Following the announcement BBC daytime drama Doctors will be coming to an end next year, Casualty fans have been worried that their favorite show could be next.
The news that Doctors has been axed left soap fans shocked yesterday (Wednesday, October 18) and we now know that the show, which has been on our screens since 2000, will come to a close on BBC One next year with the final episodes airing in December 2024.
In a statement, the BBC said: "We have taken the very difficult decision to bring daytime drama Doctors to an end after 23 years.
"With super inflation in drama production, the cost of the programme has increased significantly, and further investment is also now required to refurbish the site where the show is made, or to relocate it to another home.
"With a flat licence fee, the BBC’s funding challenges mean we have to make tough choices to deliver greater value to audiences."
But with Holby first getting the chop and now Doctors, fans of BBC medical dramas are naturally worried, especially Casualty viewers...
I think Casualty will be going next. I stream more than I do watch live tv anyway. I only watch Doctors live really. This is a sad state of affairs that’s going on though.October 19, 2023
It is so obvious why they have done this, you cannot have a show about doctors when they won't be any left at this rate.Casualty will be going next, mark my paranoia!!October 19, 2023
Terrible decisión … this is perfect lunch time viewing . First Holby now Doctors… you’d better keep your hands off Casualty !!!October 18, 2023
#Doctors it's ending? What next? Casualty? Surely notOctober 18, 2023
However, there is good news for Casualty fans because the show has confirmed that there no plans for the Saturday night drama to go anywhere.
A Casualty spokesperson told What To Watch: "Casualty continues and is not affected. We’ll be back at the end of the year!"
As fans of the show will know Casualty is off-air at the moment, having taken a temporary but very much planned break. However, we now have confirmation that not only is the show safe, but it is also coming back in a matter of weeks.
When it eventually returns, one thing's for sure is that Holby will be a very different place, with many characters' careers and lives hanging in balance.
Jan Jenning (Di Botcher) is under investigation after her nephew Teddy reported her for travelling to Switzerland to accompany her ex-husband Gethin West (Robert Pugh) in his assisted suicide decision.
Sah Brockner (Arin Smethurst) handed in their resignation while Jan was away — where does that leave their friendship?
Meanwhile, Donna Jackson (Jaye Jacobs) was sentenced to 12 months in prison, half in prison and half on licence, for falling asleep at the wheel and causing a car accident that fatally injured Ashley Morgan's (Connor Curren) mum.
Now, her children Mia Barron (Jada Wallace-Mitchell) and Amber Baptiste are left to fend for themselves. How will they get on without their mum's support?
