Ep. 27 - Ben Vanstone: ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL
Photo credit cast: James Herriot (Nicholas Ralph), Helen Alderson (Rachel Shenton), Tristan Farnon (Callum Woodhouse). Top Line: Siegfried Farnon (Samuel West), Mrs. Hall (Anna Madeley)
Episode 27 features a conversation with BEN VANSTONE, showrunner and writer for ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL, about the making of the series currently in its 3rd season on the PBS drama series MASTERPIECE. [The conversation was recorded January 19, 2023.]
ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL is the recent adaptation of the books written by veterinarian James Alfred Wight (who wrote under the pen name James Herriot) about a trio of veterinarian surgeons in the Yorkshire Dales in the late 1930s.
In the podcast we talk with Ben Vanstone about…
The agrarian setting as both character and story in the series
Writing about diverse communities in the Yorkshire Dales
Reflections on the stories of World War II
Writing for animal characters
[ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL] is a lot more inward looking than our lives are now, and I wonder if that’s part of the appeal that people sort of appreciate a world that…is slightly smaller…where people know each other, and do rely upon each other and have that sense of community….
Ben Vanstone
Meet BEN VANSTONE
In addition to ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL, Ben Vanstone’s other TV credits include: the adaptation of Laurie Lee’s novel CIDER FOR ROSIE for the BBC, THE BORROWERS for NBC and the BBC, THE LAST KINGDOM for BBC2 and Netflix, BBC’s MERLIN, which was also broadcast in the US on NBC, and was a Co-Executive Producer on THE ENGLISH GAME for Netflix. Ben is currently showrunning the series adaptation of Amor Towles’s novel, A Gentleman in Moscow, for Paramount Plus/Showtime, starring Ewan McGregor, which is in production.
ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL - Diverse community in the Yorkshire Dales
Season 1 we’re introduced to Bert and Anne Chapman (pictured David Hill and Cleo Sylvestre) and their grandson, Tom (Lamin Touray), who also appears in season 3. In season 3 Tristan meets Florence Pandhi’s parents (Callum Woodhouse pictured with Sophie Khan Levy) — veterinarian George Pandhi (Kriss Dosanjh) and wife Joyce (Helen Sheals). Also in season 3, deaf volunteers answer the call to help the war effort (Lara Steward, Janice Crossland Jones).
Shop the MBGLtd affiliate page on bookshop.org for James Herriot’s books All Creatures Great and Small, and All Things Bright and Beautiful . Your book purchases support independent booksellers and a small commission supports Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters.
Season 3 of ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL begins in spring 1939. James and Helen are married, and James is now a partner with Siegfried in the veterinary practice. James decides to expand the practice by participating in the Ministry of Agriculture’s program to test cattle for tuberculosis. This puts pressure on James from the Ministry and the local farmers.
Meanwhile war with Germany looms on the horizon bringing with it uncertainty about the future for everyone. The shadow of impending war brings back memories for Siegfried and Mrs. Hall of how World War I, “the Great War,” shattered lives. For another generation there are conflicts of conscience in how to answer the call to protect family, home, and country against growing facism from abroad.