List of characters in Holby City

"Holby City", styled as HOLBY CI+Y, is a BAFTA award winning medical drama television serial, transmitted by BBC One in the United Kingdom. Created by Tony McHale and Mal Young, the show is a spin-off from fellow medical drama "Casualty", and is set in the same fictional Holby City Hospital. "Holby City" features an ensemble cast of characters involved in the medical profession, and occasionally crosses over characters and plots with both "Casualty" (in episodes styled "Casualty@Holby City") and 2007 police procedural spin-off "HolbyBlue".

The show follows the lives of surgeons, nurses, other medical and ancillary staff and patients at Holby City Hospital. For the most part, main characters take the roles of doctors and nurses. The only current cast member who does not play a medic is Stella Gonet as the hospital's CEO Jayne Grayson. Occasional anaesthetist roles in theatre scenes are filled by recurring supporting cast members Andrew Lewis and Alex MacQueen, as Paul Rose and Keith Greene. Many actors in the series have made prior, minor appearances as both patients and staff members, in "Holby City" itself, and in the programme's sister show "Casualty" - in some instances crediting these former appearances for their later casting as main characters in "Holby City".

As of 2008, "Holby City" is in its tenth series. The show became an all year round serial on 9 October 2001, broadcasting 52 weeks a year. Cast turn-over since the programme's inception in 1999 means none of the show's original characters remain - in fact, the longest serving characters to date are Hugh Quarshie and Tina Hobley as Ric Griffin and Chrissie Williams respectively, who have appeared since the show's third series. Characters are occasionally written out of the series temporarily to allow cast members to pursue other roles, although they may not do so without explicit permission from the BBC. For this reason, Hobley's character was written out of the series for a month in 2006, after Hobley appeared in a televised poker tournament without prior consent from the show's producers. Since 2004, select characters from the show have appeared in special episodes shot in foreign locations on an annual basis. The 2004 episode relocated several characters to Paris; 2005 saw an episode filmed in Ghana as part of the BBC's 'Africa Lives' series; 2006 saw a trip to Lucerne in Switzerland for Gina Hope to commit suicide; 2007 introduced the character of Faye Morton in an episode shot in Dubai; while 2008 saw Joseph Byrne and Linden Cullen accompany the character to Cape Town.

Casting

Of the current cast, many of the actors who play main characters have made previous appearances in the series as patients and relatives. These include Amanda Mealing (Connie Beauchamp),] viewers have seen Connie transform from a married man-eater - engaging in extra-marital trysts with Ric Griffin, and Registrars Mubbs Hussein and Will Curtis - into a loving mother to her daughter, Grace, fathered by Surgical Registrar Sam Strachan. Connie was briefly written out of the series in 2007 to allow Mealing time out to work on separate projects,] first appeared on 20 November 2007, in episode "Unfinished Symphony" - series 10, episode 6 of the programme.cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/holbycity/storyupdates/index.shtml?20071120|title=Episode Update Tues 20th Nov|publisher=BBC.co.uk|accessdate=2007-11-15] The character was introduced as a General Surgical replacement for recently departed character Dan Clifford - actor Peter Wingfield having left the show to spend more time with his family in Los Angeles.cite news|url=http://entertainment.uk.msn.com/news/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5941090|title=Peter quits Holby City|publisher=MSN.com|date=22 August 2007|accessdate=2007-08-26] Although Dhillon had previously appeared in the show as recurring minor character Dr Sunil Gupta between 2001 and 2003, upon announcing his casting as Spence he said of that role: "I was in "Holby City" just after I left drama school, years ago... I couldn't even tell you when."

Dhillon describes his character as: "kind of the counterpoint to Ric Griffin. So he's just a little bit lippy; if he's thinking it, it's out of his mouth, and a total straight shooter, very direct." The character is married to Annalese Spence,cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/holbycity/characters-cast/characters/michaelspence.shtml|title=BBC - Holby City - Characters - Michael Spence|publisher=bbc.co.uk|accessdate=2008-10-06] who will be joining "Holby City" as a Consultant Anaesthetist in November 2008. His storylines have seen him cheat on his wife with nurse Donna Jackson,cite episode |title=No Cars Go|episodelink=List_of_Holby_City_episodes_%28series_10%29#Series_Ten_.282007.E2.80.932008.29|series=Holby City |serieslink=Holby City |network=BBC | season= 10| number= 22 |airdate= 2008-03-11] with Dhillon explaining: "(H)e's kind of a serial womaniser. [...] The trouble is, Michael had an affair at another hospital. He left because he wanted a clean slate. Essentially he wants to flirt - it's in his nature.Citation|last=Davies|first=Hanna|publication-date=20 November 2007|title=Hands off, he's mine!|periodical=What's On TV|publication-place=England|publisher=IPC Media|pages=19] With the introduction of the character, a new private ward was annexed to the hospital, known as HolbyCare.

