All Creatures Great and Small Christmas special 2024: release date, cast, plot and everything we know

The All Creatures Great and Small Christmas special 2024 is on its way, a true Christmas delight.

The highlight of last year's Christmas special was baby Jimmy being born, so we know that Jimmy will be celebrating his first birthday in the festive episode.

The main cast is all back with Nicholas Ralph as James, Rachel Shenton as Helen, Samuel West as Siegfried, Callum Woodhouse as Tristan and Anna Madeley as Mrs Hall.

Talking about the festive episode and Jimmy's birthday, Nicholas Ralph says: "James and Helen want to make it special but they have to get creative. There's a celebration at Heston Grange [Helen’s family farm], but also a familial tiff… We’ve got twins who are about a year old playing Jimmy now, and there were happy accidents that ended up in the show, like when one dunked his hand in his food!”

Here's everything we know...

All Creatures Great and Small Christmas special 2024 release date

The All Creatures Great and Small Christmas special 2024 will air on Monday, December 23, at 9 pm on Channel 5 and will also be available on My5.

In the US, All Creatures Great and Small season 5 begins on Sunday, January 12, 2025, at 9/8c on MASTERPIECE on PBS. We don't yet have a US release date for the Christmas episode.

All Creatures Great and Small Christmas special 2024 plot

Skeldale House prepares for Christmas and Jimmy's first birthday, but everyone is rocked by the news that Edward's ship HMS Repulse has been sunk. Mrs Hall has to endure an agonizing wait, but when a young boy arrives at the surgery with an abandoned fox cub, she can't help feeling a connection with the animal.

Meanwhile, Tristan is given an important Royal Army Veterinary Corps mission to source the best Yorkshire pigeons for a new breeding programme, for which Siegfried sends him to Enoch Sykes, a cantankerous pigeon fancier whose birds are having digestive problems.

Talking about the episode, Callum Woodhouse says: "It’s heartfelt because things aren't readily available. The war's bleeding into everything and it’s affecting everyone’s lives – Mrs Hall’s having to scrape food together for Christmas lunch."

Nicholas Ralph adds: "But it's about the family being around for the festive time, and not the materialistic side. People have to think out of the box a bit because you can't just run to the shop and buy something. It’s about people appreciating the effort and thought that has gone into things, which is quite sweet."

Cast

All the key cast are expected back. The one doubt is James Anthony-Rose as Richard Carmody. The young vet has taken a position in London, but perhaps he might make a surprise visit.

Is there a trailer?

No, not yet.

All Creatures Great and Small Christmas special 2024 behind the scenes and more

The Christmas episode has been written by James Crichton and directed by Andy Hay. Debbie O’Malley is the executive producer. The production company is Playground (Howards End, Wolf Hall, The Hardacres).