Following the news BBC One medical drama Casualty has been put out to tendering, a huge change for the structure of the show has been revealed.
The competitive tender process will decide which producer makes the show, though the BBC will retain all the rights for the programme.
Casualty will also continue to air on BBC One.
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While this development won’t impact the future of the medical drama, it will change the foundations of the series. Casualty is set in the Emergency Department of Holby City Hospital, but this won’t be the case once the new production company take over.
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It means the ED will be set in Wales, rather than the fictional city of Holby.
In an official document from the broadcaster, there is hope the show will ‘evolve into Welsh portrayal while maintaining the core attraction to the loyal fan base’.
The contract asks tenderers to include ‘authentic representation of Wales and reflect the reality of the Welsh NHS’.
‘This is not about radical change of the show, although the move to Welsh portrayal will mean a new fictional hospital based in Wales, and tenderers will need to address this core change in their editorial pitch to the evaluation panel.
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‘The successful tenderer will need to be able to demonstrate how to incorporate Welsh portrayal and maintain familiarity at the same time.’
We currently don’t know how the move to the Welsh hospital will take place.
It means there’s a possibility the history of Holby could be eradicated altogether but on the other hand, the show could simply note that Holby is a district in Wales, therefore keeping it familiar to fans of both shows, but opening up more opportunities to explore the Welsh NHS.
The new Casualty producer is set to take over in November, with the revamped episodes airing in late 2026.
It is also expected that some familiar faces will move to Wales in the new series.
The document also states: ‘We would seek to maintain and increase diversity in the current regular cast and off-screen talent.
‘Tenderers should make evident in their ITT Response how they propose to build on this core ambition and continue to appeal to a broad audience from right across the social and demographic spectrums that fully reflect British multi-culture, voices and diversity, including authentic representation of Welsh lives.’