All Creatures Great and Small has begun filming for the latest series, which sent fans into a frenzy with the announcement of the return of Tristan Farnan. Ever since the remake hit Channel 5 people have fallen in love with the feel-good series set in the Yorkshire Dales that follows work at Skeldale House veterinary practice in the fictional village of Darrowby.
Based on the books written by Alf Wight, who took real-life people and peppered them with a little bit of storybook magic to cement them in history for ever. But, how did Alf Wight come up with the pen name James Herriot for his All Creatures Great and Small series?
How did Alf Wight come up with the pen name James Herriot?
As advertising ones self is again the Royal College code of practice for vets, Alf Wight had to come up with a name for himself before he could begin submitting his work. Alf reasoned that publishing books could be seen as doing so, so decided to come up with a pen name to make a clean job of it.
The inspiration for the name came from the strangest of places whilst Alf sat and watched one of his favourite television programmes BBC’s Match of the Day, a popular football highlights programme. When watching a certain game, a name kept popping up in commentary, Birmingham goalkeeper, James Herriot, who was having a sterling game – and Alf was mighty impressed.
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Alf had said that it was such an interesting name that he’d never heard before – and decided it would make the perfect pen name for his books – unbeknownst to him – how iconic and well known that name would become.
James Herriot was another Scotsman that had traveled south like Alf Wight, and they both worked with their hands making it the perfect meeting. Jim moved to Birmingham City in 1965 and would spend six years with them before returning to Scotland. Jim Herriot, as he was known, is remember by football supporters in his own right for being ahead of his time in one certain aspect.
The goalkeeper would smear mud beneath his eyes in order to counter the glare from the sun and floodlights. Alf Wight was an avid football fan, and was a big supporter of Sunderland, which is no surprise he was born in 1917 in Sunderland and his parents were from Sunderland.
Watch Alf Wight aka James Herriot interviewed at his veterinary clinic in Thirsk, England in 1981:
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