All Creatures Great and Small fans have long been hoping that Siegfried Farnon and Skeldale's housekeeper Mrs Hall will finally confess their feelings for one another and fall into each other's arms.
While Mrs Hall's relationship with Gerald posed an obstacle to a potential romance with Siegfried, their breakup at the end of season four made room for the "heavy flirting" and banter we've been seeing in the new season.
But will the pair's 'will-they-won't-they' ever reach a climax? Or will Siegfried and Mrs Hall remain friends forever? Here's everything actors Samuel West and Anna Madeley have said about their characters' relationship.
© Channel 5Mrs Hall and Siegfried have a 'real fondness' for each other
Anna previously spoke of the "complex" relationship between Siegfried and Mrs Hall during an interview with PBS Masterpiece for season two, and didn't shut the door on the prospect of a romance.
"The relationship with Mr. Farnon is so complex because there's so many layers to it, in that he employs her in the house, as well as that they have a real fondness for each other, and they are very good friends to one another," she said, adding: "You can see where there'd be potential there."
© Channel 5Samuel and Anna say, 'No comment' about potential romance
Ahead of last year's Christmas special, Samuel and Anna remained tight-lipped when asked whether a romance was on the cards following Gerald's departure from Darrowby.
Samuel said: "I think, 'No comment' is the only thing to say," while Anna's response was equally ambiguous: "I think we'll remain enigmatic about that. That's for you to be interested in."
© Helen Williams / Playground Television / Channel 5 TelevisionSiegfried's feelings of jealousy
Chatting to HELLO! and other press ahead of season five, Samuel spoke of Siegfried's feelings of jealousy about Mrs Hall spending time away from Skeldale to help Mr Bosworth with the war effort as a volunteer blackout warden.
"There's a moment with Bosworth where Siegfried learned something that he ought to have known before," he began. "The fact that Bosworth rhymes with jobsworth is not a coincidence. He's incredibly annoying and he's taken Siegfried's staff member and friend and left him lonely with a cold supper more often than necessary.
"When he starts mistreating her in a sort of excess of misplaced gallantry, Siegfried steps in to defend Mrs Hall. He oversteps the mark, and she says, 'I can fight my own battles', and that's a very important lesson for him," continued the Slow Horses star.
"And he apologises later, again, quite grumpily, but it's an important bit in their relationship where he thinks he's doing the right thing for reasons which he doesn't fully understand about being a bit jealous of the fact that Mrs Hall is away so often. And then she says that was wrong."
© Ken McKay/ITV/ShutterstockSamuel suggests a romance in the distant future
During an interview with Lorraine Kelly on her eponymous ITV show this week, Samuel and Anna spoke about whether a relationship between Mrs Hall and Siegfried would work.
"They'd be a disaster," said Samuel, while Anna added that there "are lots of reasons not to" take their relationship to the next level.
However, Samuel went on to say that perhaps in the distant future, the pair might settle down together. "We were thinking maybe when the children have grown up and have left home, no telly. There's not much else to do," he suggested.
© Channel 5Our conclusion
With the cast remaining tight-lipped over a potential romance, it's hard to say whether fans can expect a relationship between Mrs Hall and Siegfried anytime soon.
Season five has given us hope, however, and we've loved watching the flirtatious moments between the pair.
While we think a relationship between the two isn't out of the question, fans could be waiting a while. So let's just enjoy the slow-burn romance while it lasts!
