In 1972, ITV started to broadcast programmes on weekday afternoons, triggering a new wave of productions to fill in the extended schedules. Among the first of these shows, which were aimed at giving advertisers access to
housewives, were the long-running rural soap
Emmerdale Farm (
YTV) and the twice-weekly medical drama
General Hospital. Set in a fictional
Midlands town, the series followed the romantic and professional lives of its doctors and nurses. While the location and the characters names had been changed, in most other respects
General Hospital was almost identical to its predecessor,
Emergency Ward 10, a deliberate attempt to recreate its success. In 1975, after 270 twice-weekly episodes,
General Hospital was given a prime time slot on Friday evening. The move saw the episode lengths double from 30 to 60 minutes, with each episode being more self-contained, while on-screen
medical procedures, including detailed scenes of surgery, became more prominent. Amongst the regular cast of the series was actor
Tony Adams who played Doctor Neville Bywaters; he also appeared as Adam Chance in
Crossroads. Among the other familiar faces to appear was
Lynda Bellingham, who later was later cast as the mother in a series of
commercials for
Oxo stock cubes, and later as Helen Herriot in the series
All Creatures Great and Small, based on the books by
James Herriot. Other regulars included
Carmen Munroe, who was also a regular presenter in the
Play School children's programme team; and a young
Sally Knyvette, who went on to appear in ''
Blake's 7 and Emmerdale Farm''. By 1979, the "homely" feel of
General Hospital was considered to be old-fashioned in the wake of newer, grittier dramas, and it was cancelled. Many episodes are missing from television archives. ==Cast list==