All Creatures Great and Small welcomes new addition to Skeldale House – but it's not smooth sailing

Its arrival, however, was anything but seamless. James and Tristan struggled to manoeuvre the hefty machine into the exam room, roping in a couple of locals – and even Jenny – before Sister Rose, popping by for flea powder, calmly suggested the obvious: just take it out of the crate and wheel it in.

Before they could act on that advice, though, Siegfried appeared – and to say he was unimpressed would be putting it mildly.

"What the hell's that?" he barked, taking in the colossus that was blocking the entrance to the practice. "We're still rationing, man. Locals can't afford X-rays… and our business has always been agricultural, always will be."

James then pleaded his case, insisting that pets were the future and that the machine would pay for itself within six months. But Siegfried wasn't having it.

And when James finally managed to power the thing up, it promptly blew out the electrics, plunging Skeldale into darkness – much to Siegfried's continuing fury.

After a stern word from Mrs Hall, however, Siegfried reconsidered his behaviour, patched things up with James – and even began to warm to the X-ray machine, much to his partner's delight.

"You can wipe that bloody grin off your face," he shot back. "I've never been against new equipment or ideas. I just want a say in which ones – and when."

A fair point, we should add.

James then offered a sincere apology – he certainly hadn't meant to be disrespectful, but had simply gotten carried away by his enthusiasm – admitting that he should have consulted Siegfried first – if Siegfried had been willing to listen.

"It's a fascinating time," said Samuel West of where we find the characters in the latest chapter. "Farm mechanisation is evolving. We have advances in vet technology finally, which is used to some comic effect at Skeldale.

"Siegfried is suspicious, of course, but in the end, it proves its worth."

Read more:

• All Creatures Great and Small's Siegfried sheepish after awkward James encounter
• In All Creatures Great and Small season 6, Mrs Hall and Siegfried's relationship remains as complex as ever

"As victory in Europe is declared, there is the promise of peace at last," reads the official season 6 synopsis. "But James is wishing for a greater sense of peace at the surgery as he juggles vet work with a busy family life and an exceptionally challenging Siegfried."

Elsewhere, "Helen’s enjoying time with young Jimmy and Rosie but has big changes afoot at Heston to contend with", while "Tristan returns from several years at war and will have to re-adjust to life back home in Darrowby."

And there's Mrs Hall, who "works hard to bring everybody back together and restore harmony at the surgery".

All Creatures Great and Small season 6 episode 3 will air on Thursday 9th October at 9pm. Seasons 1-5 are available to watch on My5. You can order James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small from Amazon.

Add All Creatures Great and Small Series 6 to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more.

Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.