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The twenty-fourth and final series of the British medical soap opera Doctors commenced airing on 10 January 2023, and concluded on 14 November 2024. The series comprised 276 episodes. Set in the fictional West Midlands town of Letherbridge, the soap follows the lives of the staff and patients of the Mill Health Centre, a fictional NHS doctor's surgery.

Production

Cancellation

"We have taken the very difficult decision to bring daytime drama Doctors to an end after 23 years. With super inflation in drama production, the cost of the programme has increased significantly, and further investment is also now required to refurbish the site where the show is made, or to relocate it to another home. We remain fully committed to the West Midlands and all of the funding for Doctors will be reinvested into new programming in the region. We would like to thank all the Doctors cast and crew who have been involved in the show since 2000. We know the crucial role Doctors has played in nurturing talent, and we will work to develop new opportunities to support skills in scripted programming."

On 18 October 2023, the BBC announced that Doctors had been cancelled. The decision was made due to the financial strain of moving the set from Selly Oak to Digbeth as part of BBC Birmingham's ventures to create a new base for their productions. The BBC confirmed that it would be giving the soap a grand finale and was "working closely with BBC Studios to give it the finale it deserves". Filming was to be wrapped in March 2024, with the final episode scheduled to air in December 2024.

Amidst false news reports of Doctors being cancelled for low ratings, the production team took to social media to debunk them. At the time of its cancellation, Doctors was receiving an average of 1.6 million live viewers and was consistently the most watched programme in its timeslot. Their social media team posted the statement: "we would like to clarify that the decision to cancel the show is not based on low figures, as we have consistently enjoyed a strong viewership, and we are deeply grateful for the enduring support of our dedicated audience."

Cast member Elisabeth Dermot Walsh appeared on Good Morning Britain to discuss the cancellation, where she said that the whole team were "reeling" from the decision, which had come as a shock to them. Co-star Kia Pegg wrote a piece on social media about the "dystopian" experience of the team being informed of the cancellation. She revealed that external people knew of the decision prior to them and was angry that they had been informed before them.

The BBC's decision to cancel Doctors was met with universal criticism. The Writers' Guild of Great Britain called it "a terrible loss to the UK writing community, and to audiences". They were also concerned that it had become the second continuing drama to be cancelled by the BBC in the 2020s, after fellow medical drama Holby City had been axed in 2021. Equity commented: "This is enormously detrimental, not only for those regularly engaged on the show, but also for those who will be deprived of an opportunity of work – particularly in the Midlands, where there are very few job prospects due to continuing underinvestment in the region. The BBC has to do better to represent and serve the Midlands region and we call on the BBC to enter into talks with the Union to go through exactly how the funding will be reinvested in the region." Viewers launched a petition to save the soap, suggesting that another network could buy the rights to the series to continue making it.

The show's final episode was filmed in March 2024, and was originally to be screened in December 2024, but this was later revised to November 2024, due to a scheduling break not going ahead as planned.

Cast

In November 2022, it was confirmed that former Coronation Street star Wendi Peters had been cast as Nina Bulsara, a new general practitioner at the Mill, who was billed as a 'maddening new character'. Peters' exit from the role was confirmed in September 2023, following her decision to leave the series. The character departed in February 2024. Alongside Peters' casting, Rahul Arya was cast as Suni Bulsara, Nina's son, and a general practitioner.

In January 2023, Kiruna Stamell was introduced as Kirsty Millar. Her casting had not been confirmed beforehand and she was a replacement for Valerie Pitman (Sarah Moyle), who departed at the conclusion of the previous series. Stamell made a previously unannounced departure from the role in September 2024, which saw Kirsty take a promotion at another medical centre.

In March 2023, Jan Pearson made a previously unannounced exit from her role as Karen Hollins, in a storyline which saw the character killed off after suffering from health issues in the previous months. Pearson later said that the storyline was her decision, and she asked to be killed off, stating "I asked to die and they were very obliging! They gave me a lovely death, actually — I was very pleased with it."

In April 2023, Matthew Chambers confirmed that he had quit his role as Daniel Granger after sixteen years. The character's departure aired in October 2023, less than two weeks before the show's cancellation announcement by the BBC.

Alongside the regular cast, several recurring characters were introduced in the twenty-fourth series, these included Kirsty's husband Rich (Richard Atwill) and son Ollie (Isaac Benn). Later in the series, Michelle Walton (Joanna Bending) was introduced as a general practitioner and an old friend of Zara's who temporarily replaced Emma Reid whilst she was in Australia.

After several recurring stints in the twenty-third series, Janice Connolly made a return to her role as Rosie Colton in a regular capacity in September 2024, following the departure of Kirsty Millar.