Linden Cullen

Linden Cullen (portrayed by actor Duncan Pow)cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/holbycity/characters-cast/cast/duncanpow.shtml|title=BBC - Holby City - Cast - Duncan Pow|publisher=bbc.co.uk|accessdate=2008-05-09] was introduced to "Holby City" on 15 January 2008, in episode "Stolen" - series 10, episode 14 of the programme - as the new talented young head of the hospital's Acute Assessment Unit.cite episode |title=Stolen|episodelink=List_of_Holby_City_episodes_%28series_10%29#Series_Ten_.282007.E2.80.932 008.29|series=Holby City |serieslink=Holby City |network=BBC | season= 10| number= 14 |airdate= 2008-01-15] Linden quickly developed a reputation as a maverick, overseeing the transformation of the AAU into a surgical admissions unit, and performing surgical procedures in the unit's treatment bay, despite it not yet ready for use as a theatre.cite episode |title=The Extra Mile |episodelink=List_of_Holby_City_episodes_%28series_10%29#Series_Ten_.282007.E2.80.932008.29|series=Holby City|serieslink=Holby City |network=BBC|season=10|number=18|airdate= 2008-02-12]

Linden is motivated by his strong Catholicism, admitting in confessional to feeling he has betrayed his dead wife Olivia by developing romantic feelings for Ward Sister Faye Morton, after he and Registrar Joseph Byrne tracked her down in a special episode set on location in Cape Town.cite episode|title=New Lands, New Beginnings|episodelink=List_of_Holby_City_episodes_%28series_10%29#Series_Ten_.282007.E2.80.932008.29|series=Holby City |serieslink=Holby City |network=BBC | season= 10| number= 38 |airdate= 2008-06-23] He reveals that Olivia was killed in a car crash, for which he blames himself, and that he has a daughter, Holly, who reminds him of Olivia to the extent that he cannot bear to see her, so is being raised by Olivia's parents instead of him. A long-running series 10 plot strand saw Linden become deeply involved with the plight of a pair of Korean asylum seekers, one of whom was pregnant with conjoined twins. As the couple were Christian, he felt compelled by his faith to help them, and ensured that the hospital hosted the twins' separation operation, despite political red-tape.

Daisha Anderson

Daisha Anderson (portrayed by actress Rebecca Grant)cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/holbycity/characters-cast/cast/rebeccagrant.shtml|title=BBC - Holby City - Cast - Rebecca Grant|publisher=bbc.co.uk|accessdate=2008-05-09] first appeared on-screen on 18 March 2008 in episode "Twelve Hour Nightmare" - episode 24 of the show's tenth series.cite episode|title=Twelve Hour Nightmare|episodelink=List_of_Holby_City_episodes (series 10)#Series_Ten_(2007-2008)|series="Holby City"|serieslink=Holby City| network=BBC|airdate=2008-03-18|season=10|number=24] Daisha is presented first as a staff nurse, then Ward Sister, whose role in the show is described by the BBC as "a forthright and assertive Filipina with a highly tuned sense of right and wrong. She doesn't understand hierarchy or tact but is straightforward and honest and has a natural antenna when it comes to flirting."cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/holbycity/characters-cast/characters/daishaanderson.shtml|title=BBC - Holby City - Characters - Daisha Anderson|publisher=bbc.co.uk|accessdate=2008-05-09] Grant has compared herself to her character, asserting herself to be "half similar to Daisha as my mum's a Filipina." Grant explained of her introductory storyline: "Some characters get a huge introduction, but mine has a 'flow' to it."cite news|url=http://www.tvandsatelliteweek.com/features/Exclusive_Tina_Hobley_interview_article_176360.html|title=SHERWOOD ACTRESS LANDS ROLE IN TV'S HOLBY|publisher=thisisnottingham.co.uk|date=31 March 2008|accessdate=2008-04-29]

