The twenty−ninth series of the British medical dramatelevision seriesCasualty commenced airing in the United Kingdom on 30 August 2014, and concluded on 23 August 2015. The series consisted of 46 episodes. Erika Hossington continued her role as series producer, while Oliver Kent continued his role as the show's executive producer.
This series featured three webisodes. The first two webisodes were a two-parter focusing on main character Noel Garcia pursuing his dream career of being a radio DJ, while the final webisode of the series focused on main characters Zoe Hanna and Max Walker's respective pre-wedding celebrations. On 2 July 2014, it was announced that Casualty would be airing three standalone episodes.
The standalone episodes were noted as being "independent from the main series story arc", as well as making "no reference to ongoing plotlines". An inside source told Casualty the cast and crew called the episodes "Holby Noir". The first episode aired on 15 November 2014, a week later than originally planned, while the second episode aired on 28 March 2015, with the final episode airing on 11 July 2015. In August 2014, series producer Erika Hossington revealed that she had made updates to the style of the show, by looking at, and changing, the cameras the show were shooting on, the format the show was shooting in, and also the lightbulbs used in the studio.
During series twenty-nine, Casualty was awarded the Best Soap and Continuing Drama accolade at the 2015 Royal Television Society awards ceremony. The show also won the Best Drama award at the 2015 Inside Soap Awards. Throughout the series, the show was also shortlisted under the Best Family Drama award at the 2015 TV Choice Awards, however it was beaten by Call the Midwife. In addition to this, the Casualty production team were shortlisted under the Best Television Soap and Continuing Drama category at the 2015 BAFTA awards. Actor Lee Mead was nominated under the category Newcomer for his portrayal of his character Lofty Chiltern at the National Television Awards 2015, however did not win the award.
Production
Oliver Kent continued his role as executive producer, while Erika Hossington remained as series producer.[1] This series consisted of 46 episodes.[2] In addition to this, this series featured three webisodes. The first two webisodes, "Radio Holby", were a two-part story that aired on 18 October and 25 October 2014, following the broadcast of episodes seven and eight respectively.
The story featured receptionist Noel Garcia (Marshall) deciding to pursue his dream of being a radio DJ while "hoping to boost the atmosphere of the ED" as he takes over the hospital's radio station.[3] The webisodes were created by the show's junior editorial team with Ross Southard leading the idea. Hossington praised the behind-the-scenes team and expressed her delight at the webisodes being commissioned, saying, "Everyone who worked on the webisodes stepped up a level, and with their passion, enthusiasm and dedication totally focused on making the best finished project.
The end result is a real treat for our website visitors and fans."[3] The final webisode, "Mrs Walker-To-Be", centered around the characters of Zoe Hanna (Sarker) and Max Walker (Davis) as they went on their respective pre-wedding celebrations and was published online on 22 August 2015, following the broadcast of episode forty-five.[4]
On 2 July 2014, Radio Times revealed plans for the show to air three standalone episodes. The standalone episodes were noted as being "independent from the main series story arc", as well as making "no reference to ongoing plotlines". It was reported that an inside source from the show branded the standalone episodes as "really stylish", as well as calling the episodes "Casualty Noir".[5]
More information about the standalone episodes were revealed in August 2014, during an interview with series producer Erika Hossington, who said that the episodes were devised to "give the audience a treat of a different kind". In addition to this, the episodes were created by former show scriptwriters, in an attempt to "tempt back some of Casualty's writing alumni who had gone onto bigger and better things".[6]
The first standalone episode was supposed to be broadcast on 1 November 2014,[6] however the episode was later moved to 15 November 2014, for unknown reasons. The episode, entitled "Deadfall", was written by Jeff Povey and directed by David Innes Edwards, and featured main character Lily Chao (Yu) solving a murder mystery.[7]
The second episode was broadcast on 28 March 2015, entitled "The Road Not Taken". It was written by Barbara Machin and directed by Ian Barnes. This episode featured main character Zoe Hanna (Sarker) wondering how different life could be if she made one difference to her day.[8] The final standalone episode, entitled "Holby Sin City", aired on 11 July 2015, and was written by Mark Catley and directed by Simon Massey. The episode featured main character Ethan Hardy (Rainsford) solving a mysterious murder case.[9]
In August 2014, Hossington revealed in an interview with Digital Spy that her main aims for Casualty since taking over were to focus the show on "the characters who the audience really loved" and to see more "interest and compelling" guest stories. As well as moving the show's focus back to character-based storylines and reintroducing compelling guest stories, Hossington also revealed that there were "certain aspects" of the show which she felt were "out of date in terms of what the show looked like".
