Exclusive: Myar Craig-Brown - 'Holby City' series producer

Holby City has undergone significant changes over the past 12 months, switching to HD broadcasting, introducing stylistic and visual changes and bringing in a string of new cast members including Guy Henry, Jimmy Akingbola, Laila Rouass and Adam Astill. Viewers have recently seen two other new regulars join the hospital with the casting of Lauren Drummond and Sarah-Jane Potts as Chantelle Lane and Eddi McKee respectively, while the relationship between Dan Hamilton and Antoine Malick and the future of cardiothoracics at Holby look set to be big storylines for the months ahead.

In the first interview of Digital Spy's Producer Season 2011, we recently chatted to Holby's series producer Myar Craig-Brown to hear what the future holds for the BBC medical drama.

What were your main aims for Holby City when you took over as series producer last year?
"Looking at the show visually and stylistically, what I was trying to do was create a lot more cohesion from episode to episode and block to block, so that you wouldn't see where one director and DOP's work began and ended. I wanted to make the show look as contemporary, ambitious and cinematic as possible - given that we also shoot on an incredibly tight schedule. We film two 60-minute episodes in 21 days, so that's a pretty tough schedule. But I wanted Holby to look as beautiful and contemporary as it could be. I also wanted there to be warmth, joy and humour in the scripts, while carrying on telling intelligent and dramatic storylines."

You've worked on the show for quite a few years in different roles, so you must feel quite confident about what works and what doesn't!
"Yeah, I started as a script editor on the show ten years ago and then I worked on Born and Bred for a few years. After that I went travelling and then I came back as Holby's story editor. I've been on the show consistently for six years as story editor, so I think coming from the creative background and story background, you really know what does and what doesn't work."

Do you think Holby City's 'revamp' period is now over, or is there still work to be done in order for the show to match your vision?
"No, I think the show is looking brilliant. I think our hardest job now is to keep it looking as brilliant as it can be, both visually and script-wise. We need to keep to the standard that we've set."

Is there a single episode that's stood out for you, or one that really encapsulates your vision for Holby City?
"I would say that I have loved the episode that was on a couple of weeks ago - the episode where Dan and Malick's relationship came to a head, and the one afterwards. I thought they were phenomenal, I thought the scripts were brilliant and that pair of episodes was fantastic. Actually, that whole run of episodes was outstanding, I think."

We've seen a lot of cast members and characters bow out from the show, so has that been challenging?
"It's always sad when cast members decide that they want to leave, but it's allowed us to take a look at the show and hopefully create some amazing, iconic new characters."

After so many departures, can you reassure the fans that the cast is looking more stable now?
"Yes - it definitely is."

Out of all the new characters, do you have any favourites or do you think any have settled in better than others?
"I genuinely mean this - I think that we have such a brilliant cast and everybody is fantastic, they really, really are. I'd say that I identify well with Sahira, who's a working mum trying to balance her career and her family. I'm also fascinated by somebody like Malick, just for his energy - I think that he feels incredibly contemporary and fresh. I think they're all brilliant though, so I wouldn't want to single anybody out as everybody is fantastic. I'm very lucky to have such a great cast."

We've just seen Lauren Drummond join the cast as Chantelle. What can we expect from her?
"She's amazing! And really, what we wanted from Chantelle is that young, naïve girl. At the same time, though, while she may have the fake eyelashes, fake hair extensions, fake nails and look a bit dippy, she's actually incredibly bright. She has the biggest heart and I think her developing relationship with Elizabeth will be one to watch. She's trying to bring Elizabeth out of her shell a little bit and she's also trying to help her through a difficult time with her mum. Sometimes her good deeds will blow up in her face slightly, though - she's very naïve and she thinks she can fix things that are much more difficult than she imagines."

How about Eddi, played by Sarah-Jane Potts, who's also just joined?
"Eddi is very sarcastic, ironic and witty - but there should be a warmth there. There's a relationship that develops between her and Bob Barrett's character Sacha over the rest of the series, which is cemented around a young kid aged 17 who's had a sports accident. It's all about how they rehabilitate this kid, who's lost his sport and can't walk anymore. We'll see how Eddi deals with that alongside Sacha, so that relationship between them will be one to watch and it'll be very interesting."

As you touched on earlier, Malick and Dan have just embarked on a surprising storyline. Will this be a long-term plot for the months ahead?
"It will be, and it really isn't a 'coming out' storyline. The focus really is on Dan's character. Dan is Mr Conventional - he wants Chrissie, he wants the wife, the house, the career and 2.4 children. It won't be about him coming out and coming to terms with his sexuality. If anything, the kiss with Malick has made him even more determined to try to have a conventional life - because that's what he wants the most."

Is it important to do something different after the gay storylines we've seen on other shows?
"I think that is our biggest challenge - that it really isn't a gay or 'coming out' storyline. It's about a man who's really trying to deal with what he wants, which is a very conventional life."

Some viewers have questioned whether the old favourites like Ric, Elliot and Sacha have been slightly sidelined in favour of the new faces. What are your thoughts?
"Well, Holby City runs for 52 hours a year and you have certain storylines which are the focus at any one time. So for a long time we've been focusing on bedding in Sahira - working on the triangle of Sahira, Greg and Hanssen. We've also been bedding in Malick's character with Dan and Chrissie. So it's just the nature of these shows - some characters take more of the foreground for a while, but the others are still around. There are definitely still plans for all of them. For Sacha, we'll be exploring whether he'll ever win Chrissie back from Dan. With Ric, we think there might be a nice story with him and Chantelle, where she brings a bit of light into his life. And Elliot also is definitely still part of the show."

> Want more Holby City gossip from Myar? Read the second part of this interview in Soap Scoop.