Martin Clunes returns to Cornwall to play the nation’s favourite grumpy medic for the last time in the final series of the hugely successful ITV drama Doc Martin.
He stars as Dr. Martin Ellingham, the GP with a brusque bedside manner and a phobia of blood, in eight new episodes of the popular drama produced by Buffalo Pictures, and set in the idyllic hamlet of Portwenn in Cornwall.
Picturesque Port Isaac provides the beautiful backdrop for this tenth series, with all the regular members of the cast reprising their roles.
Caroline Catz plays Doc Martin!s wife, Louisa Ellingham, who resigned from her job as headmistress at the local school to pursue a new career in child counselling.
Also returning for the finale are Dame Eileen Atkins who plays Doc Martin’s formidable Aunt Ruth. Ian McNeice is back to play Bert Large, with Joe Absolom as his son Al. John Marquez is PC Joe Penhale, Jessica Ransom is the doctor!s receptionist Morwenna Newcross and Selina Cadell is pharmacist Mrs Tishell.
The guest stars in the series include Fay Ripley, David Hayman, Ben Miller, Lesley Nicol, Hermione Norris, Kenneth Cranham and Rupert Graves.
At the end of the last series the Doc decided, after having his medical career scrutinised by the General Medical Council because of his blood phobia, that he would resign from being Portwenn’s GP.
This final series sees the Doc making efforts to overcome his phobia, and beginning to question whether he made the right decision about resigning. He and Louisa have also welcomed a baby daughter, Mary Elizabeth, a sister for four-year-old James Henry.
With Louisa pursuing her new career as a child counsellor in his old surgery, the Doc is left literally holding the baby, and indulging his hobby of repairing clocks on the kitchen table. But does he really want his old job back?
The life of the curmudgeonly GP, and his on-off love affair, and eventual marriage to Louisa has won millions of fans in the UK and around the world since the first series aired in 2004.
The huge popularity of the ITV drama has brought thousands more tourists to the pretty hamlet of Port Isaac, and the surrounding areas of the north coast of Cornwall to see where the series is filmed. This boost to tourism was recognised by Cornwall Tourism which presented a special award for outstanding contribution to tourism to the Doc Martin team.
Over the years Buffalo Pictures has made regular contributions to Port Isaac’s village funds. The funding has been used by the villagers to help and support a range of local facilities.
Commented Martin Clunes:
“I have loved going to Cornwall to make Doc Martin over the last 18 years, and I really looked forward to coming back to this beautiful and unique part of the country this year for the tenth and final series.
We’ve been so lucky to get to come here for so many years and the cast and crew have made lasting friendships with a lot of the people who live in Port Isaac.
We have some great story lines and amazing guest actors for the new series.
We’re going to miss the place and all the people we have made the series with but it’s a perfect time to say thank you very much, put the back cover on the book of Doc Martin and go and try something new. Oh and then there’s a Christmas special which really is special and a great collector’s item for our fans.”
Doc Martin has been produced locally in seven territories: UK, Germany, France, Greece, Netherlands, Czech Republic/Slovakia and Spain and sold in 138 countries.
Buffalo Pictures has filmed a Christmas special to bid a final farewell to Doc Martin.
The company has also produced a documentary for ITV, provisionally titled “Doc Martin – A Celebration.” Directed by Stuart Orme and produced by Evie-Bergson-Korn, the documentary will highlight the amazing longevity and impact both locally and around the world of Doc Martin over the years, as well as giving the audience a glimpse behind the scenes of the final series with the cast and crew.
This series is produced by Philippa Braithwaite, executive producer is Mark Crowdy, and the directors are Nigel Cole, Philip John and Kate Cheeseman. The writers are Jack Lothian, Andrew Rattenbury, Kevin Cecil, Julian Unthank and Chris Reddy.
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