List of Doctors characters (2022)

Hazeem Durrani, portrayed by Ashraf Ejjbair, first appeared on 17 January 2022.[2] Ejjbair announced via Instagram that he would be appearing in Doctors on a recurring basis and that he began filming for the soap in September 2021.[3] Hazeem was introduced to the series as a relative of Ruhma Carter (Bharti Patel) who stays with her following travelling in Thailand. He is followed by Daisha Rashid (Sophie Kandola), with whom he shared a casual relationship with whilst travelling. Daisha tells Hazeem and Ruhma that she has nowhere to stay due to her relationship with her parents being tumultuous and informs them that she is set to stay in a hostel. Ruhma allows her to stay at hers alongside Hazeem, to his annoyance since he does not want a serious relationship. He eventually dumps her and after realising that Ruhma and Daisha have formed a close bond, he demands they cut contact with each other.[4]

Ruhma introduces Hazeem to Bear Sylvester (Dex Lee), who sets Hazeem up with various job interviews. However, he turns down potential jobs and misses an interview due to falling asleep, leading Ruhma to demand he gets a job and pays rent for living with her. She tells him to "get his act together" and gets him a temporary job on reception at the Mill Health Centre.[5] What to Watch's Simon Timblick described Hazeem as "lazy".[5] Receptionists Karen Hollins (Jan Pearson) and Valerie Pitman (Sarah Moyle) show different attitudes towards having Hazeem work with them on reception. Karen is unhappy with his lack of work experience, while Valerie believes having him work at the Mill will be a good experience and trains him. However, Hazeem "is left shaken" after his first patient encounter.[5] However, he eventually "finds his groove".[6] After receiving an offer for a better job, Hazeem makes the decision to leave the Mill.[7]

Davinia Hargrove, portrayed by Clare Wille, first appeared on 8 February 2022.[8] She was introduced as an old school friend of Zara Carmichael (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh) after she moves to the Midlands to pursue growth in her clothing company. Timblick (What to Watch) described Davinia as a "high flying fashion businesswoman".[5] It was confirmed by Timblick that her arrival in the fictional town would mean that she will share a lot of scenes with Zara. He also hinted that the rekindling of their friendship could mean the end of Zara's friendship with long-term friend Emma Reid (Dido Miles).[8] Zara is "thrilled" to have Davinia in town and she invites Zara to a fashion show where she admits that she does not have many friends.[9]

Afterwards, Davinia asks Zara if she can act as a cover story by telling her husband, Julian Hargrove (Henry Douthwaite), that she is staying there. She explains that she is cheating on Julian and needs a cover for her secret relationship.[5] Due to loving Davinia's "go-getter attitude", she agrees, which earns the disapproval of Zara's partner, Daniel Granger (Matthew Chambers).[10] Julian unexpectedly travels from London and turns up at Zara's house to find that Davinia is not there, and after she takes several hours to show up, he questions why she is lying to him. The two argue and he agrees to go back to London.[11] Davinia and Zara meet up with fellow former classmate Belinda Cooper (Emma Cooke), who admits that she was nervous of the pair whilst at school. Davinia takes pride in her mean reputation, nastily reminding Belinda about an incident where a school teacher made her cry, leaving Zara to be "taken aback by her bitchy behaviour".[12] Zara realises that Davinia has not grown up and decides to cut their friendship off.[13]

Rosie Colton, portrayed by Janice Connolly, made her first appearance on 24 February 2022. She was introduced as a receptionist at Sutton Vale Surgery, which the Mill take over. When she meets business manager Bear Sylvester (Dex Lee) and surgery partners Zara Carmichael (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh) and Daniel Grangers (Matthew Chambers), Rosie fills them in on the details of Sutton Vale. This includes the case of missing person Dr Ashdown, who randomly went missing.[6] Rosie is shown to be hapless with technology and co-worker Princess Buchanan (Laura White) makes a comment that she is ready to retire, which new lead GP of Sutton Vale, Al Haskey (Ian Midlane), is disappointed about. Rosie warns Al that Princess is trouble and that there is something about her that he should watch out for.[14]

Jimmi Clay (Adrian Lewis Morgan) takes over as lead GP at Sutton Vale due to Al prioritising the care of his mother, which Rosie struggles with. He "has concerns" about Rosie's inability to cope with changes at her surgery, such as being unable to operate the new computer system and the staff changes.[15] He speaks to Rosie about her situation and unknowingly persuades Rosie to retire.[15] He asks Rosie to arrange a staff meeting which she gets upset at; Maeve Ludlow (Clelia Murphy) informs Jimmi that it is Rosie's last day at Sutton Vale and hints that she may feel unappreciated. He then arranges a last-minute goodbye party for her.[16]

Princess Buchanan, portrayed by Laura White, made her first appearance on 2 March 2022. She was introduced as a trainee doctor at Sutton Vale Surgery, which the Mill take over. She is "not too impressed by the newcomers" coming into her surgery and Timblick (What to Watch) hinted that she may have a feud with Al Haskey (Ian Midlane) when she learns he is the new lead GP at Sutton Vale.[17] When Bear Sylvester (Dex Lee) gives Princess a tour of the Mill, she likes what she sees but does not notice the frosty reception she gets from Emma Reid (Dido Miles) and Luca McIntyre (Ross McLaren). It was noted by Timblick that Princess "makes an impression" upon her arrival at the Mill.[18] Daniel Granger (Matthew Chambers) asks Sid Vere (Ashley Rice) to become Princess' trainer.[14] Sid is impressed by Princess' skills as a doctor, with it being noted by Timblick that she is a "hard and dedicated worker".[19]

Princess meets with Daniel and Zara Carmichael (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh) to discuss her future at the Mill. Despite them trying to have her situated at Sutton Vale, Princess pushes them to make her primarily working at the Mill, since she prefers the opportunities it has for her career. It was confirmed that Princess would be involved in a romantic storyline with Bear after she "catches his eye".[20] The pair go on a date which is hijacked by Sid and Hazeem Durrani (Ashraf Ejjbair), which annoys Bear; however, Princess is "loving all the attention from her male admirers".[20] Timblick wrote that Princess has a sneaky side which would be shown when Princess plays Hazeem and Bear off against each other. Bear eventually becomes jealous about the attention she is showing to Hazeem.[20]

Princess begins to impress everybody at the Mill with how she has settled into the work regime, but her "cunning and manipulative side" comes into play when she starts "playing the staff for fools".[21] She manipulates Valerie Pitman (Sarah Moyle) into getting her lunch, collecting her suit from the launderette and completing work for her after hours, as well as getting Sid to help her finish her presentation.[21] Timblick wrote that her "lazy attitude" could have had fatal consequences after she accidentally prescribes George Grant (Paul Moriarty) antibiotics that he is allergic to. She then meets consultant Max Bailey (Nicholas Prasad) and decides to "schmooze the medic" to further her own career, which is successful when he gets her involved with his Mind Hope project, which will help towards her training to become a doctor.[22] After Valerie stops helping Princess and Sid becomes unreliable with her training, Princess visits her mother, Constance (Linda Hargreaves). She asks Constance if her uncle Zach, a doctor, can help her finish her medical training instead of the Mill, to which Constance refuses.[23]

Maeve Ludlow, portrayed by Clelia Murphy, made her first appearance on 30 March 2022. Murphy's casting was announced in February, having been filming from a month prior to the announcement. Murphy was delighted t be given a direct offer to star in Doctors since it meant that she had job security following her decision to leave soap Fair City. She then relocated from Ireland to Birmingham to appear regularly as Maeve.[24] Maeve was introduced as a nurse practitioner returning to Sutton Vale after a break away from the surgery. Due to being stressed out from caring for her mother, Gillian Ludlow (Diana Payan), and having numerous tasks to complete upon returning, Jimmi Clay (Adrian Lewis Morgan) tries to comfort her. Maeve "practically bites his head off" due to her stress, but later apologises for her harsh attitude.[21] Maeve feels that due to Gillian having suffered a stroke, she should be in a care home, but she does not want to raise the issue with her. Jimmi offers to visit Gillian and speak to her about going into a care home, but Timblick (What to Watch) wrote that Jimmi would "make the situation worse for Maeve".[25]

Scarlett Kiernan, portrayed by Kia Pegg, made her first appearance on 7 April 2022.[26] She was introduced as an applicant for the receptionist position that opens up following the departure of Rosie Colton (Janice Connolly). On the way into the interview, Scarlett tells her friend that she is uninterested in the job, which she affirms whilst in the interview. Zara Carmichael (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh) is shocked by her honesty, especially when Scarlett states that she is merely applying for the money and is not intrigued by anything regarding the job role. Also at the interview is Jayne Gregory (Toni Midlane), Scarlett's supervisor from when the pair worked at a clothing store together. Simon Timblick (What to Watch) described Scarlett as "surly" and wrote that that she does not like Jayne.[26] Bear feels that despite her attitude, Scarlett has potential and could learn the job quickly, hiring her for the role. She informs fellow receptionist Valerie Pitman (Sarah Moyle) that she has never worked at a doctor's surgery before, making her realise that she is "going to have her work cut out for her training Scarlett".[27]

Scarlett is distracted from her training due to witnessing the chaos of the other staff members, including Princess Buchanan (Laura White) flirting with staff, Ruhma Carter (Bharti Patel) oversharing about her traumas and Al Haskey (Ian Midlane) and Emma Reid (Dido Miles) talking like pirates.[27] She receives more training from other receptionist Karen Hollins (Jan Pearson), who teaches her about the computer booking system. However, when Karen goes to the toilet, Scarlett accidentally sends a patient through to Daniel Granger (Matthew Chambers) while he is talking to a previous patient, as well as annoying a patient on the phone. Despite her mistakes, Scarlett is unbothered and gives Karen and Daniel attitude.[28] Afterwards, she accidentally gives a patient the wrong prescription and is reprimanded by Zara. She is then called in for a meeting with Bear, where she snaps due to feeling like she has been overly critiqued despite not getting enough support with the job. She quits due to believing that her father, Brian (Simon Lowe), is receiving a promotion, but she later learns that he has been made redundant.[29]