SPOILERS ALERT!!!

Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

It’s that time of year again! 😀 I’ve seen the latest season of the new ‘All Creatures Great and Small’ TV series – Series 4 – on Channel 5, which was broadcast in the UK from October to November 2023. I enjoyed seeing Series 4 of new ‘All Creatures’, as the six episodes themselves are well put-together.

With that said, I can’t say this is an entirely satisfying season of new ‘All Creatures’. Again, I stress, it’s nothing to do with the cast and how the episodes are written, as they’re all good. I just wish the series’ ending was handled differently, especially considering there are some absentees in the series.

For one thing, this is the first new ‘All Creatures’ season to not feature Callum Woodhouse as Tristan, since he left the series at the end of the 2022 Christmas Special. I was hoping he would briefly return in the season finale. Maybe Tristan will return in the upcoming 2023 Christmas Special.

Another thing is that Nicholas Ralph as James leaves in the fifth episode of Series 4 as opposed to the sixth and final episode. He doesn’t appear at all in the sixth episode, despite seeing him in the ‘coming soon’ trailer for the upcoming Christmas Special, which is unusual to see at Series 4’s end. 🙂

It’s interesting how the original 1978-1990 TV series did things differently with James’ exit compared to how the new TV series handled it. James left in the final episode of Series 3 in the original TV series instead of leaving in the penultimate episode of Series 4 in the new TV show, which is unusual.

Another thing to mention is that in the original TV show, James and Siegfried left for the Second World War instead of James and Tristan in the new TV show. I’m intrigued as to how and why the producers of the new TV show had James and Tristan leave Darrowby instead of James and Siegfried.

With James gone from the series in the sixth and final episode of Series 4, Rachel Shenton as Helen takes centre stage as the main character, especially in how she deals with her family and having a baby on the way. Yes, Helen is pregnant in Series 4. 🙂 I look forward to when she has her baby in the Christmas Special.

There were other things I enjoyed in Series 4 of new ‘All Creatures’. The first episode has James dealing with anti-social boy with a sick dog, which was something that the original TV series did in Series 3. I enjoyed how the new TV series did their version of that story compared to the original’s. 🙂

In the second episode, we have the story of Siegfried hiring Mrs. Harbottle to help out with resorting the administration side of the Skeldale veterinary practice. This was something the original TV series did in Series 1, although that storyline was handled in two episodes as opposed to one episode here.

Mrs. Harbottle is played by Neve McIntosh – Wait! Neve McIntosh is in the series?! Wow! For those who don’t know, Neve McIntosh played Madame Vastra as well as a couple of female Silurians in the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV show. It was amazing to see her and without make-up in new ‘All Creatures’. 🙂

Half of Series 4’s episodes are penned by writers who have worked on the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV series. The second episode is by Helen Raynor, who wrote ‘Daleks In Manhattan’/’Evolution of the Daleks’ and ‘The Sontaran Stratagem’/’The Poison Sky’ and she was a script editor on the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV show.

She also worked on ‘Torchwood’ and has written an episode of ‘Call the Midwife’ in Series 9. There’s Maxine Alderton, who wrote the third and fourth episodes of Series 4 of new ‘All Creatures’. She’s also penned the ‘Doctor Who’ story ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati’ and she co-wrote ‘Village of the Angels’ in ‘Flux’ with Chris Chibnall.

The series also introduces us to James Anthony-Rose as Richard Carmody, who takes over from Tristan whilst he’s absent. Carmody is a character who appeared in the original ‘All Creatures’ and he was played by Christopher Brown, who played Mariner in the ‘Doctor Who’ TV story ‘Enlightenment’.

It was interesting to see Carmody be a regular character from the third to sixth episodes of Series 4 as opposed to being in two episodes of the original TV show. Carmody can be obstinate at times in terms of his veterinary skills, but he develops and is an interesting character as the show progresses.

It was nice to see Will Thorp as Gerald Hammond again and it was interesting how his relationship with Anna Madeley as Mrs. Hall developed in Series 4. It’s a shame that Mrs. Hall didn’t go with Gerald at the end of Series 4, although I appreciate that she stayed on at Skeldale since she’s needed there.

James Bolan (who’s been in ‘The Likely Lads’ and ‘Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads’) guests stars in Series 4’s second episode as Mr. Dakin. My Dad and I recognised him once we saw him in the episode. 😀 It was also very nice to see Mollie Winnard as Maggie make an appearance in Series 4. 🙂

There’s also Tony Pitts as Richard Alderson, Helen’s father and Imogen Clawson as Jenny, Helen’s sister in the series. It was also good to see Patricia Hodge as Mrs. Pumphrey, joined by Tricki-Woo in Series 4. Paul Copley (who’s been in the ‘Doctor Who’ audio drama ‘Spare Parts’) guest stars in the fourth episode of Series 4. 🙂

Series 4 of the new ‘All Creatures Great and Small’ TV series has been great to check out on Channel 5 from October to November 2023. I know I said I’m unsatisfied with how Series 4 concluded, but there’s more to look forward to in the upcoming Christmas Special where we’ll see James again. 🙂

I wonder if Callum Woodhouse as Tristan will make a return appearance in the upcoming Christmas Special. It’d be a shame if he didn’t return, as I enjoyed him in the first three seasons of new ‘All Creatures’. Overall, Series 4 is worthwhile to check out, featuring some good stories and characters.

If you’ve missed Callum Woodhouse in ‘All Creatures’ this year, there’s always ‘The Durrells’ to check out. I must watch that properly sometime and review it someday. 😀 I’ve also cast Callum Woodhouse as the Unbound Fifth Doctor in my two-part ‘Doctor Who’ short story called ‘Interdimensional Rescue’. 😀

See you soon in December this year for the 2023 Christmas Special of the new ‘All Creatures Great and Small’ TV show. Hopefully, I’ll be sharing in-depth reviews on both Series 3 and 4 of new ‘All Creatures’ sometime soon in the future. 🙂

Thanks for reading!

Bye for now!

Tim 🙂