Inside the world of James Herriot (From Gazette & Herald)

Inside the world of James Herriot

VOTED the top tourist attraction in North Yorkshire, The World of James Herriot is a unique experience for everyone to enjoy.

The Herriot centre is a tribute to vet and author Alf Wight, famous for his stories which went on to be filmed as the All Creatures Great and Small television series and which were written under the pseudonym of James Herriot. The museum is situated in his original surgery, which was bought and restored by Hambleton District Council.

The centre, at 23 Kirkgate in Thirsk, looks out onto the cobbled market place and alleyways of the town, which James Herriot called Darrowby. The famous red door invites visitors in to travel back in time to the life of a vet in the 1940s and 50s.

Your journey begins in the dining room, which also served as the patient's waiting room, where you can catch a glimpse of Mrs Pumphrey and Tricky Woo waiting to see Mr Herriot. The tour then takes you through the old consulting room, operating theatre and dispensing room. With the myriad of bottles and the lingering authentic smell, visitors can really feel the atmosphere of a 1940s veterinary practice.

Visitors can also see how Alf Wight lived whilst he wrote his books. You can look around the small, cosy breakfast room (which doubled up as an emergency operating theatre) and the family kitchen, complete with the remains of an evening meal on the table alongside books, bills and paperwork.

The centre also houses the sets to the TV programme All Creatures Great and Small, interactive exhibits and veterinary artefacts from the past and present.

The centre is having a Halloween family fun day on Friday, October 31, from 11am to 4pm. There will be lots of spooky things to make and do, and there is a one-off admission charge of only £2 for adults and children.

The World of James Herriot is open from 11am to 4pm (last admission 3pm) from October to April and from 10am to 6pm (last admission 5pm) from April to October. Prices for entry: adults £4.70, children (five to 15 years) £3.60, senior citizens £3.60, students(with valid ID card) £4 . Family prices: family of four (two adults, two children) £13, family of five (two adults, three children) £15 and family of four (single adult, three children) £10. For more information or to make a booking, call Margaret Tipton on (01845) 524234.

Updated: 12:14 Wednesday, October 22, 2003