Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

This article maps the terrain of contemporary UK medical television (TV), paying particular attention to Call the Midwife as its centrepiece, and situating it in contextual relation to the current crisis in the National Health Service. It provides a historical overview of UK and US medical TV, illustrating how medical TV today has been shaped by noteworthy antecedents. It argues that crisis rhetoric surrounding healthcare leading up to the passing of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 has been accompanied by a renaissance in medical TV; and that issues, strands and clusters have emerged in forms, registers and modes with noticeable regularity, especially around the value of affective labour, the cultural politics of nostalgia and the neo-liberalization of healthcare.

Keywords

Medical television NHS nurses affective labour nostalgia

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Anderson

(2012) Tales of a Midwife. London: Headline.

Angels (1975–83) BBC 1. BBC.

Anzac Girls (2014) ABC1. Screentime.

Ashby

(2005) Postfeminism in the British frame. Cinema Journal 44(2): 127–132.

Broacasters Audience Research Board (BARB) (2013) Weekly top 10 programmes. Available at: http://www.barb.co.uk/viewing/weekly-top-10? (accessed 23 April 2013).

BBC Media Centre (2015) BBC announces commission of Call the Midwife series six. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2015/call-the-midwife-six (accessed 15 December 2015).

BBC Radio 4 (2008) Book of the week – Trust Me I’m a (Junior) Doctor. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008zlj5 (accessed 20 March 2016).

Bodies (2004–06) BBC. Hat Trick Productions.

Borland

(2013) Jeremy Hunt points finger at the nursing union over scandal at Mid Staffordshire as it criticises his plan to improve compassion in the NHS. MailOnline. Available at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2313229/Jeremy-Hunt-points-finger-nursing-union-Mid-Staffordshire-hospital-scandal.html (accessed 24 April 2013).

10.

Boston Med (2010) ABC. ABC News.

11.

Boyle

(2015) Holby City stars to walk out on strike in support of NHS junior doctors. The Mirror. Available at: http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/holby-city-stars-walk-out-6834118 (accessed 14 November 2015).

12.

Bramwell (1995–98) ITV. Whitby Davison Productions.

13.

Breathless (2013) ITV. ITV Studios.

14.

Bull S (2015) 24 Hours in A&E and the NHS Crisis: The pleasures and politics of universal health care. CST Online. Available at: http://cstonline.tv/24-hours-in-a-and-e-and-the-nhs-health-crisis (accessed 20 March 2015).

15.

Butler

(1995) “I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV”: Characters, actors and acting in television soap opera. In: Allen

(ed) To be Continued: Soap Operas Around the World. London and New York: Routledge, pp. 145–163.

16.

Calderwood

(2015) Holby actors back medics strike: actors offer support to junior doctors who’ll take to picket line in row over new contracts. MailOnline. Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3319261/Now-doctors-Holby-City-say-ll-strike-Actors-vow-join-junior-doctors-picket-line-row-new-contracts-medics.html (accessed 16 November 2015).

17.

Call the Midwife (CTM) (2012–) BBC 1. Neal Street Productions.

18.

Cardiac Arrest (1994–96) BBC. World Productions.

19.

Casualty (1986–) BBC 1. BBC. Bristol, BBC Cymru Wales.

20.

Chicago Hope (1994–2000) CBS. David E. Kelley Productions, 20th Century Fox Television.

21.

Child of Our Time (2000–) BBC 1. BBC, Open University.

22.

Clark

Hockey

(1979) Research for Nursing. Leeds: Dobson Publishers.

23.

Cotterill

(2010 [1986]) Nurse on Call: The True Story of a 1950s District Nurse. London: Ebury Press.

24.

Davis

Lister

Wrigley

(2015) NHS for Sale: Myths, Lies and Deception. London: Merlin Press.

25.

Davis

Tallis

(eds) (2013) NHS SOS: How the NHS Was Betrayed – and How We Can Save It. London: Oneworld.

26.

De Benedictis

(2010) Images of pregnancy, representations of birth. The F-Word. Available at: https://www.thefword.org.uk/2010/08/the_birth_of_a/ (accessed 23 April 2013).

27.

Doc Martin (2004–) ITV. Buffalo Pictures, Homerun Productions.

28.

Doctors (2000–) BBC 1. BBC Birmingham.

29.

Dr. Finlay’s Casebook (1962–71) BBC 1. BBC.

30.

El-Gingihy

(2015) How to Dismantle the NHS in 10 Easy Steps. Winchester and Washington: Zero Books.

31.

Ellis

(2015) Fixed rig documentaries: how they do it. CST Online. Available at: http://cstonline.tv/fixed-rig-documentaries-how-they-do-it (accessed 20 March 2016).

