Cardiac Arrest (1994–1996)

Creator:

Jed Mercurio

Stars:

Andrew Lancel, Helen Baxendale, Ace Bhatti

6 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Andrew Lancel	...	Dr. Andrew Collin (27 episodes, 1994-1996)
Helen Baxendale	...	Dr. Claire Maitland (27 episodes, 1994-1996)
Ace Bhatti	...	Dr. Rajesh Rajah (27 episodes, 1994-1996)
Jonathan Dow	...	Dr. James Mortimer (27 episodes, 1994-1996)
Peter O'Brien	...	Mr. Cyril 'Scissors' Smedley (21 episodes, 1995-1996)
Tom Watson	...	Mr. Ernest Docherty (14 episodes, 1994-1995)

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

satire | medical profession

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Company Credits

Production Co:

Island World Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 30 min (27 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Episode Cardiac Arrest: You Can't Make an Omelette Without Breaking Legs was scheduled for broadcast on 12 May 1994 but was postponed for a week as a mark of respect for the Labour Party leader John Smith who had died that morning - coincidentally of a heart attack and cardiac arrest.

User Reviews

Horribly accurate - please release on DVD

I was close to an individual working as a Junior NHS doc and they told me this was more like a documentary than a drama. I found it compelling and scary to watch. Its strength was watching individuals be subsumed by a monster of a system designed to care for the sick and how they survived.

Apparently the Royal College of Nurses complained about the portrayal of nurses as less than angelic, this combined with Helen Baxendale leaving meant a short but bitter sweet run.

See "Bodies" for more of the same from the script writer who is/was a hospital doctor.