He is best known for writing a series of eight books set in the 1930s–1950s Yorkshire Dales about veterinary practice, animals, and their owners, which began with If Only They Could Talk, first published in 1970.

[2] James Alfred Wight, who was called "Alf" for short, was born on 3 October 1916 in Sunderland, County Durham, England.

[3] The family moved to Glasgow when James was a child, and he lived there happily until leaving for Sunderland, and then Thirsk in North Yorkshire, England, in 1940.

At age 12, he read an article in Meccano Magazine about veterinary surgeons and was captivated with the idea of a career treating sick animals.

[7] After they returned to Thirsk, Wight "carried on TB testing [of] cows in Wensleydale and the top floor of 23 Kirkgate became Joan and Alf’s first home".

After undergoing surgery on an anal fistula in July 1943, he was deemed unfit to fly combat aircraft and was discharged as a leading aircraftman the following November.

Wishing for more privacy as the popularity of All Creatures Great and Small increased, in 1977 Wight and his wife moved again, to the smaller village of Thirlby, about 4 miles (6.4 km) from Thirsk.

[19] In the early 1960s he began analysing the books of successful authors that he enjoyed reading, such as P. G. Wodehouse and Conan Doyle, to understand different writing styles.

A reliable source states that he "chose the name after attending a football match in which the Scotland internationalist Jim Herriot played in goal for Birmingham City.

"[20] Wight's early efforts at having his writing published were unsuccessful, which he later explained by telling Paul Vallely in a 1981 interview for the Sunday Telegraph Magazine, "...my style was improving but [...] my subjects were wrong.

"[19] Choosing a subject where he was more experienced, in 1969 he wrote If Only They Could Talk, a collection of stories about his experiences as a young veterinary surgeon in the Yorkshire Dales.

Sales were slow until Thomas McCormack of St. Martin's Press in New York City received a copy and arranged to have both books published as one volume in the United States that year.

The last book of the series, Every Living Thing, sold 650,000 copies in six weeks in the United States and stayed on The New York Times Best Seller list for eight months.

[21] Its US editor, Tom McCormack, quoted in a book based on interviews of American publishers, said the title choice was made after he sought suggestions from colleagues, related to nature, and "a British guy in our marketing department, Michael Brooks", spoke about the hymn, reciting its first verse.

[22][23][24] Contrary to widespread belief, Wight's books are only partially autobiographical, with many of the stories only loosely based on real events or people.

[25] Wight anonymised the majority of his characters by renaming them: Notably, he gave the pseudonyms Siegfried and Tristan Farnon, respectively, to Donald Sinclair and his brother Brian, and used the name Helen Alderson for his wife Joan.

Wight's son wrote in The Real James Herriot that Donald Sinclair's character in the novels was considerably toned down, and in an interview described him as 'hilarious', 'a genius', and 'chaotic'.

The BBC produced a television series based on Wight's books titled All Creatures Great and Small, which ran from 1978 to 1980 and 1988–1990; ninety episodes were broadcast altogether.

"[31] In September 2010, the Gala Theatre in Durham presented the world premier professional stage adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small.

[32] In 2010, the BBC commissioned the three-part drama Young James Herriot, inspired by Wight's early life and studies in Scotland.

The series drew on archives and the diaries and case notes which Wight kept during his student days in Glasgow, as well as the biography written by his son.

)[42] Portions of the surgery sets used in the All Creatures Great and Small BBC series are on display at the museum, including the living room and dispensary.

[43] Grand Central rail company operates train services from Sunderland to London King's Cross, stopping at Thirsk.

[44] Actor Christopher Timothy, who played Herriot in the BBC television series, unveiled a statue of Wight in October 2014 at Thirsk Racecourse.

[45] Wight received an honorary doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 1979, and was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 1979 New Year Honours.

[51] In the United States, Wight's first six books were considered too short to publish independently, so they were combined in pairs to form three omnibus volumes.