'All Creatures Great and Small' fans heartbroken for Tristan as he discovers shock secret

All Creatures Great and Small Season 2 viewers were crushed at last night’s episode (Thursday 8 Oct.) as Tristan (Callum Woodhouse) discovered Siegfried’s (Samuel West) big secret — Tristan never passed his vet exams.

During last year’s Christmas Special, Siegfried discovered that his brother Tristan didn’t pass his veterinary exams, but instead decided to lie and tell him that he had qualified. Siegfried had been keeping it a huge secret ever since, until a very awkward dinner party happened last night.

It was a big day for Tristan in last night’s episode as it was both his birthday and his time to “stand on his own two feet” as he was finally given his own appointment list by Siegfried. Tristan was delighted at the news, as it meant that he had the opportunity to put his vet skills to the test on his own as a lead vet, rather than being stuck under Siegfried’s guidance.

There was a small hiccup along the way, with Tristan being kicked by a horse and injuring his knee, but he was ecstatic when he delivered his first calf.

His guests soon started arriving for his dinner party to celebrate his birthday. Despite an awkward start between Helen (Rachel Shenton) and Margot, who is friends with Helen’s ex fiancé, Siegfried delivered a touching toast congratulating Tristan on his hard work.

However, things took a turn for the worse when the dog that Siegfried had operated on earlier began to cry. The pair became slightly competitive when Tristan mentioned that it could be a postoperative complication, but Siegfried insisted that it wasn’t and that the dog just doesn’t like being on her own. After Tristan offered to look at the dog, Siegfried persisted that he had “already examined her thoroughly.”

Tristan then began to say, “You know Siegfried, the thing I realised today is that it doesn’t matter how good of a vet you are, people only respect you once they see you putting in the hard graft.”

Siegfried’s suspicions rose once he heard that Tristan was exaggerating his veterinary efforts to earn more respect and warned him, “If you’ve done anything to embarrass this practice, Tristan…”

Although his guests thought it was amusing, Siegfried thought otherwise and an argument soon ensued between the two at the dinner table. Siegfried couldn’t hold back any longer and he soon let the bombshell secret drop, much to the shock of the dinner guests and Tristan.

A sobbing Tristan was heartbroken and Mrs Hall (Anna Madeley) was there to console him, as she apologised for not telling him the secret after she found out. 

Emotional fans on Twitter were heartbroken for "poor" Tristan after his eventful birthday dinner…

All Creatures Great and Small Season 2 airs on Channel 5 on Thursday 14 Oct.- see our TV Guide for full listings.