Heartbeat finds a home at The World of James Herriot

Thirsk has long been the home of James Herriot, but from this weekend it adds a second, equally nostalgic name to its list. The World of James Herriot is launching a permanent Heartbeat exhibition on Saturday 29 August at 1pm, and it was David Lonsdale, best known as David Stockwell in the ITV series, who did the honours. For anyone who spent their evenings in front of the police drama that once pulled in 18 million viewers, it is a welcome addition to a town already built on screen history.

The exhibition is a tribute to the Constable books by Nicholas Rhea, the pen name of Peter N Walker, and the 18-year police drama that grew from them. Set in the 1960s in the North York Moors around the fictional village of Aidensfield, which the show filmed in the real village of Goathland, Heartbeat ran for 18 seasons between 1992 and 2010, clocking up more than 350 episodes and selling to 41 countries. The display sits next to the centre's film showreel area, close to the gardens and the replica TV studios, and fills with memorabilia, props and period police motorcycles, with contributions from family members and supporters including Jason Bullard and Lee Jones.

There is a genuine local thread running through it all. Nicholas Rhea was born in 1936 in Glaisdale, a village on the North York Moors, and became a police cadet in 1952 before joining the North Riding force full time in 1956. He retired to write full time in 1982 and was awarded the Crime Writers' Association John Creasey Award in 2007, before he died in April 2017 at the age of 80. The exhibition is part of the wider screen tourism that pulls people through North Yorkshire's Herriot Country and Heartbeat Country, which takes in Whitby, Goathland and the North York Moors.

For the uninitiated, the building itself is worth the trip. The World of James Herriot stands on the original home and veterinary surgery of Alf Wight, the real-life vet behind All Creatures Great and Small. Inside you will find the original surgery, a faithfully restored dispensary, TV sets recreated from the classic BBC series, more than 4,000 pieces of Herriot memorabilia, an interactive children's gallery, two iconic Austin Seven cars and the garden home to a statue in memory of Alf Wight. A visit takes roughly one to two hours, so the new Heartbeat display slots in easily without needing a whole second day.

On the practical side, it is £10 for adults and £5 for children, with under-threes free. Access is well looked after, with level entry at the main and alternative entrances, an accessible toilet with transfer space, handrails and an emergency call system, wheelchairs on loan and interpretation in large print, and assistance dogs welcome. The building was bought by Hambleton District Council in 1995 and opened as a museum in 1999, before passing to the not-for-profit World of James Herriot Ltd in 2011. If you want to plan ahead, the centre is on 01845 524234 and keeps everything up to date at worldofjamesherriot.com.