Casualty exclusive with Melanie Hill
Since her appointment as clinical nurse manager to Holby’s floundering emergency department in February, Casualty ’ s Siobhan McKenzie has proven a uniting force, thanks to her strong leadership skills and compassion for both patients and staff.
So when Melanie Hill, who plays Siobhan, joins What to Watch for an exclusive interview about two major plot developments in this week’s episode , we can’t help but compliment her on her performance in the long-running medical series.
“Thank you very much for saying that. I love Siobhan, she is such a professional. The job is her life basically!” smiles the star whose character was recently promoted to Holby ED’s clinical lead. “I thrive on emotional storylines so I’m enjoying every moment of her journey. I never want to leave!”
As the show gets underway this Saturday on BBC2 (due to the Olympics coverage) Siobhan faces her biggest crisis yet when her firefighter husband Rich Walker (Michael Keogh) abruptly announces that their 25-year marriage is over. And he couldn’t have chosen a more consequential time to break his wife’s heart, as Siobhan has just pledged to help vulnerable nurse Cam Mickelthwaite (Barney Walsh) try to come to terms with being abused by hospital trustee Jamie Cleveland (Ryan Hawley) in his youth.
Here Melanie shares her prognosis for these two impactful and intersecting storylines…
Casualty spoilers beyond this point
There are two major developments in this episode, Melanie, with the first one concerning Cam. Why does Siobhan feel compelled to take him under her wing?
“Well, she's got kids herself and one of them in particular, Ben, is very similar in age to Cam, so that mother side comes out in her. She feels a responsibility to protect him because, as part of the hospital board, she had a hand in Jamie getting the position at Holby and even initially defended him. The thing I love about Siobhan, she has a caring side and is fiercely loyal to all her nurses.”
There’s a shock twist when Jamie disappears without a trace this week. How concerned should we be?
“Very concerned! Siobhan is actually crossing a fine line here and being unprofessional in a way, because she persuades Cam to go to the police and tells him that she’ll be there for him and never let him down… But then she’s completely blindsided when her husband says he doesn’t love her any more.”
Which neatly brings us to your second big story of the week. Unknown to Siobhan, Rich has been having an affair with consultant Stevie Nash (Elinor Lawless) and wants to make a go of it with her. How does she react when he declares he wants to leave her?
“It’s like a big punch in the face to be honest. Siobhan had no idea this was coming and so she’s in a terrible state and, what’s trebly awful, is that she lets Cam down because she’s so deflated. It’s the worst place he could have chosen to ruin her life. Siobhan’s temporary clinical lead, running the department, supporting her nurses, liaising with management, helping doctor Rash Masum (Neet Mohan) with his CESR training, supporting nurse Faith Cadogan (Kirsty Mitchell) with retraining as a doctor, and her battery just goes straight to empty. You’re watching somebody trying not to fall apart at work basically.”
What’s your take on their marriage?
“I think it's one of those, because they've been together for a lot of years, it’s become more like a brother and sister. You hear him say several times that he still loves her, she’s the mother of his child, but he’s simply not in love. Obviously, Siobhan doesn’t know yet, but he’s fallen heavy for Stevie and considers her a soulmate. In a way it's a tragedy for all of them.”
In upcoming episodes, will Siobhan suspect him of cheating?
“Yes, and it’s not what she thinks! Not only does she find out he’s having an affair, but the biggest shock of all is who it’s with. There are so many different elements to this because Stevie and Siobhan have become firm friends and allies and they work closely together in a job where a lot of trust is involved. They’re going to have to navigate broken trust, resentment and hatred while treating patients’ traumas. They’ll question what’s important and go through the gamut of emotions. It’s about female loyalty and how you react when you’re betrayed - it's great writing!”
You mentioned Siobhan’s position of clinical lead being temporary. We’ve never seen a Casualty nurse in that position before, but because the show is so well researched, we imagine it’s something that can happen in real life?
“Yes, it is real and it can happen, but it's always a temporary thing and not a permanent position, as far as I know. For Siobhan it’s a bit of a poison chalice to be honest, because she’s in a situation where she’s got the responsibilities and it’s so much more work, but she's still running her nurses as a clinical nurse manager, except now she is liaising with the management side of it. While she's doing the job, she's had a lot of pushback from people saying, ‘you’re not really the clinical lead,’ and, she's got to assume that role, even if it is temporary to take on the management and fight for the equipment they need.”
Thanks for explaining! This episode marks the start of series 39, which means Casualty celebrates a big birthday next year. Do you know if there are 40th anniversary plans in the works?
“I should imagine they will mark it in some way, maybe with a standalone episode, as it's astounding and a massive achievement - and long may it continue! As long as we’ve got an NHS, there will be human stories that need telling. I think Casualty can continue forever.”
We were delighted by your social media post a few weeks ago, featuring a lovely photo of you and your former Coronation Street star David Neilson. Did it get a big reaction?
(See below for image)
“Yes, it caused quite a stir! He was in Penarth [near Casualty ’s Cardiff-based studios] so me and my husband met David and his wife for coffee and he suggested that we post a photo pretending to be in Scarborough, because in Coronation Street his character Roy Cropper has gone there to visit my Corrie character Cathy Matthews. Afterwards people were asking me in the street if I was going back, but I’m not - it was just for fun! It was lovely to see him again, I loved working with him and miss him a lot.”
Finally, you film quite far ahead on Casualty, can you give us any teasers about what’s in the pipeline?
“There is so much good stuff to come! Siobhan begins to wonder if she’s neglected her husband and tries to fight for him - there’s a scene coming up where she tries to seduce him, but it doesn't go very well at all. You’ll see her using work to get through this horrendously horrible and humiliating situation and, down the line, her team all coming together for her. It's wonderful exploring all these facets of Siobhan. We’re also going to get to know some members of her family, especially Ben. As for the Jamie story, you’ll see a lot of people on very dodgy ground, and there's a question whether someone will reach their breaking point and step over a line - it’s very exciting!”
Casualty episode All for Love airs on Saturday 10 August at 8.10pm on BBC2
If you are affected by any of the storylines in this week's Casualty , please know that help and support is available from BBC Action Line https://www.bbc.co.uk/actionline/
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