The series will shoot on location in Yorkshire, England, as 2020 sees the 50th anniversary of the original publication of the much-loved books. All Creatures Great and Small is the latest drama commission announced for Channel 5, the home of factual series The Yorkshire Vet which is set in James Herriot’s original veterinary practice and produced by Leeds Factual Indie Daisybeck Studios. With the commissions of Cold Call and 15 Days and a number of other scripted series in development, the announcement marks the next development in the drama strategy initiated by Channel 5 Director of Programmes Ben Frow last year.

The production, commissioned by Digital Channel Controller Seb Cardwell, will be produced by Richard Burrell (New Tricks, Silent Witness); Executive Producers are Colin Callender, and Melissa Gallant for Playground, Hugo Heppell for Screen Yorkshire and Rebecca Eaton for MASTERPIECE. MASTERPIECE on PBS is presented by WGBH Boston. Ben Vanstone (The Last Kingdom) is lead writer and Executive Producer and Brian Percival (Downton Abbey) is lead director.

Since their first publication in 1970, the beloved books of James Alfred Wight published under the pen name James Herriot, have held a special place in people’s hearts throughout the world. Chronicling the heartwarming and humorous adventures of a young country vet, the books introduced readers to his unconventional mentor and the cast of farmers and townsfolk who lived and worked in the Yorkshire Dales in the 1930s. This new adaptation will preserve the rich spirit, tone and values of Herriot’s iconic characters and stories and will bring to life his sharply observed, entertaining and incredibly funny tales of country life in the North of England for a modern audience, introducing a new generation to his life affirming stories.

Never out of print, the books have sold 60 million copies internationally becoming a global cultural phenomenon with devoted fans around the world. Their focus on community and its importance in our lives gives Herriot’s work an enduring power and contemporary resonance that reminds us all that belonging to a community makes us part of something greater than ourselves.

James Alfred Wight OBE FRCVS was a veterinary surgeon who graduated from Glasgow Veterinary College at the age of 23. He headed to a veterinary practice in Thirsk, Yorkshire, in 1940 where he fell in love with the Dales and the woman he would marry, Joan Danbury. Wight later wrote stories based on his own adventures as a young country vet, under the pen name James Herriot. Herriot quickly became one of Britain’s best-loved authors.

All Creatures Great and Small is a timeless classic that continues to be loved by generations. The collected works of All Creatures Great and Small is comprised of Herriot’s debut novel If Only They Could Talk, originally published in the UK in 1970, and its follow-up It Shouldn’t Happen to A Vet. Herriot went on to write over a dozen subsequent stories and collections which have gone on to sell millions of copies internationally.