Ripon
After a fun filled day exploring Thirsk and Newby Hall followed by an evening at Ripon Races, we decided to start the next day with a walk into the centre of Ripon. It’s Yorkshire’s smallest city but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in beauty. The centre is easily walkable with its stunning gothic cathedral and splendid mix of architectural styles dating back to medieval times.
We started our tour at the Market Place and by coincidence, we had timed our visit for when the Thursday market was taking place. With stalls offering fresh fruit, vegetables, cheese, plants and flowers we enjoyed wandering around despite the intermittent rain showers.
Dominating the square is a 300 year old Obelisk where something unique happens at 9.00 p.m. each evening. Every night of the year, a horn is blown at the four corners of the Obelisk in the Market Place to set the ‘watch’. This ceremony commemorates the time in the Middle Ages when Ripon’s first citizen, the Wakeman, was responsible for crime prevention in the city from 9.00 p.m. until dawn and had to compensate victims of burglary. As we were at the races the previous evening, we missed this spectacle but I’d like to witness it sometime in the future.
Ripon Town Hall is an elegant building located on the south side of the square and was constructed in 1799 as an Assembly Room, described by Daniel Defoe as the ‘finest in England’. Lining the square and along surrounding streets we were pleased to come across a good selection of small, independent shops including the excellent Ripon Bookshop, which I couldn’t resist popping into.
We then visited the stunning cathedral which has a history dating back over 1,300 years. Constructed in early English Gothic style it boasts intricate wood carvings and exquisite stained glass windows, some from as early as the 14th century. The Great East Window was designed by William Morris and is particularly noteworthy for its vibrancy and intricate design. I’m a big fan of William Morris designs so was delighted to see this.
During our visit a free organ recital was taking place which set the mood perfectly for our self guided tour. Entrance to the cathedral is free of charge with donations being welcomed towards the upkeep of the building. Ripon Cathedral
After our enjoyable morning stroll around Ripon, it was time to get back on the All features Great and Small trail, with a journey through the scenic Dales countryside to Grassington taking us approximately 45 minutes.
Grassington
The charming village of Grassington is an absolute delight and after leaving our car in the Yorkshire Dales Visitor Centre car park, it was just a five minute stroll to the village square. Grassington is the main filming location for All Creatures Great and Small, where it is known as Darrowby in the television series and films.
The Devonshire Arms overlooks the square with its Yorkshire stone façade featuring throughout the Channel 5 series. The exterior of the pub, known as The Drovers Arms is where James Herriot gains his introduction into Darrowby village life. In recognition of the pub’s fame it now includes Drovers Arms signage alongside its original name.
Although another location is used for indoor filming (more of this later), we popped inside the cosy pub tucking into hearty portions of delicious steak and ale pie and stew and dumplings washed down with glasses of Drovers best bitter! The pub walls are adorned with photos from when the village was used for filming. Visitors can even stay overnight to truly live the experience. More details here.
Just across the road from The Devonshire, the Stripey Badger bookshop and cafe gets transformed into GF Endleby Grocers as part of James Herriot’s Darrowby. Throughout the filming, books in the window are temporarily replaced with pre-war food packaging and the shopfront given a 1930’s era paint job. We popped into the Stripey Badger and found it to be a cosy cafe bookshop containing lots of All Creatures books and gifts. The Stripey Badger
Located close to the Stripey Badger is the property used for filming the exterior of Skeldale House, the Darrowby veterinary surgery of Siegfried Farnon and James Herriot in the original BBC television series. It looks somewhat different now as the porch has been removed.
Grassington definitely lives up to its name as a “Starring in North Yorkshire” location as the village has also featured in a number of other film and television productions including Dolittle, Wuthering Heights, The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby and A Boy, A Girl and A Bike.
Burnsall
It was then onto Burnsall, another picturesque small Dales village lying just four miles from Grassington. With its idyllic setting on the banks of the River Wharfe and surrounded by rolling hills, Burnsall is a popular starting point for walking holidays in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales National Park. The village is steeped in history, with a Norman church, a 17th-century stone arched bridge, village green and traditional stone cottages all adding to its charm.
As well as taking in the village’s beauty, we’d come to take a look inside St. Wilfrid’s Church which was featured in the show’s Channel 5 Christmas special as Darrowby Church as well as for other church scenes.
St Wilfrid’s Church replaced an old wooden Anglo-Saxon church in the 12th century. The church was later restored by Sir William Craven in 1612. It is open daily for visitors to look around between 9.00 a.m. and dusk.
After a saunter around the village and along the river bank, we couldn’t resist popping into the Riverbank Cafe for coffee and cakes. It’s a lovely small cafe and as the name suggests, it overlooks the river with an outside terrace for sunny days.
Our All Creatures Great and Small filming location trail was almost coming to an end with just one venue remaining, located two miles away in the delightfully named small village of Appletreewick.
Appletreewick
In the centre of the village stands The Craven Arms, a 16th century inn with exposed wooden beams. The pub is used for filming interior scenes of The Drovers Arms. It’s a very friendly, welcoming inn featuring a series of small rooms cosily furnished in typical Dales style with inglenook fireplaces, oak tables and repurposed church seats.
The pub serves hearty fare which looked tempting but as we’d just tucked into large slices of cake, we simply ordered glasses of locally brewed beer. The perfect way to conclude our short break in beautiful North Yorkshire.
Irrespective of whether you are a James Herriot fan or not, the Yorkshire Dales offers a warm welcome with its pretty villages, bustling market towns, scenic beauty and hill walking opportunities. I genuinely enjoyed my short break there and after reading this, hopefully you might be inspired to plan a visit too!
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During my visit I was a guest of Visit North Yorkshire and as always, all views and opinions are entirely my own.
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