Hossington told Digital Spy that she looked at everything: from the cameras the show were shooting on, to the format the show was shooting in, as well as changing the light bulbs in the studio.[6]
Sarah-Jayne Dunn appeared in seven episodes as Taylor Ashbie, a love interest for Cal.
Chelsee Healey's casting in the role of baristaHoney Wright was announced on 19 May 2014. She was billed as having "big hair and a big personality". She made her first appearance in episode six, broadcast on 11 October. Healey signed a four-month contract and departed at its conclusion in episode twenty-one, broadcast on 14 February 2015.
Healey returned to filming in spring 2015 and Honey returned in episode forty-one, broadcast on 25 July 2016.[11] A trailer previewing "dramatic Winter episodes" was released on 4 October 2014 including the introduction of Connie's daughter Grace Beauchamp.[12] Emily Carey's agency revealed that she had been cast in the role of Grace.[13] Grace made her first appearance during episode twelve, broadcast on 29 November 2014.[14]Frances Tomelty and Sarah Jayne Dunn were announced to be joining the show in August 2014 by series producer Erika Hossington.[6]
Tomelty's agent and Dunn's official website revealed they had been cast as Audrey and Taylor respectively.[15] Audrey is introduced as the grandmother of Grace, whilst Taylor is a love interest for Cal Knight. Both characters made their first appearance in episode thirteen, broadcast on 6 December 2014.[16]
Carey and Tomelty departed from the series in episode eighteen, broadcast on 24 January 2015,[17] whilst Dunn departed in episode twenty-nine, broadcast on 18 April 2015, at the conclusion of the storyline which saw her revealed to be conning Cal.[18]Charles Venn was announced to be joining the cast as nurse Jacob Masters. Venn described his casting as "a pleasure and honour" and Kent said he was "thrilled" to welcome Venn. Venn's debut episode - the fortieth episode of the series - was broadcast on 18 July 2015, a week later than originally planned.[19]
Bardock announced his decision to leave his role of Jeff Collier on 30 June 2014, following seven years on the show. Following Bardock's choice to leave the serial, Atkinson announced she would also depart with Tamzin leaving at the conclusion of her storyline. Bardock's final scenes aired in episode five, broadcast on 4 October 2014, when Jeff was killed in a car explosion as part of a "shock twist".
Atkinson made her final appearance in the following episode, broadcast on 11 October 2014, when Tamzin opted to resign following Jeff's death.[20] Robinson's departure from the serial was announced in episode fifteen, broadcast on 3 January 2015, following the show's return from the Christmas break, although it was not screened.[21] Packer's decision to quit her role was revealed in April 2015, although it was not confirmed by BBC.[22]Luke Bailey reprised his role as Tess' son, Sam Bateman, for one episode to aid Tess' departure storyline. They departed in episode forty-four, broadcast on 15 August 2015,[23] but Tess made a cameo appearance in the following episode.[24]
Maggie Coldwell actress Susan Cookson reprised her role in episode twenty-six.
Jane Hazlegrove and Sunetra Sarker temporarily departed from their respective roles of paramedic Kathleen "Dixie" Dixon and consultant Zoe Hanna in the previous series. Hazlegrove returned in episode one, broadcast on 30 August 2014, and Sarker returned in episode eight, broadcast on 25 October 2014.
Hossington previously teased the return of a "top secret" character, who returned alongside Sarker. The character was revealed as Dylan Keogh (William Beck) during the episode's broadcast, who was last seen in 2012.[25] Episode six, broadcast on 11 October 2014, saw the return of Jamie Collier (Daniel Anthony) and Iain Dean (Michael Stevenson) who both appeared for Jeff's funeral. Stevenson, who previously appeared on the show for six months in 2013, subsequently joined the show's main cast.
Hossington explained that Iain and Dixie would begin a partnership which would be "fun" to create.[26]Mark Letheren made four guest appearances throughout the series as counsellor Ben Harding, a role he has played on-off since 2007.[27]Susan Cookson reprised her role as Maggie Coldwell in episode twenty-six for a non-canon storyline which saw Maggie invite Zoe to join the Air Ambulance service.[28] Gregory Forsyth-Foreman returned to the show as Louis Fairhead in episode thirty-two for a storyline which saw Louis become addicted to drugs.[29]
Hossington confirmed in an interview with Digital Spy that Holby City characters, Guy Self (John Michie) and Elliot Hope (Paul Bradley), would appear in the series. Despite stating Guy would "pop up quite a lot", he only appeared in episode seven. Elliot made a cameo appearance in episode one.[30] Following their returns to Holby City in October 2014 and April 2015 respectively, Michael Spence (Hari Dhillon) and Henrik Hanssen (Guy Henry) featured in one episode of Casualty each.[31][9]
Zach Manley (Aleksy Komorowski) was introduced in episode thirty-one as a love interest for Robyn. He departed in episode thirty-eight at the conclusion of the storyline.[32] Greta Miller (Kazia Pelka), the mother of Max, was introduced in episode forty-one.[33] She departed in episode forty-six, having appeared in the Red Button special, "Mrs Walker-To-Be".[34]Matthew Marsh guest appeared in episode forty-three as Brian Carroll, Dylan's father, alongside Vicky Hall who appeared as Brian's partner Hazel Leyton.[35]
| RTitle=[36] | WrittenBy=Jeff Povey | DirectedBy=Steve Brett | OriginalAirDate=13December2014(2014-12-13) | Aux4= 4.46 | ShortSummary=Noel is given the shock of his life when Honey reveals to him that she is his long-lost daughter. Ash, Charlie, Dixie and Iain attend a call-out to a cathedral when a chandelier collapses during a Christmas carol service. After the congregation are taken back to the ED for treatment, Ash reaches a decision about his future at Holby City, and discreetly leaves. Lofty and Lily treat a patient convinced he is Jesus. Connie and Grace's relationship continues to strain as Connie prioritises patients over her. | LineColor=FCD907 }}
The show was awarded the Best Soap and Continuing Drama accolade at the 2015 Royal Television Society award ceremony, beating competitors Coronation Street and EastEnders. Speaking of the win, the Royal Television Society wrote, "[Casualty is] a show that had regained exceptional form. A strong sense of the community within the show never detracted from the individual journeys the characters went on...an excellent drama."[70] In May 2015, it was announced the show had been longlisted for the Best Family Drama award at the 2015 TV Choice Awards.[71] The show made the shortlist but lost out to Call the Midwife.[72] The show won the Best Drama award at the 2015 Inside Soap Awards, beating competitors Holby City and Waterloo Road.[73] The Casualty production team were shortlisted at the BAFTA 2015 awards under the category of Best Television Soap and Continuing Drama, however the show was unsuccessful, with Coronation Street winning instead.[74] Lee Mead was nominated under the category Newcomer for his portrayal of Ben "Lofty" Chiltern at the National Television Awards 2015,[75] however Mead lost out on the award.[76]
Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy described the surprise of Jeff's death as a "success".[77] Following the broadcast of the first standalone episode on 15 November 2014, Duncan Lindsay of Metro expressed his opinions on the episode, saying that "the storyline itself wasn't bad at all", however the episode was "let down by the choice of characters involved". Lindsay felt that the lead character of the episode, Lily Chao, was "not a likeable enough character" to lead the murder mystery storyline. Lindsay then went on to say that he felt the episode would have been better if it had focused on the "more personable character" in the show.[78]
Show scriptwriter Mark Catley, who wrote the third standalone episode "Holby Sin City", received negative criticism about the episode from fans, expressing their displeasure at the episode.[79] Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy labelled "Holby Sin City" as "one of the show's most divisive episodes ever."[79] The show faced further criticism following the broadcast of episode forty-three, which featured a patient crash his lorry after blacking out while driving. The character was diagnosed with narcolepsy, but refused to tell the DVLA about his diagnosis. The storyline was compared to the real-life 2014 Glasgow bin lorry crash, with four similarities made between the fictional crash and the real-life crash, and described as "deeply unfortunate". A BBC spokesperson said, "We would never knowingly imitate a real life event. Parallels can be drawn with many of our storylines. However, with the amount of stories that we tell of characters in extreme situations, it is hard to avoid dramatising situations that can occasionally be reminiscent of real life events".[80]
Casualty's two-parter finale episodes were described by the Daily Mirror as potentially being "the most dramatic episodes in three decades".[81] After the airing of episode forty-six, Irish Examiner said that fans had been "left reeling" and were "on the edge" following the show's dramatic cliffhanger.[82]Digital Spy stated fans "could not cope" with the episode and had been left with "a lot of feelings following the dramatic cliffhanger".[83]
Related Research Articles
Casualty is a British medical drama television series that premiered on 6 September 1986 on BBC1. The series was created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin. It is set in the fictional Holby City Hospital, in the equally fictitious city of Holby, and features occasional crossovers of characters and plots with spin-off show Holby City. Casualty follows the professional and personal lives of the doctors, nurses, paramedics, hospital management and patients at Holby General. It features an ensemble cast of regular characters, and began with ten main characters in its first series, all but one – Charlie Fairhead have since left the series. Many main characters have been written in and out of the series since. In addition, Casualty features guest stars each week, as well as recurring guests that take part in story arcs that span a portion of a series or multiple series.
The twenty-fourth series of the British medical drama television series Casualty commenced airing in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 12 September 2009, and concluded on 21 August 2010. Events of the series included a crossover with sister show Holby City.
The twenty-fifth series of the British medical drama television series Casualty commenced airing in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 4 September 2010 and concluded on 6 August 2011. The series featured several crossovers with spin-off show Holby City.
The twenty-seventh series of Casualty began airing on BBC One on 18 August 2012 with an episode featuring a disaster at a music festival. Filming series 26 was completed in April 2012 and filming series 27 began a week later. The first episode was in the normal format – a 50-minute episode. This season is 44 episodes, increasing from 42 for the previous one. Viewing figures for the first episode were 5.19 million viewers, continuing to be one of the most watched programmes of a Saturday night.
The twenty-eighth series of Casualty began airing on BBC One on 3 August 2013, one week after the end of the previous series. This series consisted of 48 episodes, the highest episode order since series 24. The series concluded on 23 August 2014.
The thirtieth series of the British medical drama television series Casualty commenced airing on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 29 August 2015, and concluded on 30 July 2016. The series consisted of 43 episodes, including the broadcast of the show's 1000th episode on 25 June 2016. Erika Hossington continued her role as series producer, while Oliver Kent continued his role as the show's executive producer. Seventeen cast members reprised their roles from the previous series with five actors, including three long-serving cast members, departing during this series. Chelsea Halfpenny appeared in the serial between September and November 2015 as F2 Alicia Munroe, reprising the role as a main cast member in July 2016. Alistair Brammer joined the cast for a four-month guest stint as receptionist Jack Diamond in December 2015. Three new regular cast members joined the serial in spring 2016: Lloyd Everitt as paramedic Jez Andrews; Jason Durr as staff nurse David Hide; and Jaye Griffiths as consultant Elle Gardner.
Zoe Hanna is a fictional character in BBC's medical drama Casualty, portrayed by Sunetra Sarker. She first appeared in the series twenty-two episode "Take a Cup of Kindness", broadcast on 29 December 2007. The character was a consultant in emergency medicine at Holby City Hospital's emergency department. Sarker chose to take a temporary break from the show in 2014 and Zoe departed from the show in the series 28 episode "A Life Less Lived", broadcast on 23 August 2014. She returned in the series 29 episode "Return to Sender", broadcast on 25 October 2014. Sarker later decided to leave the series indefinitely, but producers asked that she did not announce her departure in order to surprise viewers. After over 8 years on-screen, Zoe departed the series in the series 30 episode "Hello, I Must Be Going", broadcast on 7 May 2016. It was confirmed in September 2017 that Zoe would return for a single episode. She appeared in the nineteenth episode of series 32, broadcast on 13 January 2018. Sarker reprised the role again in 2023 for two episodes linked to Charlie Fairhead's exit; they feature in series 38 and aired on the 9th and 16th of March 2024.
The seventeenth series of the British medical drama television series Holby City commenced airing in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 14 October 2014 and ran for 52 episodes, ending on 6 October 2015. The series saw the returns of Oliver Valentine, Henrik Hanssen, and Essie Harrison. Former series regular Hari Dhillon returned as Michael Spence for a six-episode guest arc. Former cast member Olga Fedori reprised her role as Frieda Petrenko for a guest appearance.
Honey Wright is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Casualty, played by Chelsee Healey. She first appears in the series twenty-nine episode "The Last Call", originally broadcast on 11 October 2014. Honey is introduced as the new tea lady in the emergency department (ED) of Holby City Hospital. The character and Healey's casting details were announced in May 2014. Producers approached Healey's agent about a role as a nurse, but she struggled with the medical terminology, so the character of Honey was created instead. The actress was contracted for four months as a semi-regular character and began filming in May 2014. Honey is characterised as a vivacious person who is "fun, bubbly, nice" and caring. Despite being based in the ED's coffee shop, Honey travels around the department with a tea trolley. She has a pink car with big eyelashes attached to the headlamps.
