Screenwriter slams Doctors axing as 'disastrous' as filming on BBC soap ends
One of the writers of the BBC’s lunchtime medical soap Doctors has lashed out at the Corporation for cancelling the show.
Fans were devastated last year when the BBC announced that Doctors was being shelved due to cost issues - and that the last ever episode will air towards the end of 2024. Earlier this week, a director took aim at Doctors fans for disrupting filling as the cast and crew tearfully tried to film their final scenes.
And now one of the show’s top writers has blasted the Beeb for binning off the show - after it has been on the air since the turn of the century. Philip Ralph, who has worked on the show himself for 19 years, is not pleased about the lack of opportunity for him and others due to the cancellation of the show.
He is proud of the history of the show - which acted as a starting point for huge future stars including Eddie Redmayne, Sheridan Smith, Emilia Clarke and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. He is also devoted to the amount of work that is being lost for the crew and other shoemakers now that the series has completed filming and their jobs have been ripped away from underneath them.
Huge future stars including Emilia Clarke got an early break on the BBC show (BBC)Taking to X on Friday, Philip wrote: “Today is the last day of filming @BBCDoctors A show that has run for 24 years, employed thousands of people, produced more than 4,500 episodes, will call ‘cut’ for the final time. As a writer on the show for the past 19 years, I’m personally impacted along with hundreds by the disastrous decision to axe it. So, on this day when the show ceases production (though it will remain on screen until November) here is a [thread] into why I believe it matters that it’s been cancelled, who is ultimately responsible, and what comes next."
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He continued: "Doctors filmed 200+ episodes every year, each one starring the regular cast plus up to 3 guest actors, each one written by a writer, each one made by a full production crew. Each one was produced, shot, and edited in Birmingham. In one fell swoop, from today, all of that is gone. From its very inception, Doctors was a show that offered two crucial things that help to sustain a thriving industry: OPPORTUNITY and EXPERIENCE. 200+ episodes every year where new and seasoned creatives got the opportunity to work, learn, fail, experiment and play."
As the lengthy post continued, he wrote: "There is no other show in the UK industry that offers such variety of storytelling – everything from high drama and tragedy, to farce, dream sequences, stand-alone single plays, themed weeks on important subjects, you name it, we wrote it. Doctors was always a place where people new to TV could get their first experience for the screen. It also sustained experienced creatives. All of that opportunity and experience is now gone – and there is nowhere in the industry for all of these people to go."
He went on to say the TV industry is "contracting" and that far less opportunities are available for those wanting to get into the industry, and for those already in it that want an environment to hone and craft their skills. He fears that there will be many in the industry who will be forced to leave the job they love because they don't have the money to sustain themselves when the time between jobs continue to grow - which will have a knock on effect for the range of voices behind the cameras.
He also said: "Don’t get me wrong – no TV show has the right to continue to exist if ratings fall or tastes change. But Doctors was a success. Its ratings were high. Its audience was loyal. It cost next to nothing, and the benefits of making it clearly far outweighed the expense."
Last October, the BBC announced they were axing the long-running show due to budget constraints. An official statement said: “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. 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.” Fans still have several months of episodes left to look forward to as the last ever episodes won’t air on the BBC until December.
Earlier this week, director Niall Fraser urged fans not to visit the filming location of the soap, which was recorded at a location in the Selly Oak area of Birmingham - with the production base being set in the centre of the BBC’s Drama Village, on the University of Birmingham’s campus. He begged via X: “I totally get that some of our loyal and lovely fans want to visit the set this coming week. We all appreciate that without the fans we wouldn’t even have made it to 23 years... Please please please do not visit on Friday. This will be a very emotional and difficult day for cast and crew. Also, please do not visit on Tuesday AM, as due to the nature of what we will be filming we need a visitor-free site. Wednesday & Thursday visits are not such a problem, but to exteriors only. There will be no access to the interiors of sets, and security will be enforcing this. Much appreciated and huge love to all.”
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