Away to the manger

It's the first peacetime Christmas after the war and a new face is bringing some festive cheer to Skeldale House

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The All Creatures Great & Small: Christmas Special is a cosy way to start the festive season, but stars Anna Madeley, Nicholas Ralph and Callum Woodhouse are worried that one plot development this year could have upset fans rushing to complain on social media.

It's now 1945 and the trio, who play housekeeper Mrs Hall and vets James Herriot and Tristan Farnon, realise that not everyone will be happy about the return of Dorothy (Maimie McCoy), Mrs Hall's close friend and Siegfried Farnon's former love interest from series one who has been living in Malta during the Second World War. "Twitter, or X, will explode I think," says Nicholas, 35, noting that many viewers would prefer to see widower Siegfried (Samuel West) find romance with Mrs Hall.

"I hadn't really thought about how the audience might cope with that, that's quite exciting," Anna, 48, says. "It was amazing having Maimie come back because she's gorgeous and it was a lovely echo in the show as well. I think for Mrs Hall to have her oldest and dearest friend rock up at the back door out of the blue is just extraordinary.