Tess Bateman is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Casualty, played by Suzanne Packer. She first appears in the series eighteen episode "End of the Line ", originally broadcast on 13 September 2003. The character is introduced as an emergency nurse practitioner in the emergency department (ED) of Holby City Hospital, but was later promoted to clinical nurse manager. For the role, Packer relocated from New York City to her hometown of Cardiff, and commenced filming in April 2003. Tess is characterised as a "traditionalist" with a good work ethic. She is highly experienced in her field and will protect her staff at all times. Packer drew on her experience as a teacher and her mother's experience as a nurse to develop the character.
Charlie Fairhead is a fictional character from the BBC British medical drama Casualty. One of the longest-serving characters of the show, spanning over 3 decades.
The eighteenth series of the British medical drama television series Holby City commenced airing in the United Kingdom on 13 October 2015, and concluded on 4 October 2016. The series consists of 52 episodes. Oliver Kent continues his position as the show's executive producer, while Simon Harper serves as the series producer. Sixteen cast members reprised their roles from the previous series, while several recurring characters, and numerous guest stars feature in the series. Four actors depart during the series and two cast members reprise their roles after taking breaks in the previous series. Jemma Redgrave appeared in the series between February and September 2016 as general surgeon Bernie Wolfe. Jason Robertson joined the semi-regular cast in February 2016 as Jason Haynes, and two new cast members joined the serial in summer 2016: Marc Elliott as registrar Isaac Mayfield and Lucinda Dryzek as F1 doctor Jasmine Burrows.
Caleb "Cal" Knight is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Casualty, played by actor Richard Winsor. He first appeared in the series twenty-eight episode "Brothers at Arms", broadcast on 18 January 2014. Winsor had previously auditioned for a role in Casualty's spin-off show Holby City. Producers were impressed and recalled him to read for the part of Cal. Winsor's casting was announced alongside George Rainsford who was hired to play Cal's brother Ethan Hardy. The pair had to pass a screen test together as producers were looking for a strong sibling chemistry. Cal's role in the show is a Specialist registrar in emergency medicine. He was originally introduced as a locum. The medic is played as a lothario and womaniser type character. He can manipulate those around him with charm to better his career. Writers gave Cal a backstory detailing the difficult relationship with his father and brother. Despite having the same parents Cal and Ethan had different upbringings, which sets up a sibling rivalry. Their relationship has been important in the development of both characters. Executive producer Oliver Kent has called the character consistent because when faced with trauma, Cal gets drunk, sleeps with women and makes a fool of himself.
The thirty-first series of the British medical drama television series Casualty commenced airing on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 27 August 2016, and concluded on 29 July 2017. The series consisted of 44 episodes, including the show's feature-length thirtieth anniversary special episode, "Too Old for This Shift". Erika Hossington continued her role as series producer, while Oliver Kent continued his role as the show's executive producer until the end of the series. Seventeen cast members reprised their roles from the previous series with original character Lisa "Duffy" Duffin returning to the series as part of the show's thirtieth anniversary. Rik Makarem appeared in the series between October 2016 and January 2017 as first year foundation doctor (F1) Sebastian Grayling. This series also featured the death of regular character Caleb Knight, who has appeared since series 28.
"Too Old for This Shift" is a special feature-length episode of the British medical drama television series Casualty. It was broadcast as the premiere episode of its thirty-first series on 27 August 2016, on BBC One, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the show. The special, which is 99 minutes long, was co-written by Matthew Barry and Andy Bayliss, directed by Steve Hughes, and produced by Lucy Raffety.
"Hello, I Must Be Going" is the thirty-fourth episode of the thirtieth series of the British medical drama television series Casualty, and the 995th episode of the overall series. The episode was written by Jeff Povey and directed by Steve Hughes, and premiered on BBC One on 7 May 2016. The episode features the departure of established character Zoe Hanna, an ED consultant, who left the show after nine years. Sarker's departure was kept secret until transmission in order to surprise viewers. Producers were upset when Sarker announced her decision to leave, but ensured writers created a good story for the character.
The thirty-second series of the British medical drama television series Casualty began airing on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 19 August 2017, and concluded on 4 August 2018. The series consisted of 44 episodes. Erika Hossington continued her role as series producer, however, following her resignation in August 2017, was replaced by Lucy Raffety. Simon Harper began his role as the show's executive producer. Twenty cast members reprised their roles from the previous series. Lloyd Everitt, Crystal Yu, Jamie Davis left their respective roles during the series, while Charlotte Salt reprised her role as Sam Nicholls from episode five onwards. Four new cast members also joined the drama in series 32. The series opened with a two-parter special set in northern France, which was followed by an extended 70-minute special episode. It is the first series in the history of the show to omit episode titles.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
