What’s up, Doc?
MARTIN CLUNES: TV STAR GRUMPIER THAN EVER GP with brusque bedside manner, phobia of blood and dislike of dogs.
On Tuesday, the hugely popular Doc Martin is back on ITV Choice for an eighth season.
The series stars Martin Clunes as Dr Martin Ellingham, the GP with a brusque bedside manner, a phobia of blood and a dislike of dogs.
The actor had to suppress his own huge love of dogs to play the canine-hating, grumpy doctor. While on camera he has to pretend he loathes mongrel Buddy, who is determined to win the Doc’s affections. When the cameras stopped rolling, Clunes was quick to make a fuss of 10-year-old Dodger, who plays Buddy.
In this series, Buddy makes himself at home at the surgery when Doc reluctantly agrees to a request from his wife Louisa, who says the presence of the dog will be good for their baby son, James Henry.
Clunes says: “The Doc is making a real effort to make things work between him and Louisa, and to be a better husband and father.
“As ever, the Doc would rather nothing changed and is resistant to the notion of change almost for the sake of it. But he sees that having the dog living with them is something Louisa wants and is ultimately supportive, and actually allows a dog into the house.
“But the introduction of the dog is a token. It’s a trial period with strict parameters, and when no one is looking he throws the dog out.”
It doesn’t help when Dodger causes the Doc to seek medical treatment. “He twists his ankle trying to catch the dog and has to have that bound up and go around on crutches for a while.”
Just as the Doc is getting used to having Buddy around, another stray dog, Bob, arrives on the doorstep, looking to move in.
“Philippa (Braithwaite) saw Paddy, who plays Bob, with the dog trainer, Sonia Turner, when she had just got him two years ago, and knew we had to find a role for him in this series. Sonia has such a lovely way with Dodger, who plays Buddy, and Paddy. She trains them so beautifully and so kindly, and they just love doing stuff so much.
“You can see all this youth and exuberance in Paddy’s eyes. Dodger is still fantastic and keeps going to the end of the day, but Paddy is just mental and beautiful. I’ve fallen for Paddy as well as Buddy. They are so good on their marks.”
Buddy and Paddy are both rescue dogs who live with Sonia. She has taught them to know that when Martin is being cross with them it is just acting, so they are never frightened of him on set.
Martin has three dogs of his own who have been regular visitors to the set: Jimmy, a Jack Russell, Penny, a cross between a Jack Russell and a Chihuahua, and Heidi, a cocker spaniel, who has recently given birth to seven puppies.
After having therapy to save their marriage in the last series, Martin and Louisa are trying to make a new life together with baby James Henry. “The Doc and Louisa are attempting to live like other couples and just get on with their lives.
“Louisa has a conflict of loving her work, but missing her child and is trying to find ways of spending more time with him. She wants to move away from her job as headmistress and become a counsellor, which involves training while she is also holding down a job. The Doc is sceptical but in his bid to be more understanding, he takes on extra child care duties to allow her the time to do her counselling training.”
Martin describes playing the curmudgeonly medic as “the best job in telly”.
“What could possibly match this: staying in the West country, surrounded by dogs and people I like. I really love doing this. I love everything about it. I love being in Cornwall, even though I hate being away from home. If I have got to be away from home then I’d be here. I love being near the sea. I love being out of cities. Even the drive between here and my home in Dorset is lovely because you pass Dartmoor, at one point you can see Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor.”
It’s 13 years since the first series of Doc Martin was filmed in Port Isaac on the Cornwall coast. The picturesque village has always been a popular destination for tourists, but the success of the series has turned it into a shrine visited by thousands of Doc Martin fans every year.
As a thank you to the village, Buffalo Pictures, which makes
Doc Martin, set up a trust fund to contribute towards building a new car park, repairs to the harbour wall and a nature trail at a local school.
The fans show their appreciation by showering the cast and crew with presents. “A very nice lady from Hungary left me some M&Ms, cashew nuts from the coop, a big bag of jelly beans and a lovely painted egg. I have a Lego Doc Martin from Holland, complete with doctor’s syringe and dog.
“You know you’ve made it when you’ve been Lego’d. I was given a Buddha and a medicine bottle, and lots of paintings. I keep them all. It seems rude to throw them away.”
Playing the curmudgeonly medic is the best job in telly.