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The 600th episode will be the fourth episode of the twenty-second series. THE PROGRAMME AND ITS HISTORY Location Casualty is situated in Holby, a fictional city bearing a close resemblance to Bristol where the show is filmed. Bristol landmarks, including the docks and the famous Clifton Suspension Bridge , are sometimes glimpsed in the outdoor scenes. The exterior shots of the hospital were formerly filmed at the city's technical college, but are now shot on an industrial estate, not far from the interior set of the hospital. About the show The drama concerns a group of doctors, nurses and administrators who work in the Accident & Emergency department (since Series 18 termed the Emergency Department (ED)). At the centre of the action is Nurse Manager Charlie Fairhead (played by Derek Thompson ), a dedicated and caring man frequently at odds with the demands of hospital management. This has been a recurring theme over the years, but especially in the early series, which were frequently criticised for endorsing criticisms of National Health Service management under the Conservative government of the day. History and broadcast The programme has usually been transmitted on Saturday nights, although for a period in the late 1980s it switched to Fridays. Since 2001 , popularity of the show resulted in a switch from a traditional seasonal format to an almost year-round production and transmission. ''Casualty'' has no fixed time slot, and usually airs somewhere in the 8.00pm slot on BBC1, however it is sometimes broadcast after 9.00pm, but never before 8.00pm. A spin-off show, '' Holby City '', depicts life elsewhere in the same hospital. Due to the large number of episodes, some viewers have felt the storylines are becoming increasingly repetitive and predictable, and that some ongoing storylines are suddenly abandoned half-way through, although it remains one of the most watched television shows. Casualty@Holby City In December 2004 , a 2-part special '' Casualty @ Holby City '' was broadcast, with the two shows combining to cope with a petrol tanker crashing into the Hospital. Most of the filming was done on Holby City's interior and exterior sets, as ''Casualty'' is filmed in Bristol whereas ''Holby City'' is shot at the BBC Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire. A second special (with the same name, but shot in Bristol) was broadcast in August 2005 to promote Organ Donation ; viewers were asked to choose between two patients waiting for a heart transplant. During 2005 , to draw more viewers over Bank Holidays and Christmas, two-part specials were shown, where the first hour is the build-up to a major accident. Past storylines for episodes like these have featured tunnel explosions, car pile-ups, a tanker crashing into the hospital, and assaults of regular staff. These events inevitably stretched the hospital to the limit and resulted in multiple deaths and injuries. AWARDS AND ACCOLADES In 2007 Casualty has won its first major award, the BAFTA for the best continuing drama. Long serving Ian Bleasdale , who plays the character Josh accepted the award at the ceremony, which took place at the London Palladium . He said "To the doctors, nurses and ambulance crews, thank you for doing the job you do. I hope we go some way to showing exactly what it is," and dedicated the award to show's original producer, Geraint Morris, who died in 1997 . The cast of the show released the single " Everlasting Love ", which peaked at 5 in the UK in 1998 . Wins Nominations DVD RELEASE The first series of ''Casualty'' was released on DVD ''(Region 2, UK)'' by 2 Entertain/Cinema Club on 10 April 2006 . The second series was released on 10 July , with series three released on 11 September . The third was released to co-incide with the show's 20th Anniversary celebrations. There are no future DVD releases planned at present. CAST See Also: List of characters in Casualty DEATHS In recent years, the number of deaths of main characters has risen dramatically: EPISODE LIST See Also: List of Casualty episodes THEME MUSIC The Casualty theme music was composed by Ken Freeman, who would also compose the theme for sister show, Holby City . The closing music was traditionally quite different to the opening theme, although in recent years there have been few differences. 1986-2001 The original theme music ran for fifteen years with few alterations, making it the longest-tenured version of the famous theme. In 2000, the opening theme was edited slightly in line with the opening titles, reducing its length by around ten seconds. The closing theme was slightly shortened in the 1990s by editing out some of the introductory chords, but was significantly reduced in length at the end of the 1990s, in line with a shortened credits sequence. Only the final chorus of the original theme remained from this period, slightly modified to freshen it. The following year this chorus was revised again and featured a far louder beat and further distanced itself from the original. 2001-2006 The new series in September 2001 introduced a new version of the theme tune which was far removed from the original with a more poppy feel, likened to a nightclub-style track. For the first time, the same theme (minus intro melody) was used to close each episode as well, making the closing credits shorter still than the 40-second arrangement of the original closing theme introduced in 2000. 