Main characters

• Rahul Arya as Suni Bulsara
• Matthew Chambers as Daniel Granger
• Janice Connolly as Rosie Colton
• Dex Lee as Bear Sylvester
• Ross McLaren as Luca McIntyre
• Ian Midlane as Al Haskey
• Dido Miles as Emma Reid
• Adrian Lewis Morgan as Jimmi Clay
• Bharti Patel as Ruhma Carter
• Jan Pearson as Karen Hollins
• Kia Pegg as Scarlett Kiernan
• Wendi Peters as Nina Bulsara
• Ashley Rice as Sid Vere
• Kiruna Stamell as Kirsty Millar
• Chris Walker as Rob Hollins
• Elisabeth Dermot Walsh as Zara Carmichael

Recurring characters

• Andrea Ali as Tanisha Fonesca
• Richard Atwill as Rich Millar
• Alex Avery as Graham Elton
• David Bark-Jones as Ed Jordan
• Rishard Beckett as Laurence Richards
• Joanna Bending as Michelle Walton
• Isaac Benn as Ollie Millar
• Dawn Butler as PC Pat Dyson
• Charlie Clemmow as Imogen Hollins
• Kiza Deen as Claudia Briant
• Oliver Falconer as Joe Granger Carmichael
• Daniel Hill as Tye Vere
• Genevieve Lewis as Paige Popplewell
• Simon Lowe as Brian Kiernan
• Andrea Mason as Frankie Sharp
• Livvi Parsons as Liv Morgan
• Lois Pearson as Jenny Ackerman
• David Perks as Barry Biglow
• Maria Pike as Tasha Verma
• Aria Prasad as Malika Dahlan
• Louis Saxby as Miles Bailey
• Nina Wadia as Binita Prabhu
• Laila Zaidi as Maria Jaziri

Episodes

References

1. Timblick, Simon (17 March 2020). "Doctors spoilers: Happy 20TH ANNIVERSARY, Doctors!". What's on TV. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
2. ^ Warner, Sam (18 October 2023). "Doctors axed by BBC after 23 years". Digital Spy. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
3. "DOCTORS AXED!". Inside Soap. 24–30 October 2023. p. 17.
4. ^ Allday, Jasmine (19 October 2023). "BBC Doctors legend says cast are 'reeling and devastated' by soap axe after 23 years". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
5. Anderton, Joe. "Doctors hits back at reports of low ratings in first statement since show axe". Digital Spy. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
6. Dooney, Emma (20 October 2023). "BBC Doctors star reveals 'dystopian' moment cast were told of soap's axe". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
7. Kitson, Calli (20 October 2023). "Doctors star Kia Pegg reveals heartbreaking moment cast were told the show has been axed". Metro. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
8. Rowan, Iona (19 October 2023). "Doctors' BBC axe branded "real concern" as Writers' Guild and Equity issue statements". Digital Spy. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
9. Hibbs, James. "Doctors fans petition to save cancelled soap – writers' union backs bid". Radio Times. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
10. Price, Richard (3 March 2024). "Doctors' fans sadness as filming of TV series ends". Digital Spy. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
11. Adams, Michael (11 October 2024). "Date of beloved axed soap's final episode revealed – and it's sooner than you thought". Metro. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
12. Seddon, Dan (2 November 2022). "Former Coronation Street star Wendi Peters lands new soap role". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 3 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
13. Spackman, Maisie (25 September 2023). "Coronation Street legend quits soap role leaving everyone surprised". Metro. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
14. Holt, Natasha; Waterfall, Sarah (7–13 January 2023). "Soap diary". What's on TV. p. 21.
15. "The Sinister Hand". BBC. Archived from the original on 16 December 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
16. "The Nest". BBC. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
17. Kilkelly, Daniel (6 June 2023). "Doctors star Jan Pearson explains Karen Hollins' shock death storyline". DigitalSpy. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
18. Chambers, Matthew (23 March 2023). "Hi. Thank you for the message. Please send your letter asap as my last filming day and therefore my last, last day will be April 4th. Matt" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
19. Kitson, Calli (4 April 2023). "Matt Chambers says goodbye to Doctors as he films Daniel's exit". Metro. (DMG Media). Retrieved 4 April 2023.
20. "The Worriers". BBC. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
21. Holt, Natasha; Waterfall, Sarah (7–13 January 2023). "Soap diary". What's on TV. p. 21.
22. Doctors (11 March 2024). "Introducing the latest addition to the Mill, handpicked by Zara herself: Dr. Michelle Walton. But the question remains: what will Emma's reaction be when she returns?! Join us as we talk with Joanna Bending about her portrayal of Dr. Walton and uncover what lies ahead" (Tweet) – via Twitter.

External links

• Series 24 at BBC Online

• 2023 British television seasons
• 2024 British television seasons
• Doctors (2000 TV series) episodes