S26 E31.1 (14 Apr 12) Under Fire by Catrin Clarke
Episode Summary
In a one-off special, CASUALTY travel to Afghanistan to uncover the traumatic events leading up to Sam’s arrival at Holby. As the army medic faces an investigation by the GMC following her forcible restraint of a patient’s relative during mainstream Casualty, the red button episode goes back in time to discover Sam’s dark secret.
CASUALTY transports viewers to Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, where Major Sam Nicholls is the medic on a MERT helicopter. As Sam prepares to return to England on secondment her boyfriend Corporal Dean quizzes her about her motives for returning. Suddenly they’re interrupted by a call on his radio. There’s been a suicide bombing at civilian tea house and, with insurgents still at large, the MERT team must treat as many casualties as they can in ten minutes before the helicopter leaves.
As Sam treats a severely-injured little boy, Hassan, he points to the back of the tea house where his father Saleh lies injured. Amidst further blasts, Sam risks her life to treat the patient. But as Saleh starts to act in an agitated fashion and reaches for a device in his pocket, Sam makes a split-second decision which has life-changing consequences. How do the events affect Sam’s state of mind? Just what is the situation with Corporal Ian Dean? And what will be the impact of the events on Sam’s long-term future?
Notable Facts
* This is a special red-button episode, also broadcast on BBCi Player following S26 E31 that was screened on television.
