ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL'S SAMUEL WEST IN TEARS OVER CO-STAR'S EXIT

During Christmas special, Siegfried Farnon (played by Samuel West) found out his brother Tristan (Callum Woodhouse) had been called out to fight in the war effort after volunteering and despite pleading with him to stay, Tristan insisted on leaving. In a new interview, the actor who plays Siegfried opened up about Tristan's goodbye speech, admitting he shed a tear.

Discussing what it's like to play Siegfried, Samuel West began: "He isn't quite as old or as stuck in the mud as he thinks he is, and there are people around him, principally Mrs Hall and Tristan, who are constantly reinventing his idea of what people are.

"And watching somebody who thought they were slightly frozen and blocked thaw in moments of warmth, is, I think, a real pleasure.

"Siegfried and Tristan's father was not a giving man, and I'm absolutely certain that neither of Siegfried's parents ever told him they loved him, although he may have felt it."

The actor went on to admit that he tells his children he loves them twice a day, and despite them being "bored of it", he said: "I'd rather they were bored of it than waiting to hear it for 60 years."

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For original fans of All Creatures Great and Small, they will fondly remember Carol Drinkwater, who played the beloved Helen Alderson.

The actress worked alongside Christopher Timothy, who played her onscreen love interest James Herriot at the time.

Speaking in a new interview, Carol reflected on her time playing Helen.

She admitted she never expected the series to be as successful as it was and that it "changed my life".

Addressing his co-star's emotional goodbye speech, Samuel added to Masterpiece: "I cry at everything. I'm hopeless.

"Whenever they say, "When did you last cry and why?" I'm like, "20 minutes ago."

"To say something about the way Cal played that scene is that two people trying not to cry is always much more moving."

Viewers were also left in tears following the scene which saw Tristan telling his brother how much he meant to him.

"Christmas is a time for family, those that are here and especially those who are not," he shared.

"All of us are missing someone. Most we'll see another time, others we won't.

"I want to remember them and give thanks to those who filled a hole they left behind, especially my brother, who made a promise to our dying father that he would take care of me, make sure I was properly educated and that I would make someone of myself."

"And he never gave up on me, no matter how much I wished he would," he added.

"And I certainly gave him enough reason to. Lesser men would have thrown in the towel, but he didn't.

"And I want to thank him for that. I love you, Siegfried. So, I guess the only thing left to say is Merry bl**** Christmas."

Following the emotional Christmas special, fans have been eagerly waiting for an update on the upcoming series.

Last month, Samuel sent fans into a frenzy by sharing a snap from on-set.

The actor posted a photo of a clapperboard in view of his 101,000 Twitter followers and captioned it with an "exciting" message.

He said: "I hope these rhymes are not a bore; Today we started Season Four.

"(To second-guess your naming queries we're also starting Four: The Series ) #AllCreaturesGreatAndSmall." (sic)

All Creatures Great and Small is available to watch on My5.

2023-04-01T19:59:50Z dg43tfdfdgfd