Holby City
As Holby celebrates the 70th birthday of the NHS, there’s a major incident showing how the service copes during a crisis. The hardworking Holby medics spring into action when a market roof collapses. Meanwhile, Sheilagh gives grandson Lofty her thoughts on his relationship with Dom...
Holby City’s Hugh Quarshie reveals how celebrations turn into catastropheÉ
The medical staff at Holby City are in the mood to party this week, as the NHS prepares to celebrate its 70th anniversary! Their plans for an after-work bash are, however, scuppered when the roof of a local indoor market collapses, resulting in multiple casualties.
Pulling together
It’s a case of all hands on deck, but with some patients and staff buckling under the strain, and registrar Zav Duval being assaulted by an angry patient, everyone’s thankful that senior surgeons Ric Griffin (Hugh Quarshie) and Serena Campbell (Catherine Russell) are at the helm…
‘There’s a marked urgency in Holby this week, as a market roof collapses and we have to cope with it,’ explains Hugh. ‘Everyone has to deal with people and incidents that go outside their training. It tests their resolve – and sometimes they fail that test.’
Although extra beds and seating are provided on the ward for needy patients, it’s far from an ideal situation. Serena’s skills are tested to their limits as she fights to treat a patient called Lennie (EastEnders’ Gary Beadle), whose life she saved many years before. Can Ric help Serena keep Lennie alive for a second time?
‘It was great to have Gary on set as Lennie. Serena has a touching reminder that often a patient forms an attachment to their surgeon and they can become a role model,’ says Hugh, who reveals there’s more drama to come...
National pride
‘As everyone’s ready to end the shift, suddenly there’s another incident that sees firefighters and ambulance services in need of treatment as well. Everybody volunteers. It’s poignant – the NHS is a 24/7 operation and the selfless people who work in it go above and beyond the call of duty. The NHS is, quite rightly, the pride of this country.’