James Herriot
Portrait of a Bestseller
Introduced by Melvyn Bragg
In this documentary profile JAMES HERRIOT talks to MELVYN BRAGG about his upbringing in Glasgow, his life in Yorkshire and his work as both vet and writer.
Herriot's second career began only some ten years ago. ' It was my wife who pushed me into it. For 30 years I'd, been saying I was going to write a book and one day she turned around and said " men of 50 don't write books". That stung me. I went right out and bought a pile of paper and got stuck in.' In 1970 his first novel, If Only They Could Talk was published. Though warmly praised by reviewers it achieved only moderate sales. Two years later It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet appeared and this was so successful with readers that letters poured in asking for further instalments. Herriot is now a best-selling writer not only in Britain but also in Spain, Japan and the United States. Two of his stories have been made into popular feature films.
Executive producer BILL MORTON Director BOB LOCKYER