Casualty star Jamie Glover is in the middle of rehearsals for his new play, A Child of Science, at the Bristol Old Vic theatre when What to Watch calls him for an exclusive chat about his screen role as unscrupulous medic Patrick Onley in BBC1’s BAFTA-winning medical drama.
“Would you believe I am playing another doctor and he’s also called Patrick! The play is about a real person called Patrick Steptoe, one of the pioneers of IVF, and the medicine that led to the first ‘test-tube baby’,” says the actor, adding that, profession and first name aside, the character couldn’t be more different from his Holby alter-ego, whose duplicitous dealings unanimously united viewers in their dislike for him.
“Patrick on Casualty is loathed by everyone! It’s quite fun portraying someone who blames others for his mistakes and is the focus of such vitriol!”
Introduced as a strong and charming new clinical lead for the fictional emergency department in a double-bill on 23 March, Patrick has proven to be a relentless bully and a danger to those in his care. Now, following a fall from grace last week when he almost killed a patient and tried to pin the blame on junior doctor Nicole Piper (Sammy Dobson), viewers are hoping that he’ll get his comeuppance in The Last Post, the final instalment of 12-part storyline Breaking Point.
But here, Jamie, 54, explains why the slippery surgeon may yet slither his way out of trouble…
Exclusive Casualty interview with Jamie Glover
Casualty’s Patrick Onley hasn’t found favour with fans, but he’s no pantomime villain. There’s a sense of chilling realism to him. Was that part of the appeal for you?
“Absolutely, I didn’t want him to be a moustache-twirler. When I first started on the show, we didn’t want to give anything away and he looked like somebody completely in control, so viewers would gradually think, ‘Hang on a minute, he’s horrible!’ From the response I’ve seen on social media, that’s what has happened, and it has now calcified into something akin to hatred!”
Could you give us your take on the incident in the previous episode, that causes everyone to see him for what he is?
“An operation goes wrong and there is a lot of blood loss, and the scales of all the other characters’ eyes fall in one go – even those who have been on his side. It’s a moment where you think, ‘Oh my goodness, not only is he not very nice, but he’s completely incompetent and out of his depth.’ Dr Dylan Keogh [played by William Beck] describes Patrick as dangerous, and he really is.”
Is Patrick hoping to restore his reputation when he brazenly returns to work in this Saturday’s instalment?
“Yes, although he’s not allowed to practise medicine, he can perform administrative duties and thinks that he can still claw something back by throwing his weight around and acting the big I am! But nobody’s having it.”
There’s a sad development when Dr Rash Masum (Neet Mohan) falsely confesses to being a whistleblower and resigns during this shift. What can you reveal?
“It’s really tragic. After it’s disproved that Rash is the whistleblower, Patrick can’t let it go because he’s got him where he wants him, so he spitefully holds out on absolving him. Then, Rash is admitted to the ED as he has attempted suicide. It’s awful and unforgivable. When Rash is brought in, Patrick isn’t without feelings – he’s horrified and cares – but he can’t join the dots between his behaviour and the consequences…”
Surely Patrick will be sent packing from Holby ED after all this?
“Watch this space, is what I would say! It’s great when everybody turns on him and he seems beaten by the end, as he should be. But there are some bad pennies who always turn the right way up and manage to suddenly slide out of a seemingly impossible corner. Patrick has spent his career doing just that, moving from hospital to hospital when the water becomes a bit too hot. It remains to be seen how long he can keep that going, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he had more tricks up his sleeve!”
What do you enjoy about being part of Casualty?
“It’s a real privilege to work with the team, they’re a lovely bunch and it’s fantastic they won the BAFTA for Best Soap last month – well deserved. The prosthetics and blood are great fun too, but the medical jargon is hard work!”
Is the medicine quite different in A Child of Science?
“Completely, because Patrick Steptoe was a gynaecologist in another era. It starts out in the 1950s and then goes to the 1970s, so many of the things we take for granted with medicine now haven’t got there yet in the play. Tom Felton, who starred as Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films, and Meg Bellamy, who played Kate Middleton in Netflix’s The Crown, are both in it as well. I have to say, it’s pretty special and I hope people come to see it [previews are set to begin on 5 June].”
With your parents, Julian Glover and Isla Blair, having successful stage and screen careers, did you feel like acting was always on the cards growing up?
“It wasn’t so much that it felt inevitable, it was just that it was very much an option, which not everybody had. For a lot of people, if you say you’re going to be an actor, it’s like saying you want to be an astronaut; it feels like an alien thing. But, I suppose for me, it was the centre of my life and I felt at home with my parents in make-up trailers or on set, so it always felt like an option.”
We have to ask… Did you get to visit any iconic sets growing up?
Jamie's father, Julian, impressively starred in three revered movie franchises in the 1980s – playing General Maximilian Veers in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Bond villain Aris Kristatos in For Your Eyes Only and antagonist Walter Donovan in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
“I did visit the set of The Empire Strikes Back when my dad was on that. I saw a big snow scene in the studio and Mark Hamill [who played Luke Skywalker] was in it, which was very exciting when I was a kid around the age of nine!”
Will devious Patrick Onley finally get his comeuppance in the final instalment of 12-parter Breaking Point? All will be revealed when The Last Post airs on Saturday 8 June 2024 at 8pm on BBC1.
Details for Jamie’s new play, A Child of Science at Old Vic Bristol