2006-2007 Another new version of the theme tune was introduced for series 21, paying homage to the original rendition (ironic because by then, Casualty marked its 20th year on the air), and was developed by the original composer, Ken Freeman. The new track used orchestral instruments for the first time. There was also the return of an imitated ambulance siren to introduce the theme (performed by strings), the famous "ringing" backing track which cuts in at appropriate times in the song, and the "breathing" sounds (heard in the middle of the original theme) now heard at the final few seconds. Another nod to the original opening song is the "crashing" effect heard early on to separate the siren sound from the main part of the theme. Although the closing theme is still essentially the same as the opening theme minus the siren intro, it has been re-recorded with a slightly altered beat and features the addition of elements taken from the original closing theme, such as the recognisable seven-note sequence used towards the end of track. Incidentally, this element is also used, along with the "ringing" sound, in a specially composed backing track used occasionally as a recap tune before the opening titles to show already-broadcast highlights of a continuing storyline, or as a preview of the next episode (most notably on the Casualty section of the BBC website). 2007-present For the start of the 22nd series, the theme tune was changed once more and went back to the theme tune used between 2001 and 2006. All details are above. OPENING TITLES AND CLOSING CREDITS 1986-1989 The titles opened with an ambulance and police car pulling into the emergency bay at Holby City A&E department with their sirens and lights operating. Accompanying this introduction was a constantly moving heart-rate monitor graphic in blue overlaid on the screen. The sequence then cuts to a lengthy piece of footage following the unloading of the patient from the ambulance and the journey through the hospital to the Accident and Emergency Resuscitation room (commonly referred to as 'Resus'), all viewed in a slightly blurred and distorted fashion from the patient's point of view in the trolley - thus the "deep breathing" noises that form part of the theme tune are attributable to the breathing of the casualty. The patient's view took in the nurse, doctor and paramedic who were accompanying the trolley, and is accompanied by the same heart rate graphics which now changed into streaking bolts of lightning which appear to be drawn to the walls of the hospital, the doors and the lights in the ceiling. The sequence ended with the doctor placing a gas mask over the patient's face and the screen darkened to reveal the Casualty logo, formed by the merging of the blue streaks. The closing credits used stills taken from the opening titles, again in the same blurred vision, but without the blue streaks. The typeface was the same one used for the original Casualty logo and scrolled in blue for the most part of the sequence, but changed briefly to white as it scrolled up the top 3/4 portion of the frame, before returning to blue again. 1989-1992 A new sequence debuted after Casualty's first three years. The siren part of the theme tune accompanied an ambulance (now in daytime) driving towards the camera which zoomed in on its flashing lights. (This was filmed from the top of St Michaels Hill in Bristol). The sequence then developed into a series of clips, including the ambulance driver at the wheel, hospital equipment, a patient being treated, blood pressure gauge etc. all separated by flashes of blue light. The titles continued as the ambulance reached the hospital doors and the patient was unloaded and taken through to 'Resus'. This part of the titles was in black and white, although the paramedics yellow jackets and the nurses' blue uniforms were shown in colour. The sequence ended as the camera zoomed in on the nurse's back as she tended to the patient in 'Resus', and the Casualty logo was formed. 1992-1993 A return to the same type of opening as the original series, although the introductory ambulance sequence was now in daylight unlike the original night-time shot, and the entire sequence of being trolleyed through the department was new. Again, one of the show's creators played the role of the doctor who puts the oxygen mask over the patient's face, and an unidentified Sister was shown with the paramedics instead of the original nurse. The closing sequence was the same as the original, albeit with the stills taken from the new version of the titles and a revised typeface for the credits which were now typed permanently in blue (character) and white (actor). 1993-1997 The sequence again opened with an ambulance driving at night before a series of "accident" footage, showing the sort of medical emergencies the paramedics were travelling to (motorcycle accident, mugging, old lady falling down the stairs etc.) The sequence then developed into two layers - the base layer being the ambulance's journey back to the hospital, and the top layer showing a graphical grid and the superimposition of various pieces of patient/medical staff footage, again using unidentified actors in the roles. The sequence ended with the ambulance arriving at the front doors and a medical team greeting it, before the screen became blurred and the logo was formed. This entire sequence (save for the snippets of superimposed hospital footage) was decolourised and tinted with a dark blue hue. The closing credits showed a sequence whereby an ambulance drives by the camera at the top of a hill, the ambulance then seen in the distance as it makes it's way through Holby at night with the screen becoming burred as the credits end, again tinted blue and with the same "technical" grid overlaid as the titles. 