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The "All Creatures Great and Small" Look

Jupiter

New in Town
Messages
31
Hi Folks - Anyone here ever watch the great old British television series "All Creatures Great and Small?" It's about a country veterinarian in the 1930s, and was based on the best-selling semi-autobiographical books by James Herriot. The first three years of the show are the most satisfying, ending with the main characters enlisting in the RAF. These are now available on DVD. Later episodes were filmed differently, with some changes in actors as well, and don't quite have the same period "feel," though they are still very good.

I bring up this topic because not only is the show highly entertaining, but it is absolutely jam-packed with great stuff from the 1930s... the clothing is wonderful, the settings are gorgeous (British countryside), and the "props" are spot-on perfect (watch for fountain pens with screw-on caps, marvelous spoke-wheeled cars, intriguing period gardening tools, and all the other clutter one would expect to see in the typical British working environment of the day). It's obvious that the producers of this show tried very hard to get everything looking just right.

I own the DVD sets of the first three years, and view them frequently with my family (the kids love them, and prefer ACG&S over cartoons!). The nice thing about the DVDs is the ability to hit "pause" and really have a good look. I am often stunned at the production quality of this show... a paused scene reveals perfect lighting, prop placement, and costuming... and looks so right that the shot should be hanging on a wall in a museum.

I highly recommend this series for those who love that period of time. Watching (and pausing) the show is like enjoying a video textbook about the 1930s. The DVDs are available at most good bookstores and public libraries, or from Amazon.

Jupiter
 

BellyTank

I'll Lock Up
Yep- it's on re-run here in DK- but the ones I've been watching are set in the early '50s judging by the English cars and clothes of that era. I guess the earlier episodes began in the later '30s....

I have the Tweeds and Corduroy pants and a couple of the Fairisle wool vests (tank tops) for that look. Fairisle vests are cool. I'm liking the European vintage nowadays and it seems a little more geographically correct, although American vintage in good condition is still more readily available. They had it tough over here post War- not a lot of goodies left.

B
T
 

Jupiter

New in Town
Messages
31
Yes, the fourth year's episodes and beyond were "post-War" and by the time the series wound down, they'd worked themselves into the 50's. Television came to the Dales in one of the last episodes, if I remember correctly (and it didn't come without a fight, as many of the locals foresaw that it would destroy the nature of that rich rural culture). Up to the end, the show's clothing and props were still quite nice, however. There were lots of gorgeous tweeds and cords!

Herriot's books are wonderful, and there's a terrific edition (_The Best of James Herriot_) that gathers together Herriot's most-loved stories from the 4 main books. This volume also includes a number of "behind-the-scenes" articles, photo-essays, and artwork, giving the reader a real taste of life from those times. It's HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for fans of those decades!

Jupiter
 

The Mad Hatter

A-List Customer
Messages
321
The book Gentlemen: A Timeless Fashion uses them to illustrate the tatersal shirt.

And the actor who played Seigfried has become quite a spokesman for the activist countryside movement in England.
 

FOXTROT LAMONT

One Too Many
Messages
1,459
Location
St John's Wood, London UK
Herriot's books are wonderful, and there's a terrific edition (_The Best of James Herriot_) that gathers together Herriot's most-loved stories from the 4 main books. This volume also includes a number of "behind-the-scenes" articles, photo-essays, and artwork, giving the reader a real taste of life from those times. It's HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for fans of those decades!

Jupiter
Thanks Jupe for your notice. Much appreciated.
Harriot's first book or two read eons past, however what absolutely struck thunder was his innate character.
Such splendour of character, man, and moment.
 

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