This is it: The very last episode of the award-winning Doctors
Thursday: Doctors (BBC1, 2pm)
Over the years, it’s won several British Soap Awards, picked up a loyal army of fans and gained a reputation within the TV industry for helping to launch new talent.
Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Game of Thrones’ Emilia Clarke and Oscar-winner Eddie Redmayne are just some of the stars who made an appearance in the fictional town of Letherbridge before they became the famous. Plenty of writers, directors and other behind-the-scenes workers have also cut their teeth on Doctors.
So, there was widespread dismay when it was announced last year that the drama was being axed.
At the time, the BBC said: “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. With a flat licence-fee, the BBC’s funding challenges mean we have to make tough choices in order to deliver greater value to audiences.”
The spokesperson added: “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.
“We are working closely with BBC Studios to give it the finale it deserves.”
Sadly, that finale has now arrived, slightly sooner than some fans were expecting – it was initially announced that there would be a mid-series break so the last episode would air in December, but that has now changed.
However, the BBC has kept its promise that it would get a worthy finale as it brings us a Doctors-themed triple bill. It begins at 12.15pm with a special episode of Bargain Hunt, as Doctors regulars Dex Lee, Kia Pegg, Sarah Moyle and Dido Miles compete at Southwell Racecourse.
Then it’s time for the last episode, which finds Rob worrying when Rhuma lands herself in hot water. Meanwhile, Graham becomes a partner, and Scarlett is in no mood to celebrate her birthday.
Other people are in the mood for though – the episode is followed by Doctors: A Celebration, which looks back over 24 years of the soap opera.
It features some of Doctors’ most memorable moments, as well as interviews with the cast and crew who made it all possible.
Look out for contributions from fan favourites like Elisabeth Dermot Walsh, Christopher Timothy and Adrian Lewis Morgan, better known to fans as Zara Carmichael, Brendan ‘Mac’ McGuire, and the show’s longest serving medic Jimmi Clay.
There’s also a celebration of the behind-the-scenes work that went into keeping the show on air for so long.
It may not entirely soften the blow for fans (some of whom even started a petition to save Doctors), but it’s an acknowledgment of just how popular it was and how much it will be missed.