1997-2000 A new look again, now based around fragments of glass flying in and around a sequence utilising footage of medical staff, hospital equipment and patients' relatives. The sequence ended as all the pieces of glass that were shattered in the first few seconds of the sequence were re-formed into a single pane which spelt out the new Casual+y logo. Minor edits were made when these titles were shortened in 2000 but they remained essentially the same. One point of interest is that the shortened titles introduced in 2000 coincided with the show's move into widescreen filming. This necessitated the need to alter the final "CASUAL+Y" title frame in both the opening and closing sequences. Although the fragments of glass form in exactly the same place as before, the flash that usually signalled the morphing to the logo screen was now brighter and hid the difference in size between the logo as it appeared on the glass panel and the smaller reproduction introduced on the green background - done so that the full title name would appear when viewed on non-widescreen television sets. The closing sequence used the same idea with the fragments of green glass flying in slow motion from the foreground to the background against a black screen and gradually all landing in the correct place to form a unified pane as the credits scrolled over the top. This closing was significantly shortened at the end of the 90s due to BBC timing constraints and featured the credits now in a much smaller typeface scrolling up the centre of the screen with a promotion occasionally overlaid at the top. In 2000 this was changed to a credits scroll on the right of the screen whilst the left side previewed clips from the next episode in the series. 2000-2001 Again a new title sequence for Casualty in 2001, this time utilizing a sped-up fast forward technique, featuring a clock ticking through the night, an airbag deploying, the ambulance speeding through evening traffic and patients arriving at reception. The latter half the sequence focused on the ambulance's patient being treated in Resus from a birds-eye perspective, with all this treatment done at high speed. The sequence ended in slow motion as the patient recovered, his relatives arrived and crowded around his bed, before the trolley, people and equipment disappeared leaving the distinctive checkered flooring of the department and the Casualty logo. The closing credits were now aligned to the left to allow for BBC End Credit Promotion to be adopted on the right half the screen should the need arise. The background of the closing sequence focused on an intravenous drip bag filled with liquid and catching the light as it rippled with movement - part of which was briefly seen in the opening titles. These were the first titles and credits rendered specifically for broadcast in 16:9 widescreen; the previous titles were cropped to fit the ratio. 2001-2002 A new theme tune with a distinct change to the opening titles. For the first time ever, the focus was on the characters - presented posing to the camera against a blurred background of blue, black and purple. The only 'medical' references were the glimpses of an ambulance and a heart rate graphic in the opening seconds of the titles. The same logo introduced in 1997 remained at the end. The closing credits utilised the same dark background as the opening, with the credits now rolling on the right with space for ECP on the left. 2002-2006 Again, the same theme tune as the previous year, but a return to a more medically themed title. The focus was now on the international symbol of medical aid - the cross. It was shown at different sizes moving around the screen, often filled with footage such as paramedics, a patient being given cardiac massage etc. against a stark white background. This sequence was also filled with abstract graphics, elements of the Casualty logo and some footage of medical emergencies - e.g. a house fire, taken from actual episodes. The logo was formed by the merging of the various crosses and abstract shapes at the end of the sequence. The closing credits, again aligned to the right, rolled against a white background with distorted green crosses floating across the screen. 2006-present Brand new titles using stop-frame footage of the ambulance on its journey, followed by images of hospital staff (mostly characters of the show in fact) and equipment (x-rays, oxygen cylinders, paramedic clothing, nurses walking the corridors etc.) mixed in with footage of a patient being taken to Resus and given treatment. The sequence is all tinted in a light turquoise hue and is interrupted at several points by a flashing amber coloured graphic, reminiscent of the heart rate line from the original titles sequence. The (slightly modified) logo appears on screen in the final frame. These tites were slightly changed in 2007 for the start of the 22nd series. The closing credits are a black background with a selection of abstract footage taken from the titles displayed on the right hand side of the screen, gradually fading into the black towards the left of the frame. The cast and crew list originally scrolled on the right, as in recent years, to allow for left-aligned ECP. However, since a revamp of the BBC's credit promotion format in June 2007 the credits now feature a centrally aligned roller in the same typeface as before, but with much larger credits text than in recent years. Many BBC regions follow ECP guidelines and shrink the whole credits video to fit in a small box while a promotion is shown elsewhere on the screen. The text was deliberately increased in size so that it was still legible when shrunk. However, BBC Wales and BBC Scotland do not follow the new ECP convention and show programme credits "clean", with only a continuity announcement at most to disturb the sequence. EXTERNAL LINKS
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