The acclaimed Masterpiece PBS series All Creatures Great and Small is about to double in size. Ahead of the show's second season premiere in the U.S. on January 9, PBS, All3Media, and Channel 5 announced the series would be renewed for two more seasons. With this, the heartwarming tales of James Herriot will be a mainstay on Masterpiece PBS for the next three years.
Set in the 1930s, All Creatures Great and Small follows Nicholas Ralph as James, a veterinarian from Glasgow who moved to the Yorkshire Dales for work purposes, settling in with the local villagers and learning from his mentor Siegfried Harnon (Samuel West). The show is based on a series of books of the same name written by the real-life Herriot (real name James Alfred Wight) based on the vet's true experiences while treating animals in Yorkshire, England. Just as the books enjoyed major success over the years, the series has garnered much of its own with ten million viewers tuning in for Season 1 and critics heaping praise on it as one of the best shows of the year. Season 1 currently sits with a 97% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
The third season will pick up in 1939 as the world sits on the precipice of war. James and his beloved Helen Alderson (Rachel Stenton) prepare for the next stage of their lives in the Dales as conflict looms in Europe. Seasons 3 and 4 will also see the return of the entire cast with shooting resuming in Yorkshire in the Spring. Outside of Ralph, West, and Stenton, the show features Anna Madeley, Callum Woodhouse, and Patricia Hodge along with an ensemble of animals (including a beloved Pekingese played by the dog Derek) and other village folk.
Writers Ben Vanstone (The Last Kingdom) and Chloë Mi Lin Ewart will continue writing for the series as well, with Karim Khan and Jamie Crichton coming aboard for a few episodes. Vanstone also serves as executive producer alongside lead director Brian Percival (Downton Abbey) while Richard Burrell (Alex Rider, Silent Witness) produces. Other returning executive producers include Colin Callender and Melissa Gallant for Playground, Louise Pedersen and David Swetman for All3Media International, and Rebecca Eaton and Susanne Simpson for Masterpiece.
"It is clear that our viewers adore James Herriot’s adventures in Darrowby and so do we at Channel 5," said Sebastian Cardwell, the Deputy Director of Programmes at ViacomCBS Networks UK. "I am looking forward to us all being reunited with the Skeldale House family when series three arrives on our screens this year."
This latest adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small began in September 2020 over in the U.K. before making the jump over for Western audiences on PBS's Masterpiece in January 2021. Despite tribulations due to the pandemic, the series managed to keep relatively apace, providing a light-hearted, charming world that captivated audiences.
Wight's children, Jim Wight and Rosie Page, also released a statement commemorating the occasion:
"For many years the books of James Herriot have provided a source of comfort to tens of thousands of people worldwide at difficult times in their lives. With this recent adaptation of his books, a new generation has been introduced to the joys of the Herriot stories. We are delighted that there are to be at least two more series of All Creatures Great and Small, and we are especially pleased that the same excellent actors and producers are to be involved."
All Creatures Great and Small Season 2 premieres on Masterpiece PBS on January 9. Barring any delays due to the pandemic, Seasons 3 and 4 should follow a similar release schedule with episodes starting in the U.K. in September before coming to Masterpiece PBS in January. The upcoming seasons will follow the same model as the previous two with six normal episodes and a Christmas special.