Huge BBC soap taken off air and replaced – and won’t return to screens for months

Fans of Casualty are going to have to make do without the medical series – with its Saturday night spot being handed over to a glossy American drama. The soap, which has been a fixture on screens since the late 80s, aired last weekend but will not now appear again until Christmas.

It is the first time that Casualty has had a festive special in a decade and it will air on Christmas Day in a plot that is still under wraps but that bosses have said will be told in an “innovative, format-breaking way”. The BBC have not announced an exact date for the soap’s return as a full series.

Like many British TV dramas, Casualty often takes a break due to the cost of producing episodes and has shifted from being available year-round to taking a break in the autumn. Casualty’s spin-off Holby City was cancelled in 2021 with the BBC admitting: “We sometimes have to make difficult decisions to make room for new opportunities.”

 

Casualty’s Saturday night slot will be filled with imported drama Apples Never Fall – based on the popular book of the same name – which has been made for the US streaming service Peacock.

The drama, which was shot in London and Queensland, Australia, stars Annette Bening and Sam Neill as a couple ready to enjoy married life when she suddenly goes missing and their four children start to investigate the secrets of their parents’ lives.

Launching on BBC back in 1986, Casualty quickly became a TV favourite and made stars of its cast, which included Derek Thompson as nurse Charlie Fairhead and Julia Watson as house officer Baz Samuels.

It is thought to have launched a string of careers, with Kate Winslet, Orlando Bloom, Minnie Driver, Tom Hiddleston, Jodie Comer, Martin Freeman and Ray Winstone all having appeared in the drama.

 

More recent stars include Bradley Walsh’s son Barney, who plays Cameron Mickelthwaite and Strictly Come Dancing favourite Charles Venn, who plays Jacob Masters.

Having aired more than 1,300 episodes, Casualty – nominated for an award at tonight NTAs – is the longest-running primetime medical drama series in the world.

Fans of Casualty are going to have to make do without the medical series – with its Saturday night spot being handed over to a glossy American drama. The soap, which has been a fixture on screens since the late 80s, aired last weekend but will not now appear again until Christmas. It is the first time that Casualty has…