All Creatures Great and Small’s Siegfried and Dorothy hit a bump – but there’s a silver lining

When we're reunited with Siegfried and Dorothy in season 7 of All Creatures Great and Small, they've progressed from a kiss under the mistletoe at The Drovers to courting – albeit still in its very early stages.

Mrs Hall's friend first appeared in season 1, when she shared a kiss with the vet before moving to Malta (not as a result of said kiss, we should add). She then returned in last year's Christmas special, following the end of the war, and so far, so good.

Despite dating for several weeks, they have yet to have a disagreement, let alone an argument, which doesn't sound much like Siegfried now, does it?

But it becomes patently clear why in the drama's latest episode.

Whatever Dorothy says, goes – and not because she insists on such a thing. No, Dorothy is none the wiser about Siegfried's personality transplant.

"He's really not what I expected, you know," she confides in Mrs Hall. "After all the stories, I was prepared for a bit of bad temper now and again. But he's really rather lovely."

The housekeeper smiles, both pleased that Siegfried and Dorothy are going well. But one also gets the impression she's perhaps a little amused, having been exposed to a fair few of Siegfried's moods – which, as we all know, are inevitable.

However hard he tries to put his best foot forward to impress Dorothy by being perfectly agreeable (dare we say laid back?) and uncharacteristically open-minded, even tailoring his musical preferences to Dorothy's so as not to rock the boat in any way, one's true self always reveals itself in the end.

After a particularly challenging encounter with a sow called Harriet, Siegfried bursts through the doors of Skeldale House to gather the entire contents of the dispensary in a bid to force her to settle, and his mood plummets from bad to worse.

After barking at James, he picks a fight with Tristan, who's busy sprucing up the practice's waiting room, so as not to be outshone by new vet Granville Bennett (Caolan McCarthy).

"First it was magazines, then flowers, now it's soft sodding furnishings," he roars.

"It's a waiting room, not a tart's bloody boudoir. And I don't care what Dorthy says about this or your sodding magazines. This is my practice and what I say goes. Do you hear me?"

But unbeknownst to Siegfried, Dorothy is standing right there.

"I think the whole of Darrowby heard you," she remarks from the doorway, looking most unimpressed.

And just like that, the honeymoon period was well and truly over.

Rather than resolving the matter, the pair cancel their plans to attend a concert, leaving Dorothy standing awkwardly in the kitchen while he hurries back to the Hollins's farm to deal with Harriet.

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But in typical All Creatures fashion, you're never left to feel glum for too long. Siegfried later "apologises profusely" for his behaviour, while Dorothy admits she "may have overreacted, just slightly".

"Besides, it's probably about time we had a bit of a falling out," she says over a drink at the pub.

Admittedly, it would be strange for two people to commit fully to one another without a single disagreement under their belts. Do you really know one another if you've never clashed at all?

But if you are able to argue constructively, any resentment can be squashed before it's allowed to fester and grow – and it can even bring you closer together.

Yes, as unpleasant as that moment was, their first argument has allowed them to be truly honest with each other – and not only about lighter matters (their musical preferences), but also by helping Siegfried's walls to come down ever so slightly.

His attempt to present himself in the best possible light was entirely well-meaning, but ultimately that meant pretending to be someone he wasn't, which does not make a strong partnership.

While that's an uncomfortable space for Siegfried to inhabit, getting comfortable with that feeling is the only way forward if he's serious about Dorothy.

All Creatures Great and Small airs on Thursdays at 9pm on 5.

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