'All Creatures Great & Small' Season 5 Stops to Consider Characters' "Pair Bond"

It’s the little things in life that often give the greatest satisfaction. All Creatures Great & Small opens with Richard Carmody, who is thrilled to receive a box of goat droppings in the mail, which he shows to everyone at breakfast. He and Siegfried offered their clientele the chance to diagnose ailments early, but only one has taken them up on their offer. Helen, who has a cold, isn’t too thrilled at the idea of a box of poo at the breakfast table, and neither is James, in a fragile state after a night of carousing with Tristan. But Siegfried and Richard are excited to find a local estate owner whose pygmy goats have an advanced infestation of roundworm, which means they’ll have the chance to use their new worming gun!

Siegfried: "I’ve lived through a war, and seen the other side. War can damage lives long after the last bullet has been fired. Some chances, you miss them, they may never come again."

Tristan threatens James with another evening of overindulgence with the Ottley Eleven cricket team, which Tristan hopes to join, even though he’s supposed to be writing a lecture on mule hydration for his trainees in Doncaster. Richard recently took his final exams and received his results in today’s post. He has passed with outstanding distinction and leaves the room overwhelmed. Siegfried and James both agree they should offer him a position. As Siegfried modestly puts it, “Finally a scientific brain and veterinary intelligence to match my own.”

Landgirl Doris (Caroline Menton) arrives with a ferret in need of care and engages with Richard in what is probably intended to be a flirtatious conversation rather than a parade of awkwardness. As they set out for the goat adventure, Richard explains to Siegfried, “When she’s near, I exhibit certain symptoms. My heart rate goes up, my pupils dilate. Mr. Farnon, my diagnosis is that I’m developing romantic feelings for Doris.” However, he needs advice, and Siegfried offers to help, but Richard points out that in eighteen months, he hasn’t seen Siegfried once on a date.

James examines Doris’s ferret, one of eight she’s training, which got bitten by a rat. James will need to perform surgery, and while she waits, Doris befriends Helen and tells her about her experience with farmer Mr. Danby, a man who communicates with a repertoire of grunts. Meanwhile, Siegfried discovers that Richard is in line for the Warner Prize, a prestigious research post in London, given the success of his exam results, but Richard is torn. He wants to stay at Darrowby, where he feels he’s part of the war effort, but clearly, he’s capable of high-level research.

Mr. Bosworth, the ARP Warden, drives into Darrowby, leaning on the horn and the gas pedal, to inform his assistant, Audrey Hall, that they have a situation on their hands. An unidentified object fell from a plane in a nearby field. Audrey asks if it’s a bomb, but they don’t know yet. Two wardens must attend, and Mr. Bosworth insists Audrey wear her uniform. Doris, waiting for her ferret, asks about his dog Bingo, and is shocked when he starts to cry and rushes outside.

When they arrive at the field, Mr. Bosworth is appalled that there are onlookers and asserts his authority. An impact trail leads them into a wooded area where they find a broken flight crate and a group of ducks. The ducks probably aren’t part of the cargo, food, and other staples scattered around, and Audrey suggests it was jettisoned by a British plane running low on fuel. Mr. Bosworth is in his element, muttering darkly about Nazi spies and planning to summon the Home Guard.

Siegfried is taken aback to find the Grantley estate is being managed by the glamorous Miss Grantley (Juliet Aubrey), whose brother (the owner) is away in London for war work. She worked as an archaeologist in Persia until the war ended her excavations. Two goats, yet to be treated, lurk in the shade of a tree and suffer from itchiness. But Richard immediately notices his employer’s symptoms – his dilated pupils indicate that he is attracted to Miss Grantley. Siegfried distracts him by telling him to find the cause of the goats’ allergic reactions, and Richard finds a clump of St. Johns Wort, which causes a sensitivity to light. Richard provides Siegfried with a glowing reference about his character and availability:

Siegfried is appalled, but accepts Miss Grantley’s invitation to come into the house for coffee while muttering to Richard that he’s perfectly capable with women. She is impressed that Siegfried knows goats in ancient Persia were regarded as symbols of divine order and goodness. She congratulates Richard when she learns about the prize research post he’s been offered, but which he’s not going to accept. While Richard wanders to the other end of the room to inspect a first-edition textbook, Miss Grant tells Siegfried more about herself. She’s widowed and now lives her life “free of men’s plans for me.” She offers Siegfried the loan of a draft copy of her book Zarathustra and Ziggurats, based on a series of lectures she gave at Cambridge. Are Siegfried's pupils dilated with fear or desire? After they leave, Siegfried tells Richard he will still serve his country, his research helping with a faster recovery when the war ends, but he isn’t convinced.

James has finished the surgery on the ferret, despite almost losing the animal when Tristan unexpectedly entered the surgery. James now begins mending Jimmy’s playpen but is lured away to help Tristan with his cricket practice while the baby watches from his pram. He tells Tristan that he doesn’t want to go to the pub that evening. He wants to spend time with his son.

Helen walks back to Danby’s farm with Doris, who enthuses about her ferrets and how efficient they are at getting rid of rats, much better than strychnine. Helen asks if Doris buried the poisoned rats deep enough to stop other animals from digging them up. Danby didn’t mention this to Doris; Helen is furious when they find dead foxes and knows now how Bingo was killed. She gives Mr. Danby a good telling-off. Characteristically, he grunts. Mr. Bosworth finds Audrey hanging out the laundry, and vents. He is angry about Bingo and Doris’s unwitting role in his dog’s death, but he doesn’t blame her, making this generous admission: "Bingo brought me so much happiness. I’ll not have him bringing misery to her."

He admits his grief for Bingo has affected his judgment. Audrey apologizes for being ratty (a bad choice of word, she admits) and tells him that she, too, is having trouble with her feelings with her son Edward on active duty. She feels like “a smashed pot glued back together.” He assures her that her courage and presence of mind make a difference every day, and although we may suspect he will always have a tendency to take himself too seriously, he and Audrey now understand each other. (Someone. Please. Give that man a puppy.)

Siegfried talks to Audrey about Richard’s dilemma regarding himself as a substitute father. But Richard has decided, and he’s surprised and touched when Siegfried tells him he will always be welcome at Skeldale House as a friend and family member. Richard announced to the household that he was accepting the Warner Prize and would leave for London shortly. It’s time to celebrate at the Drover’s, their local pub and Tristan announces he’ll be delighted to get his bed back. James spends time with his son, as he wishes, and Siegfried dives into some heavy-duty reading. But it’s Richard who gives us the surprise ending to the episode. Shy, geeky Richard calls Doris and invites her to the pub for his farewell party. 

All Creatures Great & Small Season 5 airs/streams on most PBS stations, the PBS app, and the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel weekly through mid-February (check your local listings). All seven episodes of Season 5 are available on PBS Passport for members to binge. Seasons 1-4 are streaming on most local PBS Passports. Season 6 is already greenlit and expected out in 2026.