Thirsk – North Yorkshire’s best kept secret and the home of James Herriot

September 18, 2022 0 Comments

It’s hard to see why Thirsk would be known as Yorkshire’s best kept secret, after all, it’s where author James Herriot’s stories were born. James Herriot is actually Alf Wight, he was born in 1916 in Sunderland and grew up in Scotland. He qualified as a veterinarian at Glasgow in 1939 and his first posting was at Sunderland. He came to Thirsk to work for Donald Sinclair (Siegfried) in January 1940.

Alf Wight wrote under the pseudonym James Herriot and is a world-renowned best-selling author. He was well respected and loved in the area and, despite his success as an author, he did not allow this to change his lifestyle. He wrote 8 books about his life as a veterinarian and another couple of photos of the area with comments, two films were also made of his work.

Regardless of the fact that the British government taxed his earnings mercilessly, he refused to leave England and died in the vicinity of Thirlby, near Thirsk, at his home, in 1995.

Alf married Joan Danbury in 1941 and they had two children, the names he used in his books “Jimmy” and “Rosie”, Jimmy becoming a veterinarian and Rosie a doctor. While Skeldale’s home or actual address at 23 Kirkgate Thirsk has now become “James Herriot’s World” and many visitors go to Thirsk just to visit this attraction.

The World of James Herriot is just one of the many attractions to see in and around this Yorkshire Dales town. It is unique and deserves its own space. It explores the world of veterinary science and takes visitors back to the 1940s. It is a unique and fitting tribute to Alf Wight and the only museum dedicated to veterinary science in the UK. The building is grade two listed

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *