Loving the fictional nhs...although sadly not Patsy Kensit

A fellow blogger has critiqued the wonderful Holby City, spurring me on to realise just how much I adore it. I know it is no doubt uncool, and a rubbish drama but it is great. I've worked in the nhs for years, and admire the odd similarities; the power of the Consultants, the need the managers have to work hand in glove with the medical team, the serious good that great managers can do, as well as the perils of alcoholism, drug abuse, shagging fellow team members, um, getting your face cut by Bad Consultants and so on.

It's taught me about traumatic births, seriously got me through the utter scariness of Jem's urgent arrival in the world by remembering I'd seem it before on Holby (and that thankfully it turned out ok, except for broken collarbone - same as Jem's). Course I wasn't sitting happily chatting an hour after it happened fully made up. Rather, I had to lie down to stop all the blood in my body falling out. Still, we all made it as predicted on the telly.

I've seen Holby through a number of different 'famous' staff, important doctors and changes. Remember the mummy's boy Mubbs anyone? And the lovely man Chrissie first went out with? I've fancied a member of the staff, and I've left the nhs, and had two children throughout the programme's existence.

In fact, I was weaned on Casualty at Uni. When our friends were out meeting boys, drinking and dancing, me , Bristol Kate and Jules were sitting in my room at halls. All on a row on my bed watching the black and white telly we'd bought off a drunk for a tenner ( still feel sad about that as he was so drunk he could not even plug it in - wish we'd just given him the money) watching Holby. We loved it. Sometimes we'd brave the Student Union at nine when it finished to buy some cider to take home. No idea why we never went out really on a Saturday. Least we never went to the horrendously hot JFK's with the rest of the fresher's.

And now I'm a lifelong fan of Holby, I'll be like an old fan on Coronation Street, but of Holby, when I'm smoking fags with my hair in rollers up North someday they will come and interview me. And I'll say I grew in to adulthood with Holby and it taught me all I know. (Almost but I'll say that for dramatic effect on the telly).