All Creatures Great and Small sees the community of Darrowby rally together to try to bring some seasonal cheer at Yuletide 1940 in its upcoming Christmas special.
The episode, airing in the UK on Channel 5 on Thursday 21 December at 9 pm and on PBS Masterpiece in the US early next year, sees caring vet James (Nicholas Ralph) training with the RAF and pining for pregnant wife Helen (Rachel Shenton). But will he be able to get home to her and Skeldale House for Christmas?
Meanwhile, Mrs Hall (Anna Madeley), with help from Siegfried (Samuel West), Carmody (James Anthony-Rose) and Mrs Pumphrey (Patricia Hodge), lays on a festive lunch for the locals.
We caught up with Nicholas Ralph and Rachel Shenton to find out more about the Christmas special of All Creatures Great and Small including how they coped filming it in the summer!
All Creatures Great and Small is back for an emotional Christmas special. How would you sum up the episode?
Nicholas Ralph: “It’s action-packed, there's an onus on the community, a dusting of snow, which is Christmassy, but it'll have a tinge of poignancy…”
Rachel Shenton: “It’s exciting. We love having a Christmas special. When you’re an actor, it’s a dream to be in one! And Skeldale House is beautifully decorated.”
How are James and Helen feeling about being apart from each other at Christmas, especially when she is heavily pregnant?
Nicholas Ralph: “James is feeling the separation and because I was away filming those scenes, I missed everyone too. He’s finding camaraderie on the base, but is torn between wanting to be with Helen and serving for the greater good.”
Rachel Shenton: “There’s always a community theme at Christmas and Helen is usually helping people, but because she’s pregnant, she has to allow others to support her. She’s nervous and desperate for some connection with James, they need each other, so she’s vulnerable, which was nice to play.”
James has to treat the RAF’s avian mascot Georgie, how does that go?
Nicholas Ralph: “This bird is unwell and the airmen are uneasy without their mascot flying. It is very different from cows and sheep and horses but it was brilliant working with the bird. Filming airbase scenes at the Yorkshire Air Museum was amazing too. In the uniforms, surrounded by planes, you’re transported into that world."
And Mrs Hall lays on a festive gathering in The Drovers Arms for the locals. What can you tell us about that?
Rachel Shenton: “There’s a lovely bit of singing!”
Nicholas Ralph: “Yes, it has become a tradition that there’s a party and even with rationing and the war, we still have those things that are quintessentially All Creatures at Christmas.”
What was it like filming the Christmas special in the summer?!
Nicholas Ralph: “Absolutely boiling! I had about six layers on and hats and gloves.”
Rachel Shenton: “Yes, Nick was in his hot RAF uniform but I squeezed an ice pack between my belly and the prosthetic bump! I also ate what I wanted and didn’t worry about bloating. We even had chocolates around the house, which brought the Christmas spirit!
“But it was particularly hot this year. There’s all that thick woollen material and woolly tights. We even had some locals [where they filmed in Grassington, Yorkshire] saying, ‘Are you alright?’ We were red in the face!”
Do you have any Christmas rituals?
Rachel Shenton: “Overindulging and being with friends and family!”
Nicholas Ralph: “Yes, eating too much and catching up with people. Because I spend so much time away with work, it’s lovely to go home to Scotland.”
All Creatures Great and Small will air on Thursday December 21 at 9pm on Channel 5 in the UK and will also be available on My5. In the US, it will air on PBS Masterpiece in the New Year.
