We discuss the Season 2 closer of All Creatures Great and Small on Masterpiece, as well as the original series. How do the two compare? If the remake is even cozier than the original, should we revel in that, or “ban the balm”?
If you’re an American celebrating Christmas either late or very early, a crucial question is whether the Season Two closer of All Creatures Great and Small (which dropped here in February) can possibly outdo the Season One closer. Both are Christmas specials.
Before rendering judgement, let’s go back a bit. The books by James Herriot are the deep source, the first being published in 1972. This led to the memorable 1978 TV series, whose first three seasons were especially good, with some decent episodes in later seasons, and at least one good Christmas special.
I’m of a generation which imprinted on the 1978 series, and of a temperament which tends to look askance at remakes (“They’re never any good!”) That said, I’ve tried to open my heart to the All Creatures remake and judge it fairly.
First the good news: All Creatures on Masterpiece came up with an amazing Season One closer titled “The Night Before Christmas.” (This DailyMotion link might not last.)
Had the new series achieved nothing else, it would still be remarkable for this, which goes down in the annals of TV history as one of the best Xmas offerings ever, sure to be a staple of holiday viewing for a generation to come (not to mention PBS fundraising). As I tried to express in my review of Howards End on Masterpiece, sometimes everything goes so right in a production that the result almost feels touched by the hand of God. Such is the case with the Season One closer.
This new series is a re-imagining, and nowhere is this more evident (and more justified) than in “The Night Before Christmas,” which introduces the series’ first black character: Anne Chapman (played by Cleo Sylvestre), whose story is woven seamlessly into the fabric of the story as a whole. The episode showcases all the characters at their best, and is the surest way to develop an instant liking for the series. It also happens to be a lovely variation on the runaway bride trope. By contrast, see the Doctor Who episode “The Runaway Bride,” which explores the trope’s comic potential, with Catherine Tate as a bridezilla determined to marry despite almost any obstacle. It too is a Christmas episode, though as one might expect, the Santas are scary!
An important element in (especially) the first three seasons of All Creatures TOS was the budding romance (and eventual marriage) between Helen (Carol Drinkwater) and James (Christopher Timothy). So too in the remake, but these characters are now depicted quite differently (perhaps more realistically): James as a true Scotsman, and Helen a true Yorkshirewoman, both sporting confirmatory accents. New James (Nicholas Ralph) sometimes gets a bit sappy, and new Helen (Rachel Shenton) sometimes seems a bit thick, but on the whole they’re pretty good — I like them. There are many touching moments between them.
New Siegfried (Samuel West) and new Tristan (Callum Woodhouse) are passable as duelling brothers, but don’t quite capture the Sturm und Drang (nor the humour) of originals Robert Hardy and Peter Davison, who nailed it. Mrs Hall (the housekeeper), played by Anna Madeley, has been wokified as more of a friend, confidant, and near family member in a less class-conscious Farnon household. She now has more of a back story, and more liberty to push the other characters in the desired direction. This may all be for the good, but I miss the cynical, laconic Yorkshirisms of the old Mrs Hall (Mary Hignett).
All Creatures TOS sported a stable of eccentrics sadly missing from the remake. Who can forget Gobber Newhouse (Ivor Salter)?
Or for that matter, Kit Bilton (Gordon Kaye), who gets a wicked (and politically incorrect) winding-up from Tristan:
Also not exploited to its full comic potential is Tristan’s disastrous culinary bent:
No, the remake is rarely funny, even when it tries to be. It is, however, beautifully filmed — but even this can be a mixed blessing. All Creatures TOS was mostly shot on video, and the outdoor scenes are not of overwhelming beauty. One can (at best) imagine how beautiful the Yorkshire Dales must be. The remake goes to the opposite extreme, getting the full Masterpiece treatment: gorgeous interiors, gorgeous exteriors, eye candy galore, days so sunny and filled with supersaturated colours you’d think you’re watching a drug advert, and any moment someone will be confessing how “After Allegra, I found peace.”
What’s wrong with indulging in lush interiors and idyllic landscapes? It’s a visual corollary to the problem of sentimentality which likewise affects the remake. The theatrical reality is not a literal reality; all theatrical spaces are to some extent fake. But the imaginative space which is created as a setting for the drama to unfold should ideally complement it, exist in balance with it. This was more or less true of the original series, which was filmed in workmanlike fashion, without excess. The sets weren’t lavish, and there was plenty of filming on cloudy days. This complemented the scripts, which despite being heartwarming and funny, also revealed the harshness of Dales life during a period of economic depression. There was even an episode where one character committed suicide (s03e12).
The remake may, at times, suffer from “cottagecore” aesthetics in set design and cinematography. This fawning article in Architectural Digest stumbles into the truth, if unwittingly:
The new Masterpiece show is a soothing balm for our times… Endless rolling hills and rich green meadows, quaint farms, centuries-old villages, and charming barnyard animals may be the perfect antidote for stress-filled days. … While the scenery, townsfolk, and four-legged creatures — great (bulls, cows, and racehorses) and small (cats and dogs) — vie for attention, the location steals the show.
