James and Siegfried are the only two characters to appear in every episode. Tristan appears in 65 episodes, Bob mortimer beer names in 87.

The final appearances of regular cast members are also noted. Filmed in 1977, the opening credits for the first three series feature Siegfried and James driving around the Dales and, at one point, sharing a laugh in the car. This is an excerpt from the Series 1 episode “Calf Love”. The bridge they drive over is in Langthwaite.

James Herriot, MRCVS, a newly qualified vet, arrives at Skeldale House for a job interview. It is the mid-1930s, and work is hard to come by. Siegfried settles James’ nerves by confirming that he acted correctly with Lord Hulton’s horse. James picks up Siegried’s brother Tristan from the station upon his return from veterinary college in Edinburgh, having failed pathology and parasitology. Characters: Arthur Handshaw, Tommy, Reynolds, Smedley, Hodgekin, Mrs Pumphrey, Mrs Hall, Mr Dean, Soames, Diana Brompton. With paperwork becoming out of hand, Siegfried decides to employ a secretary, a Miss Winifred Harbottle.