Product Description

Filmed on location in the Yorkshire Dales, All Creatures Great and Small brings the world of veterinarian James Herriot to life with all the warmth and humor of the original stories. Series 1 includes all 13 episodes from the first season.

DVD Features:
Biographies
Documentary

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1289 in DVD
• Brand: WARNER HOME VIDEO
• Released on: 2002-05-14
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 4
• Dimensions: .40 pounds
• Running time: 646 minutes

Features

• Filmed on location in the Yorkshire Dales, All Creatures Great and Small brings the world of veterinarian James Herriot to life with all the warmth and humor of the original stories. Series 1 includes all 13 episodes from the first season.Running Time: 650 min. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR Age: 794051281623 UPC: 794051281623 Manufacturer No: E2816

Customer Reviews

A meaningful life is a happy one
This DVD presents in a simple straightforward package the first TV season (13 episodes of approx 55 mins each)of the classic "All Creatures Great and Small" series based on the books of the Veterinary Surgeon James Herriot.

An aditional one hour documentary interview with the real James Herriot is also included.

The original series was a weekly "must see" event and I found myself drawn back to watch just one more episode on this DVD despite serious attempts to make it last.

The picture quality is what you would expect for a 25 year old British TV show however this in no way detracts from its enjoyment. The happy flowing music that rolls with the beautiful Yorkshire Dales scenery puts you right in the mood to get to know and experience the trials and tribulations of James Herriot and the people and animals he meets.

Although the books were written by Herriot the main characters that stand out in this series are his new employer Siegfried Farnon and Siegfrieds brother Tristan. Both characters are played extremely well by two excellent british actors Robert Hardy and Peter Davison. Hardy extracts tha maximum entertainment from Siegfrieds ebullient often frustrating character.

In the end you will connect with the Dales farmers and wonder at the 'black magic' of veterinary science in the mid 1930's but like Gerald Durrels books the animals that entertain the most are of the human species.

This DVD will guarantee a good satisfying viewing experience and while not intended to be a comedy provides some hilarious situations for the main characters.

A Warm Household of Eccentrics
In the early 1980's, when I was in law school, my wife and I recorded many of the episodes in this collection on our old Betamax video recorder. At night, after a long and trying day, we would watch them over and over with our then little girls curled up on the couch in their blanket sleepers. This is one of the handful of television series I have EVER watched as an adult. There was an overwhelming comfort in entering into this warm household of eccentrics -- James, Siegfried and Tristan, with Mrs. Hall hovering in the kitchen. Of course, the animal stories and the forays into the landscape and characters of the Yorkshire Dales are fascinating, but isn't it really the inexplicable hominess of Skeldale House that draws us back again and again?

For years my wife and I searched unsuccessfully for copies of these episodes. Our Betamax machine is, alas, long gone and our little girls are in college. But what a joy to see the series afresh after nearly twenty years. The music has a certain dated cheeziness about it, but how marvelous to be back in the sitting room or in the surgery again with James, Siegfried and Company.

Some other thoughts:

1. While I hope to get the later series, this is the best by far from a dramatic point of view, with James struggling to prove himself, Helen still unattainable and the complex relationship of Siegfried and Tristan freshly viewed.

2. I do wish this set were available on DVD.

3. The acting -- especially from Robert Hardy as Siegfried -- is so superb from this little ensemble. There is the stuff of greatness about the inherent tension, irony and exquisitely restrained comedy of the trio.

All Creatures Great and Small. Series 1
"The best of the best" The original set of six boxed videos. There are 12 episodes in all, begining with James' arrival at Skeldale House and the start of his career as a vet under Seigfried. Filled with all kinds of English characters, the series is a delightful peek at England and the English, before WWII. This classic series cannot be beaten for true value. You'll watch them again and again.