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Herriot Country
James Herriot OBE is the pen name of James Alfred Wight, also known as Alf Wight (3 October 1916 23 February 1995), a British veterinary surgeon and writer. Wight is best known for his enormously popular semi-autobiographical stories, often referred to collectively as All Creatures Great and Small, a title used in some editions and in film and television adaptations.
In 1969 Wight wrote If Only They Could Talk, the first of the now-famous series based on his life working as a vet and his training in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. In his books, he calls the town where he lives, which he based largely on the towns of Thirsk and Sowerby, Darrowby.
The books, which told of the many comic and illustrative incidents which happened to him and the people around him, were enormously popular, and by the time of his death he was one of the foremost best-selling authors in both Britain and the United States. Despite his authorial success, he continued practising until a few years before his death with his colleague Donald Sinclair. Owing in part to the British law forbidding veterinary surgeons from advertising, he took a pen name, choosing "James Herriot" after seeing the Scottish goalkeeper Jim Herriot play exceptionally well for Birmingham City in a televised game against Manchester United. He also renamed Donald and his brother Brian as Siegfried and Tristan Farnon, respectively.
In 1969 Wight wrote If Only They Could Talk, the first of the now-famous series based on his life working as a vet and his training in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. In his books, he calls the town where he lives, which he based largely on the towns of Thirsk and Sowerby, Darrowby.
The books, which told of the many comic and illustrative incidents which happened to him and the people around him, were enormously popular, and by the time of his death he was one of the foremost best-selling authors in both Britain and the United States. Despite his authorial success, he continued practising until a few years before his death with his colleague Donald Sinclair. Owing in part to the British law forbidding veterinary surgeons from advertising, he took a pen name, choosing "James Herriot" after seeing the Scottish goalkeeper Jim Herriot play exceptionally well for Birmingham City in a televised game against Manchester United. He also renamed Donald and his brother Brian as Siegfried and Tristan Farnon, respectively.