32.

Embarrassing Bodies (2007–15) Channel 4. Maverick Television.

33.

Emergency – Ward 10 (1957–67) ITV. ATV.

34.

ER (1994–2009) NBC. Constant c Productions, Amblin Television.

35.

Famous, Rich and Jobless (2010) BBC. Love Productions.

36.

Famous, Rich and Homeless (2009; 2016) BBC. Love Productions.

37.

Frankie (2013) BBC. BBC Films.

38.

General Hospital (1963–) ABC. Selmur Productions, ABC.

39.

Getting On (2009–12) BBC4. BBC.

40.

GPs: Behind Closed Doors (2014–). Channel 5. Knickerbockerglory.

41.

Green Wing (2004–07) Channel 4. Talkback.

42.

Grey’s Anatomy (2005–) ShondaLand, The Mark Gordon Company, ABC Studios.

43.

Hallam

(1998) Gender and professionalism in TV’s medical melodramas. In: Moody

Hallam

(eds) Medical Fictions. Liverpool: Association for Research in Popular Fictions/Liverpool John Moores University Press, pp. 3–35.

44.

Hallam

(2000) Nursing the Image: Media, Culture and Professional Identity. London and New York: Routledge.

45.

Hamad

(2014) Fairy jobmother to the rescue: postfeminism and the recessionary cultures of reality TV. In: Negra

Tasker

(eds) Gendering the Recession: Media and Culture in an Age of Austerity. Durham and London: Duke University Press, pp. 223–245.

46.

Hardingham-Gill

(2015) Holby City cast are backing junior doctors in contracts row. Metro. Available at: http://metro.co.uk/2015/11/15/holby-city-cast-are-backing-junior-doctors-in-hours-contracts-row-5503331/ (accessed 16 November 2015).

47.

Heartbeat (1992–2010) ITV. Yorkshire Television, ITV Studios.

48.

Henderson

(2001) Emotion labour and nursing: an under-appreciated aspect of caring work. Nursing Inquiry 8(2): 130–138.

49.

Hochschild

(1983) The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press.

50.

Holby City (1999–) BBC 1. BBC.

51.

Hopkins (2008) ABC. ABC News.

52.

Horror Hospital Antony Balch (1973). Noteworthy Films.

53.

House (2004–12) Fox. Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z Productions, Bad Hat Harry Productions et al.

54.

Huitson

(2012) How the BBC betrayed the NHS: an exclusive report on two years of censorship and distortion. openDemocracyUK. Available at: https://www.opendemocracy.net/ourbeeb/oliver-huitson/how-bbc-betrayed-nhs-exclusive-report-on-two-years-of-censorship-and-distorti (accessed 24 April 2013).

55.

Huitson

(2013) Hidden in plain sight. In: Davis

Tallis

(eds) NHS SOS: How the NHS was Betrayed – And How We Can Save It. London: Oneworld, pp. 154–173.

56.

In Stitches (1996). BBC.

57.

Jacobs

(2001) Hospital drama. In: Creeber

(ed) The Television Genre Book, pp. 24–26.

58.

Jacobs

(2003) Body Trauma TV: The New Hospital Dramas. London: BFI.

59.

Jensen

(2013) Private correspondence with author.

60.

Jordan

(2012 [1977]) District Nurse: My Life as a Nurse in the 1950s. London: Orion Books.

61.

Junior Doctors: Your Life in Their Hands (2011–). BBC Vision Productions.

62.

Keeping Britain Alive: The NHS in a Day (2013–) BBC. Garden Productions, BBC.

63.

Kildare (1961–66) NBC. MGM Television.

64.

Larry King Live (1985–2010). CNN.

65.

Life Savers (2013) BBC. Twenty Twenty Television.

66.

Marcus Welby, M.D . (1969–76) ABC. Universal Television.

67.

M*A*S*H (1972–83) CBS. 20th Century Fox Television.

68.

McDonagh F (No date given) Bodies (2004–06) BFI Screenonline. Available at: http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1365689/index.html (accessed 20 March 2016).

69.

McGann

(2015) From how to who: accuracy and authenticity in the portrayal of the medic in TV drama. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 108(4): 123–126.

70.

McGann

(2016) Dr Turner’s Casebook. London and New York: Simon & Schuster.

71.

Medic (1954–56) NBC. Medic Productions.

72.

Medical Center (1969–76) CBS. MGM Television.

73.

Mills

(2010) Invisible television: the programmes no-one talks about even though lots of people watch them. Critical Studies in Television 5(1): 1–16.

74.

Negra

(2009) What a Girl Wants?: Fantasizing the Reclamation of Self in Postfeminism. London and New York: Routledge.

