they said, following the premiere of season one in the UK.
“We have had wonderful feedback from many and various people, from all walks of life, telling us how they had derived great comfort from watching the new series in these stressful COVID times. We are very hopeful that series two will be equally uplifting and entertaining, and we are greatly looking forward to seeing it.”
James will face a difficult decision in the first episode.
Per Masterpiece PBS: "As season two opens, James returns from Glasgow where he has been visiting his parents for Easter. While there he is offered a job at a modern local veterinary practice and must decide between staying home in Glasgow with his elderly parents or returning to his new life in Yorkshire."
Watch the first trailer here:
You Might Also Like