Daisha's first appearance in "Holby City" explained that, although the character had been working at Holby City Hospital for some time in order to financially support her family in the Philippines, she had previously only worked on the Orthopedic ward - not one of the four wards the show focuses on. Daisha's introduction to the show came shortly after the departure of ward sister Chrissie Williams (Tina Hobley), who was temporarily written out to accommodate the birth of Hobley's second child.cite web|url=http://www.tvandsatelliteweek.com/features/Exclusive_Tina_Hobley_interview_article_176360.html.|title=Exclusive Tina Hobley interview!|publisher=TV & Satellite Week|accessdate=2008-04-30] Daisha filled the vacant position on Chrissie's Darwin ward, replaced the character in the show's title credits, and formed a close friendship with Chrissie's father, Nursing Consultant Mark Williams (Robert Powell). Daisha flirted with Mark in order to win a transfer on Darwin ward, and moved in with him after breaking up with her boyfriend and being assaulted by her landlord, coming to rely on him yet further upon discovering herself to be pregnant. [cite web|last= Green|first= Kris|title= 'Eighteen and a Half'|publisher= Digital Spy|url= http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/a115625/eighteen-and-a-half.html|accessdate= 2008-07-30] Mark also aided Daisha in becoming ambassador of the Byrne Foundation for cardiothoracic care,cite episode|title=Battle of Who Could Care Less|episodelink=List_of_Holby_City_episodes (series 10)#Series_Ten_(2007-2008)|series="Holby City"|serieslink=Holby City| network=BBC|airdate=2008-04-30|season=10|number=30] and promoted her to Sister of Keller ward, leading some to question the true nature of their relationship.cite web|author=Kris Green|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/a97336/tony-mchalediana-kyle-holby-city.html|title=EXCLUSIVE:Tony McHale/Diana Kyle ('Holby City')|date=10 June 2008|publisher=Digital Spy|accessdate=2008-06-11]

Annalese Spence

Annalese Spence (portrayed by Anna-Louise Plowman) will arrive in "Holby City" in November 2008, as a Consultant Anaesthetist, and the wife of established character Michael Spence.

Rachel Baptiste

Rachel Baptiste (portrayed by Ayesha Antoine) will arrive in "Holby City" in November 2008, as a General Surgical Registrar on the show's Keller ward.

Recurring characters

Paul Rose

Paul Rose (portrayed by actor Andrew Lewis)cite web|url=http://www.holby.tv/db/index.php?id=77,1806,0,0,1,0|coauthors=Cheryl Senior & Peter Lines|title=Andrew Lewis|format=PHP|work=holby.tv Database|accessdate=2008-05-07] is the longest serving recurring character in "Holby City" to date. He first appeared in episode 3 of the show's third series, and works in the hospital as a Consultant Anaesthetist. For his early appearances, Paul used a wheelchair, however later returned able-bodied. The character's recovery mirrored the paralysis of actor Andrew Lewis, who was able to regain the use of his legs after four years of physiotherapy, following a motorbike accident.cite web|url=http://www.holby.tv/cgi-bin/News/fullnews.cgi?newsid1154905155,39282,|title=Andrew Lewis Interview|publisher=Holby Gazette|date=6 August 2006|accessdate=2008-04-09] Although Paul's disability and subsequent recovery were never directly addressed on screen, Lewis has revealed that the writers originally intended to cover it in depth, and idea which was later discarded so as not to "trivialise the subject for those viewers who spend their whole lives in wheelchairs".cite web|url=http://uktv.co.uk/gold/stepbystep/aid/592551|title=Andrew Lewis interview|publisher=UKTV Gold|accessdate=2008-04-09]

Keith Greene

Keith Greene (portrayed by actor Alex MacQueen)cite web|url=http://www.holby.tv/db/index.php?id=41,1891,0,0,1,0|coauthors=Cheryl Senior & Peter Lines|title=Alex MacQueen|format=PHP|work=holby.tv Database|accessdate=2008-05-07] is a Consultant Anaesthetist, constantly maligned within the show for his poor sense of humour and irritable temper. He has featured in "Holby City" since its seventh series, becoming the show's Head of Anaesthetics following the departure of main character Zubin Khan. In episode "The Key Is Fear", Keith was verbally abused by a drunken Stuart McElroy, who surmised him to be an "obsequious, supercilious, insipid four-eyed toss-pot."cite episode|title= The Key Is Fear|episodelink=List of Holby City episodes (series 10)#Series Ten (2007–2008)|series="Holby City"|serieslink= Holby City|network= BBC|station=BBC One|airdate=2008-01-29|season= 10|number= 16]

Former characters

Reception

The characters of "Holby City" have been criticised by the media for the sensationalism of their storylines. The nursing characters in particular came under heavy criticism in the July 2007 edition of the "Nursing and Midwifery Council" magazine, which discussed nurses in popular culture, and the negative impression of the nursing profession conveyed by fictional nurses. With a promotional image of Patsy Kensit as Faye Morton adorning the front cover, the magazine asserted:

This criticism was echoed by The "Daily Mirror" writer Jim Shelley, who, commenting on an interview Kensit had given to publicise the show and her role with Jonathan Ross, suggested that 'reality' was not a term that could be applied to "Holby City"'s portrayal of nursing.cite news|url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/showbiz/tv/shelleyvision/2007/04/24/d-oh-89520-18952403/|title= D'OH!!|author=Jim Shelley|publisher=Daily Mirror|date=24 April 2007|accessdate=2007-10-10]

In October 2007, drinks' industry body the Portman Group made an official complaint to communications regulator Ofcom about a scene in "Holby City" episode "Trial and Retribution", which depicted characters Maddy Young and Sam Strachan each taking five shots of tequila following a stressful day at work.cite episode |title=Trial and Retribution |episodelink=List_of_Holby_City_episodes/Series_Nine#Series_Nine_.282006-2007.29 |series=Holby City |serieslink=Holby City |network=BBC |airdate= 2007-10-05] The body's chief executive David Poley claimed that in failing to show the negative consequences of this action, the series was presenting a "highly irresponsible portrayal of excessive and rapid drinking".cite web|author=Mark Sweney|url=http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,,2183342,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=4|title= Holby criticised for binge drinking scene|publisher=The Guardian|date=4 October 2007|accessdate=2007-10-05] In response to the groups' accusation that "We would expect the BBC to take greater care with the portrayal of alcohol in programmes",cite web|url=http://www.whatsontv.co.uk/primetime/holby_city/news/2051|title= Holby City drinkers 'broke Ofcom rules'|publisher=What's On TV|date=4 October 2007|accessdate=2007-10-05] the BBC released a statement tying the complaint closely to the alcoholism storyline being played out by character Kyla Tyson at the time, explaining that:

:"Holby City takes the issue of the negative effects of alcohol abuse very seriously. On occasions when our continuing drama series deal with alcohol within a storyline we always seek to handle the issue sensitivity.cite web|url=http://www.thisisnorthscotland.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=191711&command=displayContent&sourceNode=191710&contentPK=18581484&folderPk=112383&pNodeId=191800|title= Holby drinking scene 'breached rules'|publisher=thisisnorthscotland.com|date=4 October 2007|accessdate=2007-10-05] Holby City is in the middle of a storyline in which a key character (Kyla) has spiralling problems in her personal and professional life because of alcohol — a storyline that fully and realistically depicts the negative impact of alcohol dependency in the workplace. Kyla has now been seen to seek help for alcoholism and the audience will see how she fares on the road to recovery."cite news|author=Nicole Martin|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/10/04/nholby105.xml|title= BBC's Holby City criticised for binge drinking|publisher=The Daily Telegraph|date=4 October 2007|accessdate=2007-09-12]

This statement was critically suggested to be advocating televisual censorship by The Daily Telegraph journalist Sam Leith, who wrote that: "(T)he BBC's defence is, depressingly enough, based on the same premise as the Portman Group's complaint, and the Home Secretary's "zero-tolerance" bletherings: that the job of fiction for adults is to seek to shape the behaviour of its audience in accordance with precepts set down, inter alia, by the Government." The broadsheet took the stance that the BBC's agreement with the Portman Group that it was in fact necessary to portray negative effects of alcohol abuse was akin to treating "Holby City" viewers as "feeble-minded".cite web|author=Sam Leith|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2007/10/08/do0803.xml|title= It's censorship – so why can't they admit it? |publisher=The Daily Telegraph|date=8 October 2007|accessdate=2007-11-20]

In November 2007, "Daily Mirror" TV critic Jim Shelley ridiculed the characters and storylines, deeming "Holby City" the "most deranged programme on television." He expanded: "Holby is set in Holby General, a hospital that each week is over-run by murderers, alcoholics and sex maniacs marauding round the corridors. And the patients don't help much either. It's TV crack - instant, mind-altering, utterly addictive."cite news|url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/showbiz/tv/shelleyvision/2007/11/13/keep-taking-the-tablets-holby-89520-20099220/|title=Keep taking the tablets, Holby..|author=Jim Shelley|publisher=The Daily Mirror|date=13 November 2007|accessdate=2008-03-11]

References

External links

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/holbycity/characters-cast/ Character profiles at BBC's Holby City Homepage]
* [http://www.holby.tv/db/index.php?casualty_holbycity_present_characters_holbycity Profiles at holby.tv database]