…
Influenced by Dutch paintings of the 1600s that “celebrate everyday domestic life,” production designer Jacqueline Smith opted for an Arts and Crafts look for the Georgian-style house. “I wanted the color palette to be warm and reminiscent of home baking, warm gingerbreads, and cakes, as Mrs. H. is always baking something yummy,” she says. The designer also used a heritage palette, “upping the ante” on some of the colors, such as a royal blue for the window framework and bright colors for the Arts and Crafts wallpapers.
Article author Cathy Whitlock never questions whether the design choices really complement the underlying dramatic material. Would James Herriot have been sanguine about a rendition of his work which comprises “a soothing balm for our times,” where “the location steals the show” and everything looks so artsy-craftsy?
Cottagecore is not merely a delight in the beauty of nature, the homespun, the handcrafted, and the antique. At its worst it’s a naive, romanticized, and sentimental view of the past which fails to see it clearly.
The underlying aesthetic problem has its parallels in the music world. Some readers may recall a classic line from This Is Spinal Tap: “You don’t do heavy metal in Dubly, you know.” Likewise, in the documentary Lennon NYC, engineer Roy Cicala recalls the challenge of trying to record the Plastic Ono Elephant’s Memory Band:
They were village type recorders. They should have been in the garage recording — you know, with two microphones. But we tried to do it in the studio, and when we did make it clean, nobody liked it. So we had to go back and add the dirtiest sound we could get.
Bottom line: The remake needs more grunge. Ditch the rose-coloured glasses and give Mrs Hall a mohawk!
The Three Mrs Pumphreys
The character of Mrs Pumphrey was always meant to cock a snook at the rich, eccentric, overprivileged, and indulgent. Throughout All Creatures TOS the part was played by Margaretta Scott, who was right on target. Her Pumphrey was absurd, ridiculous, but likeable and a good egg. We smiled when she told us her pet pekingese named Tricki Woo had a pen friend named Bonzo Fotheringham (a lonely dalmatian). In the remake, Mrs Pumphrey was played by Diana Rigg. For those of my generation, that was a bit sad because we like to think of her as Emma Peel, one effervescent half of The Avengers:
As Mrs Pumphrey, Rigg seemed too gruff, bewigged, and not quite what the doctor (or veterinarian) ordered. Her passing opened up the role in Season Two for Patricia Hodge, who some will recall from Inspector Morse, Agatha Christie’s Marple, and Miranda. But Hodge’s Pumphrey has yet to find the funny.
This brings us to the Season Two closer, officially named “A Perfect Christmas,” but perhaps more appropriately titled “Death Cab for Tricki.” It’s not bad, but nowhere near as good as the Season One closer; and it underscores the problem of sentimentality. There’s a section near the end concerning Tricki Woo’s NDE. Going against canon, this is treated with utter seriousness. One expects to hear Barber’s Adagio For Strings (often played at the funerals of great personages).
From my earliest studies of English, I still remember the term “pathetic dignification,” for which the example given (perhaps in Warriner’s) was “With whom were you brawling in that alley last night?” The grammar is formally correct, but seems out of whack with the subject matter. In the same way, giving James Herriot’s material the full-blown Masterpiece Theatre treatment may lead to a misalliance between the lofty production values and the gritty subject matter. For, as Herriot would surely remind us, sometimes a vet’s life consists of standing up to his neck in freezing muck for half the night.
But must one pit the new series against the old? Can’t one simply enjoy the new series for what it is? Undoubtedly so. I do enjoy it (some episodes more than others). It’s definitely worthwhile viewing, and there’s nothing wrong with imbibing it visually, as a collection of breathtaking wallpapers. But if I close my eyes and evaluate the scripts, character development, and actor portrayals, I tend to prefer the first three seasons of the original. These had the benefit of following Herriot’s books more closely, with the concomitant virtue of inheriting tighter plot structure. In the remake, incidents from different chapters seem Cuisinarted together, and don’t always make for a cohesive whole.
So there you have it: the good and the bad of the new series. If you absolutely love the remake and can’t get enough of it, do check out the original (or the books!). These can only add to your enjoyment.
Merry Gentlemen
Speaking of Christmas episodes, the standout from TOS was “Merry Gentlemen” (s02e14). This can probably be viewed on BritBox or Amazon Prime, but if your budget only runs to free TV, try DailyMotion or YouTube, where old episodes sometimes turn up:
The storyline, script, and performances are all so fine, you may not care that the video’s a bit muddy. Having been made over 30 years ago, “Merry Gentlemen” is that much closer to the reality Herriot wrote about; and being less grand a production, it may make the Dales seem more real and present to us, even if James is not particularly Scottish, and Helen not particularly Northern.
What did “Merry Gentlemen” get right? It totally nails the Dickensian jollity, and is imbued with a certain spirit of perfection. Heartwarming yes, but not quite so bathed in schmaltz as the remake.
I am left to ponder the question of escapism. Were the James Herriot books originally intended as escapist fare? If not, does making his world look too prettified and artsy-craftsy turn them into such? Therein lies the danger. Still, my fond hope is that many viewers wowed by the remake will, in addition to buying the coffee mugs and eating the branded yoghurts, also find their way to the original series and original source.
Michael Howard
The views expressed are my own, and do not represent any other person or organization.
BONUS! Christopher Timothy reads from All Creatures Great and Small (audiobook):
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Ethics and Spirituality 