'All Creatures Great & Small' Season 5 Opens with a Tribute "To All Our Boys"

The Season 5 premiere of All Creatures Great & Small delves into the everyday life of wartime Darrowby in 1941. For the inhabitants of Skeldale House, who always seem to be busy, life has become more complicated, with rationing and wartime restrictions, plus the underlying worry about loved ones far from home and in danger: James Herriot (Nicholas Ralph) in training as a pilot in Devon, Tristan Farnon (Callum Woodhouse) stationed abroad with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, and housekeeper Audrey Hall’s (Anna Madeley) son Edward serving with the Royal Navy.

Demands are being made on people at home to help with the war effort, and Audrey and Helen visit the ARP (Air Raid Precautions)  headquarters in town, run by the fussy and officious Mr. Bosworth (Jeremy Swift). It’s also the headquarters of the Women’s Institute, busy with its war work, and there’s some friction there, even with the calming authority of Mrs. Pumphrey (Patricia Hodge). She’s about to move out of her mansion, which has been requisitioned as a hospital, but is quite optimistic about moving into a cottage on the grounds.

In Devon, James and his crew have just landed from a practice run, and he’s delighted to receive a letter from Helen with a recent picture of Jimmy. While still missing his family, James loves flying and enjoys camaraderie with his crew. He’s no longer regarded as the “old man” but as their Skipper, and they’ve become close, particularly with his navigator Banerjee (Samir Mahat), who fears failing, and crew member Hibbert (Luke Hammond). Banerjee is a worrier, and James tells him about his “first flight” as a veterinarian. But Wing Commander Whitely (Simon Paisley Day) has some sobering news for the airmen. Their training is to be expedited with a long-distance overnight flight to Scotland, where they may encounter enemy planes returning home.