Casualty (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 weekly television show broadcast on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...

, and the longest-running emergency medical drama
Medical drama
A medical drama is a television program, in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment.In the United States, most medical episodes are one hour long and, more often than not, are set in a hospital. Most current medical Dramatic programming go beyond the...

 television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...

. The producer was Geraint Morris
Geraint Morris
Geraint Morris was a Welsh film and television director and producer.His first contribution to film directing came in 1971 when he directed The Onedin Line...

. The programme is based around the fictional Holby City Hospital and focuses on the staff and patients of the hospital's Accident and Emergency Department
Emergency department
An emergency department , also known as accident & emergency , emergency room , emergency ward , or casualty department is a medical treatment facility specialising in acute care of patients who present without prior appointment, either by their own means or by ambulance...

. The show has very few ties to its sister programme Holby City
Holby City
Holby City, stylised as Holby Ci+y, is a British medical drama television series that airs weekly on BBC One.The series was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama Casualty, and premiered on 12 January 1999...

 which began as a spin off from Casualty in 1999 and is set in the same hospital, but upstairs. The show's plots and characters occasionally crossover between the two programmes, but this is rare, and each show can be followed without having to watch the other. Casualty is shown weekly, with the exception of a break in the summer when the series ends. This break is between 3 and 6 weeks in duration.

Production

Location

Casualty and Holby City are both set in Holby City Hospital, in the fictional county of Wyvern, in the south-west of England. The city exterior is represented by Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...

, and well-known landmarks such as the floating harbour
Bristol Harbour
Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It has existed since the 13th century but was developed into its current form in the early 19th century by installing lock gates on a tidal stretch of the River Avon in the centre of the city and...

 and Clifton Suspension Bridge
Clifton Suspension Bridge
Brunel died in 1859, without seeing the completion of the bridge. Brunel's colleagues in the Institution of Civil Engineers felt that completion of the Bridge would be a fitting memorial, and started to raise new funds...

 are often visible in outdoor scenes. City of Bristol College
City of Bristol College
City of Bristol College is one of the largest further education colleges in the UK. Based in Bristol, the College continues to gain national recognition for its work with adults, young people and employers.- Awards :* LSIS Beacon status...

 was used as the location for most exterior shots of the hospital from 1986 until 2002 when a new exterior set was built in Lawrence Hill Industrial Park in the city at 51.459094°N 2.567030°W. It was confirmed on 26 March 2009 that the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 will move the filming of Casualty to studios in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...

 in 2011.
As of late 2011, Casualty will begin filming in a purpose built studio and backlot set at the BBC Roath Lock Studios in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...

 51.4627°N 3.1565°W.

Broadcast

The programme has usually been transmitted on Saturday nights, although for a period in the late 1980s and early '90s it switched to Fridays. The first two series each consisted of 15 episodes; series 3 ran for 10 episodes (although one of those episodes was postponed following the death of its guest star, Roy Kinnear
Roy Kinnear
Roy Mitchell Kinnear was an English character actor. He is best remembered for playing Veruca Salt's father, Mr. Salt, in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.-Early life:...

); series 4, 5 and 6 were 12, 13, and 15 episodes long respectively. The final episode of series 6, which focused on a plane crash, was postponed until February 1992, after being initially scheduled for transmission on 20 December 1991 - one day before the 3rd anniversary of the Lockerbie disaster
Pan Am Flight 103
Pan Am Flight 103 was Pan American World Airways' third daily scheduled transatlantic flight from London Heathrow Airport to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport...

.

When the show moved back to Saturday nights in September 1992, the series length was extended to 24 episodes per year, and placed in a pre-watershed slot at approximately 8pm. This initially caused some controversy due to the graphic and controversial nature of some of the storylines. In 1997-8, the episode number was increased again, with 26 episodes (including two 75-minute specials) making up series 12. Subsequent series each saw an increase in episodes; series 13 ran for 28 episodes, series 14 ran for 30 episodes, series 15 ran for 36 episodes, series 16 and 17 ran for 40 episodes and series 18 ran for 46 episodes. Since 2004, popularity of the show resulted in a switch from a traditional seasonal format to an almost year-round production and transmission — each series from series 19 (2004/5) to 25 (2010/11) has lasted for 48 episodes. However, this figure was dropped to 41 for series 26, with no summer break, which may be related to production moving from Bristol to Cardiff.

Casualty has no fixed time slot, and usually begins in the 20:00 - 21:30 slot on BBC1, although it is sometimes broadcast after 21:00. The show is very rarely broadcast before 20:00, however, special events such as the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...

 and sporting events sometimes see the schedule moved around. On some of these occasions, Casualty is taken off air for the night to make way for alternative shows. It has been known in the past that if an episode is in two parts, part one will be aired on the Saturday and part two the following day.

1986-1988 (Series 1-3)

The original title sequence featured a speeding Ambulance and Police car with their flashing lights arrive at Casualty. A CGI heart monitor was shown over the titles as they played out. The 49 second sequence shows the patients point of view and their journey through the department into resus. The CGI heartbeat turns into lightning vaults and attaches to different objects as the bed moves around the hospital. The sequences ends with the doctor placing a gas mask over the patients face. The sequence is shown in realtime.

1989-1992 (series 4-6)

The 4th series launched with a new title sequence again lasting 49 seconds. The new sequence opened with an ambulance travelling in daytime.
Then different activities are shown, including the ambulance driver at the wheel, hospital equipment, a patient being treated, blood pressure gauge etc. all separated by flashes of blue light. Although the next part of the sequence features the patient's journey through the department and into resus, this new sequence features new camera shots (all high angle shots). Again this part of the sequence has been filmed in realtime. The sequence ends with the camera zooming into the nurse's blue uniform as the Casualty logo forms.

1992-1993 (series 7)

Series 7 launched with a new sequence this time returning to the original style. The sequence opens with the ambulance coming over the hill with a new heartbeat line moving across the bottom of the screen. As the ambulance arrives the doctors and nurses come out of the department to help move the patient into resus. This sequence was cut together to give a new 1990s feel. This sequence again is filmed in realtime, and like the original titles ends with the doctor placing the gas mask over the patient's face.

1993-1997 (series 8-11)

In 1993 the titles were completely revamped. The sequence was based on the Series 4 style, with the ambulance coming over the hill, A series of clips showing accidents and then the ambulance journey instead of the patient's journey. Whilst the ambulance is driving through the roads of Holby a series of clips are superimposed. The sequence ends with the ambulance arriving at Casualty. The Casualty logo flashes up on the screen when the screen blurs out. The sequence was tinted blue.

1997-1998 (series 12)

Again 1997 saw a new look, now based around fragments of glass flying in & around a sequence utilising footage of medical staff, hospital equipment & patients' relatives. The sequence ends as all the pieces of glass that were shattered in the first few seconds of the sequence are re-formed into a single pane which spells out the new Casual+y logo.

1998-2000 (series 13-14)

Minor edits were made when these titles were shortened in 1998 for Series 13 but they remained essentially the same.

2000-2001 (series 15)

A slightly more arty titles sequence for Casualty in 2001, utilizing a sped-up fast forward technique, featuring a clock ticking through the night, an airbag deploying, the ambulance speeding through evening traffic & patients arriving at reception. The latter half of the sequence focuses on the ambulance's patient being treated in Resus from a bird's-eye perspective, with all this treatment done at high speed. The sequence ends in slow motion as the patient recovers, his relatives arrive & crowd around his bed, before the trolley, people & equipment disappear leaving the distinctive chequered flooring of the department & the Casual+y logo.

2001 (series 16)

A new theme tune with a distinct change to the opening titles. For the first time ever, the focus is on the characters, they are presented posing to the camera against a blurred background of blue, black & purple. The only 'medical' references are the glimpses of an ambulance & a heart rate graphic in the opening seconds of the titles. The same logo introduced in 1997 remains at the end.

2001-2006 (series 17-20)

Again, the same theme tune as last year (albeit with altered effects, however Series 17 Episode 35 didn't include them ) but a return to a more generic medical themed title. The focus is now on the international symbol of medical aid, the cross. It is shown at different sizes moving around the screen, often filled with footage such as paramedics, a patient being given cardiac massage etc. against a stark white background. This sequence was also filled with abstract graphics, elements of the Casual+y logo & some footage of medical emergencies - e.g. a house fire, taken from actual episodes. Rather graphic is the depiction of blood at several points during the titles lending them a slightly more mature feel than previously. The logo is formed by the merging of the various crosses & abstract shapes at the end of the sequence.

2006 (series 21)

Brand new titles using stop-frame footage of the ambulance on its journey, followed by images of hospital staff (mostly characters of the show in fact) & equipment (x-rays, oxygen cylinders, paramedic clothing, nurses walking the corridors etc.) mixed in with footage of a patient being taken to Resus & given treatment. The sequence is all tinted in a light turquoise hue & is interrupted at several points by a flashing amber coloured graphic, reminiscent of the heart rate line from the original titles sequence. The (slightly modified) logo appears on screen in the final frame.

2007-2011 (series 22-26)

The titles are still based on the Series 21 version, but with the Series 16-20 theme tune. The current titles will be revised in Early 2012 to tie in with the shows new home at BBC Roath Lock Studios

Theme tune

The Casualty theme music was composed by Ken Freeman
Ken Freeman (composer)
Ken Freeman is a prominent English composer and session musician, primarily playing piano and synthesisers.He is most prominently known for his work playing most of the synthesisers on Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds, and also as the composer of the theme music for BBC...

, who also composed the theme for sister show, Holby City. The closing music was traditionally quite different from the opening theme, although in recent years there have been few differences. In 2000 the garage duo Oxide & Neutrino
Oxide & Neutrino
Oxide & Neutrino is a DJ and MC Garage duo from London, consisting of Alex Rivers and Mark Osei-Tutu .Their first single "Bound 4 Da Reload " went to number 1 in the United Kingdom in May 2000...

 sampled the theme tune in their single "Bound 4 Da Reload (Casualty)
Bound 4 Da Reload (Casualty)
"Bound 4 Da Reload " was a 2000 single and so far the biggest success for English group Oxide & Neutrino, members of the So Solid Crew, which in May 2000 reached number one in the UK Singles Chart. The track features a sample from the theme tune to the TV show Casualty...

", which got to number one in May. In 2009, L'Amour La Morgue made a remix of British metalcore band Bring Me The Horizon
Bring Me the Horizon
Bring Me the Horizon are a British metalcore band from Sheffield, Yorkshire, who formed in 2004. Bring Me the Horizon constits of Oliver Sykes as the lead vocalist, lead guitarist Lee Malia, rhythm guitarist Jona Weinhofen, bassist Matt Kean and drummer Matt Nicholls...

's song It Was Written In Blood, which featured the Casualty theme tune on it.

1986-2001: The original theme music ran for fifteen years with few alterations, making it the longest-tenured, & most popular, version of the famous theme. In 2000, the opening theme was edited slightly, reducing its length by around ten seconds. Likewise, the closing theme was slightly shortened in the 1990s by editing out part of the introductory chords, but was significantly reduced in length during 2000, with only the final part of the original theme used. This shortened closing music was taken from a modified version of the original theme & had a slightly more hip beat to it.

2001-2006: The new series in September 2001 introduced a new version of the theme tune, far jazzier than the original. For the first time, the same track (minus intro melody) was used to close each episode as well, making the closing credits shorter still than the 40-second arrangement of the original closing theme introduced in 2000.

2006: Another new version of the theme tune which pays homage to the original rendition (ironic because by then, Casualty marked its 20th year on the air), & was developed by the original composer, Ken Freeman. The new track uses orchestral instruments for the first time lending it a haunting & classical quality. There was also the return of a "proper" sounding ambulance siren introducing the theme (performed by strings), the famous "ringing" backing track which cuts in at appropriate times in the song, & the "breathing" sounds (heard in the middle of the original theme) now heard at the final few seconds.

2007-present: The 2001-2006 theme tune is reused after the Series 21 version proved unpopular with viewers.

Closing theme

Casualty is known for ending most episodes with a small build up tune. From Series 1-12 this was heard in nearly every episode. Series 13 and 14 saw moderations made to the tune. Series 15 used the same as the 14th series. Series 16 saw 2 new end tunes made and both were used in most episodes of that series. The tune has been heard on and off since Series 17. Its become more of use in Series 26.

DVD releases

The first series of Casualty was released on DVD (Region 2, UK) by 2 Entertain/Cinema Club on 10 April 2006. The second series was released on 10 July, with series three released on 11 September. The third was released to coincide with the show's 20th Anniversary celebrations. There are no future DVD releases planned at present.
Casualty is getting more DVDs for season 13 and 12

Characters and cast

Casualty follows the professional and personal lives of the medical and ancillary staff of Holby City Hospital's emergency department. It features an ensemble cast of regular characters, and began with ten main characters in its first series
Casualty (series 1)
The first series of the British medical drama television series Casualty aired between 6 September and 27 December 1986 on BBC One.-Development:...

. The original characters were consultant
Consultant (medicine)
In the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, and parts of the Commonwealth, consultant is the title of a senior doctor who has completed all of his or her specialist training and been placed on the specialist register in their chosen specialty...

 Ewart Plimmer (Bernard Gallagher
Bernard Gallagher
Bernard Gallagher is a British actor known for appearances in television soap operas and dramas. He was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire.Gallagher has appeared in many television series including Crown Court, Heartbeat, The thin blue line and Casualty.- External links :...

), Senior house officer
Senior house officer
A senior house officer is a junior doctor undergoing training within a certain speciality in the British National Health Service or in the Republic of Ireland. SHOs are supervised by consultants and registrars, who oversee their training and are their designated clinical supervisors...

 Baz Samuels (Julia Watson), nurses Charlie Fairhead, Megan Roach, Clive King and Lisa "Duffy" Duffin (Derek Thompson, Brenda Fricker
Brenda Fricker
Brenda Fricker is an Irish actress of theatre, film and television. She had appeared in more than 30 films and television roles...

, George Harris
George Harris (actor)
George William Harris is a British actor of film, stage, television, radio and musical theatre. His notable roles include Kingsley Shacklebolt in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Captain Simon Katanga in Raiders of the Lost Ark and Clive King in popular medical drama Casualty, where he...

 and Cathy Shipton
Cathy Shipton
Catherine Ellen Shipton , is an English actress.-Biography:Born to Irish parents, she was the seventh and second girl of nine children, where only four of her brothers survived. Shipton was raised as a Roman Catholic, and was educated in a convent in South London...

), paramedic
Paramedic
A paramedic is a healthcare professional that works in emergency medical situations. Paramedics provide advanced levels of care for medical emergencies and trauma. The majority of paramedics are based in the field in ambulances, emergency response vehicles, or in specialist mobile units such as...

s Sandra Mute and Andrew Ponting (Lisa Bowerman
Lisa Bowerman
Lisa Bowerman is a British actress.Bowerman trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and was a regular in the first two series of BBC medical drama Casualty playing Sandra Mute, the show's first female paramedic. Her other television work includes: Dodgem, The Count of Solar, Grange Hill, The...

 and Robert Pugh
Robert Pugh
Robert Pugh is a Welsh film and television actor.Pugh was born in Cilfynydd and graduated from Rose Bruford College in 1976. In 2007, he co-starred alongside Genevieve O'Reilly and Geraldine James in ITV1 drama The Time of Your Life, where he played a parent whose 36-year-old daughter was...

), receptionist Susie Mercier (Debbie Roza) and porter Kuba Trzcinski (Christopher Rozycki). New main characters have been both written in and out of the series since, with only Charlie remaining in the show.

As of the twenty-sixth series
Casualty (series 26)
The twenty-sixth series of the British medical drama television series Casualty commenced airing in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 13 August 2011. Series 26 will be the first to be broadcast in high definition from episode 15/16. It sees another reduction in episodes, the second lowest since 2003...

, the main cast encompasses Charlie, consultants Nick Jordan, Zoe Hanna and Dylan Keogh (Michael French, Sunetra Sarker
Sunetra Sarker
Sunetra Sarker is an English actress, most notable for her role as Dr Zoe Hanna on Casualty.Sarker has a degree in Information Systems for Business with French from Brunel University....

 and William Beck), Trust Grade Doctor Ruth Winters (Georgia Taylor
Georgia Taylor
Georgia Taylor is an English actress, known for her role as Toyah Battersby in Coronation Street and currently for playing Ruth Winters on Casualty. She was born in Wigan, Greater Manchester....

), Core Training Year 2 doctor
Modernising Medical Careers
Modernising Medical Careers is a programme for postgraduate medical training introduced in the UK from 2005 onwards. The programme replaced the traditional grades of medical career before the level of Consultant. The different stages of the programme contribute towards a "Certificate of...

 Lenny Lyons (Steven Miller), clinical nurse manager Tess Bateman (Suzanne Packer
Suzanne Packer
Birth Name: Suzanne JacksonBirth Date: June 20th 1958Birth Place: Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, Wales.Suzanne Packer is the stage name of a Welsh actress who is best known for playing the role of Tess Bateman in the long running television series, Casualty...

), staff nurses Jay Faldren, Linda Andrews, Lloyd Asike and Scarlett Conway (Ben Turner
Ben Turner (actor)
Ben Turner is a British Iranian actor, most notable for his role as nurse Jay Faldren on BBC's Casualty.He was educated at Dulwich College, well known for its pedigree of actors including the founder Edward Alleyn...

, Christine Tremarco
Christine Tremarco
Christine Tremarco is a British television actress.Educated at St Cecilia's Infant School and then Holly Lodge Girls' College, she was spotted in a school play and invited to a new dance and drama school...

, Michael Obiora
Michael Obiora
Michael Obiora is an English actor and writer.-Career:Michael Obiora was born on 8 October 1986 in North-West London to Nigerian-Igbo parents...

 and Madeleine Mantock), paramedics Kathleen "Dixie" Dixon and Jeff Collier (Jane Hazlegrove
Jane Hazlegrove
Jane Hazlegrove is an English actress.Jane is well known for portraying Lisa Shepherd in Families, Yvonne Bradley in London's Burning, Sue Clayton in Coronation Street in 1985 and has appeared in Jonathan Creek, The Bill, Doctors and Holby City. She is currently playing Kathleen "Dixie" Dixon in...

 and Matt Bardock
Matt Bardock
Matthew Arthur "Matt" Bardock in Coulsdon, Surrey is an English actor.-Early life:Bardock attended Woodcote High School in Coulsdon, Surrey, where he was a keen drummer, and was a member of the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain before training at the Guildhall School of drama-Career:Bardock...

), porter Mackenzie "Big Mac" Chalker (Charles Dale
Charles Dale
Charles Dale is a Welsh actor who is well known for playing Dennis Stringer in Coronation Street, Gary "Chef" Alcock in The Lakes and Clive Eustace in The Eustace Bros.....

) and receptionist Noel Garcia (Tony Marshall).

A survey published by Radio Times
Radio Times
Radio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...

 magazine in March 2004 revealed that Casualty has featured more future stars than any other UK soap or drama series. Actors who appeared in the show prior to becoming famous include Kate Winslet
Kate Winslet
Kate Elizabeth Winslet is an English actress and occasional singer. She has received multiple awards and nominations. She was the youngest person to accrue six Academy Award nominations, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Reader...

, Orlando Bloom
Orlando Bloom
Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Bloom is an English actor. He had his break-through roles in 2001 as the elf-prince Legolas in The Lord of the Rings and starring in 2003 as blacksmith Will Turner in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, and subsequently established himself as a lead in Hollywood...

, Minnie Driver
Minnie Driver
Minnie Driver is an English actress and singer-songwriter. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1997 film Good Will Hunting, as well as for an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for her work in the television series The Riches.- Early life...

, Christopher Eccleston
Christopher Eccleston
Christopher Eccleston is an English stage, film and television actor. His films include Let Him Have It, Shallow Grave, Elizabeth, 28 Days Later, Gone in 60 Seconds, The Others, and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra...

, Parminder Nagra
Parminder Nagra
Parminder Kaur Nagra is an English actress of Indian descent. She came to international prominence in 2002 after starring in Bend It Like Beckham. She starred as Dr. Neela Rasgotra in the Emmy Award-winning American medical drama series ER for six years until the series ended on 2 April 2009...

, Sadie Frost
Sadie Frost
Sadie Frost is an English actress, who currently runs fashion label Frost French and has designed the kitchens for a new development in the East End of London.-Biography:Frost was born Sadie Liza Vaughan in London...

, Ray Winstone
Ray Winstone
Raymond Andrew "Ray" Winstone is an English film and television actor. He is mostly known for his "tough guy" roles, beginning with that of Carlin in the 1979 film Scum and as Will Scarlet in the cult television adventure series Robin of Sherwood. He has also become well known as a voice over...

, David Walliams
David Walliams
David Edward Walliams is an English comedian, writer and actor, known for his partnership with Matt Lucas on the TV sketch show Little Britain and its predecessor Rock Profile...

, Jonny Lee Miller
Jonny Lee Miller
Jonathan "Jonny" Lee Miller is an English actor. During the initial days he was best known for his roles in the 1996 films Trainspotting and Hackers...

, Helen Baxendale
Helen Baxendale
Helen Victoria Baxendale is an English actress of stage and television, possibly best-known for her roles in Cold Feet, Friends and Cardiac Arrest.-Early life:...

, Robson Green and Brenda Fricker. Discussing her 1993 appearance in Casualty, Winslet told the Radio Times: "In England, it almost seems to be part of a jobbing actor's training [to appear in Casualty]. As far as I was concerned it was a great episode, a great part. Appearing in Casualty taught me a big lesson in how to be natural in front of the camera." In addition, the series has featured a variety of more established stars, including Norman Wisdom
Norman Wisdom
Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, OBE was an English actor, comedian and singer-songwriter best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring his hapless onscreen character Norman Pitkin...

, Amanda Redman
Amanda Redman
-External links:* ArtistsTheatreSchool.com* The-Little.co.uk...

, Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson is an English television actress and singer. She gained her highest profile while playing Angie Watts in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...

, Jenny Seagrove
Jenny Seagrove
Jennifer Ann Seagrove is an English actress. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and rose to fame playing the lead in a TV dramatisation of Barbara Taylor Bradford's A Woman of Substance and the 1983 film Local Hero...

, Rula Lenska
Rula Lenska
Rula Lenska is an English actress. Best known for her work in the United Kingdom, she is remembered in the United States for a television advert that presented her as a celebrity, even though she was not widely known in the US at the time the advert was produced.She has appeared extensively on...

, Prunella Scales
Prunella Scales
Prunella Scales CBE is an English actress, known for her role as Basil Fawlty's long-suffering wife in the British comedy Fawlty Towers and her award-nominated role as Queen Elizabeth II in the British film A Question of Attribution.-Career:Throughout her long career, Scales has usually been cast...

, Celia Imrie
Celia Imrie
Celia Diana Savile Imrie is an English actress. In a career starting in the early 1970s, Imrie has played Marianne Bellshade in Bergerac, Philippa Moorcroft in Dinnerladies, Miss Babs in Acorn Antiques, Diana Neal in After You've Gone and Gloria Millington in Kingdom...

, Toyah Willcox
Toyah Willcox
Toyah Ann Willcox is an English actress and singer. In a career spanning more than thirty years Toyah has had 13 top 40 singles, released 22 studio albums, written two books, appeared in over forty stage plays and ten feature films, as well as voicing and presenting numerous television shows...

, Maureen Lipman
Maureen Lipman
Maureen Diane Lipman CBE is a British film, theatre and television actress, columnist and comedienne.-Early life:Lipman was born in Hull in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, the daughter of Maurice Julius Lipman and Zelma Pearlman. Her father was a tailor; he used to have a shop between the...

, Frances Barber
Frances Barber
Frances Barber is an Olivier Award-nominated English actress with a long and distinguished stage career. She has also appeared in numerous television productions...

, Andrew Sachs
Andrew Sachs
Andrew Sachs is a German-born British actor. He made his name on British television and is best known for his portrayals of Manuel in Fawlty Towers, a role for which he was BAFTA-nominated, and Ramsay Clegg in Coronation Street.-Early life:Sachs was born in Berlin, Germany, the son of Katharina , a...

, Russ Abbott and Stephanie Beacham
Stephanie Beacham
Stephanie Beacham is a British television, film and theatre actress. Making her film debut in 1971's The Nightcomers opposite Marlon Brando and becoming more well-known on British television in the BBC series Tenko and the ITV series Connie , her worldwide breakthrough came as a result of playing...

  in cameo roles.

Holby City

Holby City began on 12 January 1999 as a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...

 from Casualty and is named after the fictional Holby City Hospital in which both series are set. The show follows the lives and careers of staff and patients on the surgical wards of the hospital, and deals with a range of clinical and ethical issues. Similarly to Casualty, the regular characters are all surgeons, nurses and other medical and ancillary staff, with patients played by guest actors, including famous names such as Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes, CBE is an English radio, television and film writer, actor and director whose performing career has spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and/or performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan, Peter...

, Phill Jupitus
Phill Jupitus
Phillip Christopher Jupitus is an English stand-up and improvised comedian, actor, performance poet, musician and podcaster....

, Michael Jayston
Michael Jayston
Michael Jayston is a Nottingham-born English actor.- Early life :He attended the Becket Grammar School in West Bridgford, then worked briefly as a trainee accountant at the offices of the National Coal Board before obtaining a scholarship to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama to train as an...

, Michele Dotrice
Michele Dotrice
Michele Dotrice is an English actress best known for her portrayal of Betty, the long-suffering wife of Frank Spencer, played by Michael Crawford, in the BBC sitcom Some Mothers Do ’Ave ’Em, which ran from 1973 to 1978....

, Ronni Ancona
Ronni Ancona
Ronni Ancona is a Scottish actress, impressionist and author. Ancona won the Best TV Comedy Actress award at the 2003 British Comedy Awards for her work in Big Impression.- Career :...

, Emma Samms
Emma Samms
Emma Samms is a British television actress best known for her role as Holly Sutton on the American daytime soap opera General Hospital and for replacing Pamela Sue Martin as Fallon Carrington Colby on the primetime soap opera Dynasty.-Early life:Samms was born in Willesden, London, England, the...

, Lee Ryan
Lee Ryan
Lee Ryan is an English singer-songwriter, actor and member of the British boy band Blue.-Early life:...

, Nikki Sanderson
Nikki Sanderson
Nikki Ann Sanderson is an English actress and glamour model who is best known for playing Candice Stowe in the television soap opera Coronation Street and Dawn Bellamy in ITV's Heartbeat...

 and Johnny Briggs
Johnny Briggs (actor)
Johnny Briggs, MBE is an English actor. He is best known for his role as Mike Baldwin in the soap opera Coronation Street, in which he appeared from 1976 to 2006...

. The show was created by Mal Young
Mal Young
Mal Young is a British television producer and executive producer.-Background:His initial career was in the Graphic Design industry, and it was not until the age of 27 that he began working in television, on the acclaimed Channel 4 soap opera Brookside.Working on the show for nearly a decade, he...

 and Tony McHale
Tony McHale
Tony McHale is a British actor, writer and director who has the dubious honour of being best known as a "stooge" to Jeremy Beadle on Game For A Laugh and later, Beadle's About. He trained at Rose Bruford College. He also enjoyed a long stint as a writer/director on the top rated BBC1 soap opera...

, who became its executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...

 between 2007 and 2010. He was succeeded by Casualty executive producer Belinda Campbell.

Casualty@Holby City

Reflecting Holby City origins as a spin-off from Casualty and the closely related premises of the two programmes, the BBC has screened occasional crossover mini-dramas entitled Casualty@Holby City, featuring a number of characters from each of the two casts. Mervyn Watson, executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...

 of Casualty, has commented on the origins of the idea to fully cross the two shows over for the first time: "I think the idea came from somebody in the comedy department, who casually said to the Controller of Drama 'Wouldn't it be a good idea if....' The Controller did think it was a good idea, spoke to myself and Holby's executive producer, got it commissioned by the Head of BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...

 and the rest is history."

Filming of Casualty@Holby City episodes is usually divided between Casualty's Bristol set, and Holby City Elstree studios, although a large proportion of the Christmas 2005 crossover was also filmed on location in a road tunnel in Caernarfon
Caernarfon
Caernarfon is a Royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,611. It lies along the A487 road, on the east banks of the Menai Straits, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is to the northeast, while Snowdonia fringes Caernarfon to the east and southeast...

, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

. The theme tune used for crossover episodes consists of a shortened version of both the Casualty and Holby City theme tunes, played over one another in sync, critizised by the Daily Mirror for being "basically both theme tunes played at once."
Interviewed prior to broadcast of the Christmas 2005 crossover, Watson commented on the future of Casualty@Holby City: "We can't guarantee any crossovers for next year, but the audience likes them. And as long as the Controller of BBC One wants them, then we'll be happy to oblige." In November 2007, Holby City producer Diana Kyle added: "We like to do crossovers whenever we can, but it's tricky because both Holby City and Casualty film for 52 weeks a year, so the actors on each show have to work flat-out on their own programmes. We are trying to create more opportunities where the two dramas can merge, though." Another crossover was broadcast in 2010, with Casualty producer Oliver Kent commenting that the production teams enjoy airing crossovers, and that the difficulty in producing them is "purely logistics".

HolbyBlue

In April 2006, the BBC announced that a spin-off drama from the show, to be named HolbyBlue
HolbyBlue
HolbyBlue was a British police drama series that aired on BBC One from 2007 to 2008. Produced by the BBC, Red Planet Pictures and Kudos for BBC One, it is a spin-off of the successful BBC One medical drama Holby City, itself a spin-off of the long-running series Casualty.The first series was...

, was in early stages of production. The series focuses on the police service of Holby South, and aired for the duration of its first series on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...

 on Tuesday nights, with Holby City switching back to its former Thursday night slot at 8:00pm. Long running Casualty character Charlie Fairhead appeared in HolbyBlues first episode, and a full two part crossover episode with Holby City aired at the beginning of the show's second series. On 6 August 2008, the BBC announced that HolbyBlue has been axed after two series.

Casualty 1900s

In December 2006, the BBC broadcast a historical medical drama titled Casualty 1906, reflecting life in the 'Receiving Room' (A+E was a concept not yet developed) of the Royal London Hospital
Royal London Hospital
The Royal London Hospital was founded in September 1740 and was originally named The London Infirmary. The name changed to The London Hospital in 1748 and then to The Royal London Hospital on its 250th anniversary in 1990. The first patients were treated at a house in Featherstone Street,...

 100 years previously, based on historical hospital records and news reports of the time. A three-episode miniseries, titled Casualty 1907, was developed for broadcast in 2008. Although not a direct spin-off, nor set in the same fictional location, the Times
Times
The Times is a UK daily newspaper, the original English language newspaper titled "Times". Times may also refer to:In newspapers:*The Times , went defunct in 2005*The Times *The Times of Northwest Indiana...

 has suggested "that this is BBC high-concept brand-extension at its very best", with the BBC using the popularity of and viewer familiarity with Casualty to launch a new historical drama — a conclusion The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...

 also assert. A third series, Casualty 1908, featuring Cherie Lunghi
Cherie Lunghi
Cherie M. Lunghi is an English film, television and theatre actress. She is probably best known for her role as Guinevere in the 1981 film Excalibur, as football manageress Gabriella Benson in the 1990s television series The Manageress and for starring in a series of adverts for Kenco coffee. She...

, was also commissioned. On 25 March 2009, it was announced that the BBC would be airing Casualty 1909, a six-part series which aired in June and July 2009.

Awards and nominations

In 2007, Casualty won its first major award, the BAFTA for the best continuing drama. Long-serving Ian Bleasdale
Ian Bleasdale
Ian Bleasdale is a British actor and television presenter. He was born in Upholland, Lancashire and divides his time between Haworth in West Yorkshire and Bristol...

, who played the character Josh, accepted the award at the ceremony, which took place at the London Palladium
London Palladium
The London Palladium is a 2,286 seat West End theatre located off Oxford Street in the City of Westminster. From the roster of stars who have played there and many televised performances, it is arguably the most famous theatre in London and the United Kingdom, especially for musical variety...

. He said "To the doctors, nurses and ambulance crews, thank you for doing the job you do. I hope we go some way to showing exactly what it is," and dedicated the award to the show's original producer, Geraint Morris, who died in 1997. The cast of the show released the single "Everlasting Love
Everlasting Love
"Everlasting Love" is a song written by Buzz Cason and Mac Gayden that has been a hit for various artists, including Robert Knight, Carl Carlton, Love Affair, and Gloria Estefan.- Overview :...

", which peaked at No. 5 in the UK in 1998. On 5 January 2010, it was announced that Casualty had been nominated for the 'Best Drama' award at the National TV Awards, facing competition from Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...

, Shameless
Shameless
Shameless is a British television drama series set in Manchester on the fictional Chatsworth council estate. Produced by Company Pictures for Channel 4, the first seven-episode series aired weekly on Tuesday nights at 10pm from 13 January 2004...

 and The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...

. Since its inception, Casualty has won and been nominated for the following awards:
Year Award Category Nominee Result
2010 British Academy Television Awards
British Academy Television Awards
The British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...

Best Continuing Drama
2007 British Academy Television Awards
British Academy Television Awards
The British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...

Best Continuing Drama
2006 British Academy Television Awards Best Continuing Drama
2005 National Television Awards
National Television Awards
The National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Because of the way the awards are decided, winners are...

Most Popular Newcomer Elyes Gabel
Elyes Gabel
Elyes Gabel is a British Asian actor who played Dr Gupreet "Guppy" Sandhu in the BBC medical drama, Casualty. He starred as PE teacher Rob Cleaver in BBC drama, Waterloo Road and appeared in the ITV Drama Identity...

2004 British Academy Television Awards Best Continuing Drama
2002 National Television Awards Most Popular Drama
1999 TV Quick Awards
TV Quick
TV Choice, is a British weekly TV listings magazine published by H. Bauer Publishing, the UK subsidiary of family-run German company Bauer Media Group...

Best Loved Drama
1998 National Television Awards Most Popular Newcomer Claire Goose
Claire Goose
Claire Goose is a British actress. She is best known for her role as nurse Tina Seabrook in the BBC television drama Casualty and later as DS Mel Silver in Waking the Dead.-Life and career:...

Royal Television Society Awards Best Sound — Drama Colin Solloway, Nigel Abbott
1997 National Television Awards Most Popular Newcomer Jonathan Kerrigan
Jonathan Kerrigan
Jonathan Kerrigan is an English actor well known for his portrayal of gay nurse Sam Colloby in the BBC medical dramas Casualty and Holby City, and as police officers in the series Merseybeat and Heartbeat....

1996 Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award TV — Original Drama Series David Joss Buckley
1993 British Academy Television Awards Best Drama Series
British Academy Television Awards Best Make Up Jan Nethercot
1992 British Academy Television Awards Best Film or Video Editor (Fiction) Alan Dixon
British Academy Television Awards Best Video Lighting Cedric Ric
British Academy Television Awards Best Makeup Sue Kneebone
Royal Television Society Awards Best Drama Series
1991 British Academy Television Awards Best VTR Editor Nigel Cattle
British Academy Television Awards Best Video Lighting Chris Watts
British Academy Television Awards Best VTR Editor Malcolm Banthorpe
1988 British Academy Television Awards Best Sound Supervisor Rod Lewis

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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