‘Ade wanted to see more birds’: All Creatures Great and Small star Sam West takes Ade Edmondson birding again - and this time it’s in Yorkshire

Samuel West has teamed up once again with pal Adrian Edmondson to make the second series of Sam & Ade Go Birding, expected to air on 5 later in the year.

Fans spotted the pair at Bempton Cliffs in June this year, filming for the new series, which is double the run of the first series, with six hour-long episodes.

“My dastardly plan to get Adrian Edmondson addicted to birding seems to be paying off,” says Samuel West, who plays Siegfried in 5’s popular All Creatures Great and Small series.

“Ade said he wanted to see more birds, so I thought we should go and find some. I’m not particularly fond of him, but the birds are lovely.”

Adrian Edmondson adds: “More birds, more stunning views, more chats, more trips to the pub - it’s a hard life, but someone’s got to do it.”

Sam West has also been filming from February to June this year on location in Grassington and the Yorkshire Dales for series seven of All Creatures Great and Small - and has been seen many times with his binoculars at the ready for bird spotting.

“Spanning the changing seasons, Sam & Ade Go Birding captures the natural world at its most dynamic - from spring’s migratory birds and nesting season to the quieter, more contemplative months later in the year,” says 5.

It adds: “Bitten firmly by the birding bug, Ade wants Sam to show him more. Across the series, they travel from the rolling hills and towering sea cliffs of Yorkshire and the wilds of West Wales to the remote isles and dramatic coastlines of Scotland, exploring some of Britain’s most spectacular landscapes in search of birds big and small.

“Along the way they encounter swifts, swallows, curlews, red kites, ospreys, woodland songbirds, puffins, guillemots and gannets.

“As ever, the series is as much about friendship as it is about birds, with the duo sharing candid, funny and moving stories of ageing, family, mortality and the rhythms of life. “Beautifully filmed and deeply uplifting, Sam & Ade Go Birding remains a celebration of the British countryside, the changing seasons and the simple joy of looking up - together.”

The recommissioning follows the success of the first series, which saw Samuel West and Adrian Edmondson longlisted for the Grierson Award for Best Documentary Presenter. The Grierson Awards will be announced in November.

Kit Morey, 5 commissioning editor, 5 says: “It’s no secret just how much I adore this joyful series… or how long I waited to make it, but the wait was so worth it as Sam and Ade have created something truly special - warm, funny, thoughtful and full of wonder and I was thrilled at just how much our audience loved it too.

So, I couldn’t be happier to be working with Frank Films again to bring our viewers six more episodes of this beautiful, uplifting avian adventure.”

Jamie Balment, executive producer of Frank Films, which makes the series, adds: “The first series was such a genuine joy to make, that I feel hugely lucky to have the opportunity to spot more of Britain’s birds with Sam’s knowledge and Ade’s curious eye.”

5 confirms that the series is currently in production, with an air date to be announced in due course.