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.[1]
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".[2] Filming was to be wrapped in March 2024, with the final episode scheduled to air in December 2024.[3] [4]
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."[5]
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.[6] She revealed that external people knew of the decision prior to them and was angry that they had been informed before them.[7]
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."[8] Viewers launched a petition to save the soap, suggesting that another network could buy the rights to the series to continue making it.[9]
The show's final episode was filmed in March 2024, and was originally to be screened in December 2024,[10] but this was later revised to November 2024, due to a scheduling break not going ahead as planned.[11]
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'.[12] Peters' exit from the role was confirmed in September 2023, following her decision to leave the series. The character departed in February 2024.[13] Alongside Peters' casting, Rahul Arya was cast as Suni Bulsara, Nina's son, and a general practitioner.[14]
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.[15] Stamell made a previously unannounced departure from the role in September 2024, which saw Kirsty take a promotion at another medical centre.[16]
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."[17]
In April 2023, Matthew Chambers confirmed that he had quit his role as Daniel Granger after sixteen years.[18] [19] The character's departure aired in October 2023, less than two weeks before the show's cancellation announcement by the BBC.[20]
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).[21] 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.[22]
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.