The cast of Casualty’s first ever improvised episode hope it will show how tough the job is right now for real NHS paramedics.
And they believe tomorrow’s hard-hitting show will help frontline workers by making people think twice about calling ambulances unnecessarily.
Actress Di Botcher, 63, who plays station duty manager Jan, said: “I hope the viewers get battered by the episode.
“I hope they see the person behind the uniform. Ordinary people doing extraordinary things.”
The episode shows paramedics Sah (Arin Smethurst), Iain (Michael Stevenson) and Teddy (Milo Clarke) pushed to breaking point.
In four days of callouts they deal with childbirth, anaphylaxis shock, a car crash, cardiac arrest, a knife-wielding psychotic and a woman who wants chips but calls an ambulance claiming she’s had a stroke.
Actor Michael, 42, said: “This improvised episode has something very special about it. It could make people think twice before dialling 999 if it’s not a genuine emergency.
“Or if it is a genuine emergency, they will appreciate why that ambulance might not always turn up in the time it should.
"The NHS frontline are under so much tension now that any awareness we can raise about how we can play our part to help relieve it are crucial.”
He supports NHS workers poised to strike this month.
He said: “I sympathise with the dilemma they’re in.”
Show boss Jon Sen said: “Casualty is at its best when it tells stories that truly chime with the real experience of medics in the NHS.”
Director Steve Hughes said the actors improvised all their dialogue, and the episode was shot like a documentary to make it feel authentic.
He said: “It was scary for the actors at first, but also freeing and exciting.”
Watch the episode of Casualty on BBC One tomorrow at 8.10pm
