All Creatures star says Tristan masks troubles with drink and humour on his return
"He's obviously changed."
While Tristan's imminent return in All Creatures Great and Small season 5 is cause for celebration, Samuel West (Siegfried) has revealed that the man who left Skeldale to serve in the Royal Army Veterinary Corps is not the same man who returns.
"He's obviously changed," he explained. "And he's changed in ways that I don't fully understand. He's obviously seen some horrible things which he's not talking about. And he's obviously masking with drink and good humour."
West also went on to say that "Tristan’s war stories" make Siegfried feel "old and a bit out of touch", but it's not long before normal service resumes and the brothers realise they're still a solid duo.
"We can still trump a cantankerous old farmer, and that's a great satisfaction," he added. "But it's not the same geekery as Carmody (James Anthony-Rose) and Siegfried together, looking at droppings or playing cribbage."
Read more:
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Siegfried is "anticipating the difficulty" of Tristan (Callum Woodhouse) "getting along with Carmody", according to West, who has begun to settle in nicely, and was even given his room to sleep in by Siegfried in the 2023 Christmas special.
"They're two such different people," he added. "And of course, Tris being Tris, who is an almost immediately annoying person, despite the fact that I love him."
Woodhouse said he was "slightly daunted" returning to the show in case he felt "a bit out of the loop?".
"But my first day back was a full day in The Drovers, which is probably the best place to film Tristan's first scenes back," he said. "We did the morning and warmed into it, and then coming back after our lunch break it didn't feel like I'd been away at all to be honest.
"I just slotted back in so comfortably and so well and was having all of the same banter and jokes with all of the same cast and crew that's still with us from series one. It was just really lovely."
Season 5 of All Creatures Great and Small picks up in the spring of 1941.
Following his work looking after animals in Egypt, Tristan will be "training new recruits who are going to be getting sent out to similar places that he's been in".
Elsewhere, Helen (Rachel Sheton) has her hands full with baby Jimmy while James (Nicholas Ralph) is away at RAF Abingdon, and is also considering her "contribution within the community" as World War II ramps up, Siegfried is doing his best to keep the surgery ticking along, Mrs Hall takes up a brand new role, and "Carmody is eager to step up".
All Creatures Great and Small seasons 1-4 are available to watch on My5. Season 5 will air on Thursday 19th September at 9pm on Channel 5 and My5. You can order James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small from Amazon.
If you're looking for something else to watch, visit our TV Guide or take a look at the rest of our Drama coverage. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Authors
Abby Robinson is the Drama Editor for Radio Times, covering TV drama and comedy titles. She previously worked at Digital Spy as a TV writer, and as a content writer at Mumsnet. She possesses a postgraduate diploma and a degree in English Studies.