75.

NHS in Crisis – The Live Debate (2015) Channel 5. ITN Productions.

76.

NHS: £2 Billion a Week and Counting (2015) Channel 4. Voltage TV Productions.

77.

No Angels (2004–06) Channel 4. World Productions.

78.

Nurse (2015) BBC 1. BBC.

79.

Nurse Jackie (2009–15) Showtime. Caryn Mandabach Productions, Clyde Phillips Productions, Jackson Group Entertainment Madison Grain Elevator, Lionsgate Television, De Long Lumber Company.

80.

Nurses (2013) Channel 5. Maverick Television.

81.

Nursing the Nation (2013) ITV. Shine TV.

82.

One Born Every Minute (2010–) Channel 4. Dragonfly Film and Television Productions.

83.

Ostherr

(2013) Medical Visions: Producing the Patient Through Film, Television, and Imaging Technologies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

84.

Paramedics (2014–) BBC. BBC Entertainment North.

85.

Peak Practice (1993–2002) ITV. Central/Carlton.

86.

Pemberton

(2008) Trust Me I’m a (junior) Doctor. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

87.

Pemberton

(2009) Where Does it Hurt? London: Hodder and Stoughton.

88.

Pemberton

(2011) The Doctor Will See You Now. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

89.

Playing Doctor (1996). BBC.

90.

Plunkett

(2012) Call the Midwife hailed as BBC1’s biggest new drama for over a decade. The Guardian. Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/feb/20/call-the-midwife-bbc1-drama (accessed 20 February 2012).

91.

Pollock

(2004) NHS Plc: The Privatisation of Our Health Care. London and New York: Verso.

92.

Scrubs (2001–10) NBC. Doozer Touchstone Television, ABC Studios.

93.

So You Think You Can Nurse (2007) ITV. ITV Productions.

94.

St Elsewhere (1982–88) NBC. MTM Enterprises.

95.

Stand Up to Cancer (2014 [2012]–) Channel 4. Remarkable Television.

96.

Tallis

(2013) Introduction. In: Davis

Tallis

(eds) NHS SOS: How the NHS Was Betrayed – And How We Can Save It. London: Oneworld, pp. 1–16.

97.

Taylor

(2013) God Bless the NHS: The Truth Behind the Current Crisis. London: Faber and Faber.

98.

The Bionic Vet (2010) BBC. Wild Productions.

99.

The Crimson Field (2014) BBC 1. BBC Drama Production.

100.

The Country Midwives (2014). BBC Wales.

101.

The Delivery Man (2015) ITV. Monicker Pictures.

102.

The Dr Oz Show (2009–) NBC. Harpo Studios, Sony Pictures Television.

103.

The Human Body (1998) BBC 1. BBC, The Learning Channel.

104.

The Indian Doctor (2010–) BBC 1. Rondo Media, Avatar Productions.

105.

The Midwives (2012) BBC. The Garden Productions.

106.

The Nation’s Health (1983) Channel 4. Euston Films.

107.

The Oprah Winfrey Show (1986–11) ABC. Harpo Productions, King World Productions.

108.

The Royal (2003–11) ITV. ITV Studios.

109.

The Simple Life (2003–07) Fox. Bunim/Murray Productions, 20th Century Fox Television.

110.

The Supervet (2014–) Channel 4. Blast! Films.

111.

Today (1952–) NBC. NBC News Productions.

112.

Trapper John, M.D . (1979–86) CBS. Don Brinkley Productions, 20th Century Fox Television.

113.

Turow

(1989) Playing Doctor: Television, Storytelling and Medical Power. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press.

114.

24 Hours in A&E (2011–) Channel 4. The Garden Productions

115.

Watts

(2012) A Nurse Abroad: Adventures in Nursing from the Arctic to the Outback. London and New York: Simon & Schuster.

116.

Wilson

(2012) Representations of health care in the age of Thatcher. Critical Studies in Television 7(1): 13–28.

117.

Wilson

(2014) Reality television celebrity. In: Ouelette

(ed) A Companion to Reality Television. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, pp. 421–436.

118.

Wollaston

(2014) Student Nurses: bedpans and bandages TV review: sponge baths and catheters are a bit of a bore in this hospital documentary because it lacks interesting characters and drama. The Guardian. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2014/feb/15/student-nurses-bedpans-and-bandages-tv-review (accessed 20 March 2015).

119.

Worth

(2002) Call the Midwife. London: Merton.

120.

Worth

(2005) Shadows of the Workhouse. London: Merton.

121.

Worth

(2009) Farewell to the East End. London: Phoenix.

122.

Your Life in Their Hands (1958–64). BBC.

Contemporary medical television and crisis in the NHS

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References