Doc Martin Series 5

[Perdita]

Monday, 19 September 2011, 9:00PM - 10:00PM
Episode Two

With the departure of Dr Dibbs, Dr Ellingham moves back into his old surgery, agreeing to stay for a couple of months until a replacement can be appointed.

Determined to get to grips with fatherhood he asks Louisa to move into his house so he can help to raise their child. He even suggests that Louisa and ‘baby’ could move to London with him.

Louisa reluctantly agrees to move into the doc’s house, and offers to help with reception duties, as the previous receptionist, Pauline has left. But Louisa is none too sure about the move to London. She had hoped to resume her career as headmistress of the village school.

Villagers pack the village church for the funeral of the doc’s Aunt Joan. They are shocked when Martin’s eulogy becomes a health warning about the dangers to the heart of eating the wrong food.

Aunt Joan’s sister Ruth Ellingham (Eileen Atkins) attends the funeral and demonstrates the same cantankerous character as her nephew. She has no more intention of staying in Portwenn than Martin does. But Joan has left her the house and farm.

[Chloe O'brien]

I hate to spoil everyone's joy at the return of Doc Martin, but I think it's up against the new and final series of Spooks.

Sorry my apologies I read in a newspaper that Spooks would begin in two weeks that's why I thought it would be up against Doc Martin but it's not starting until the following week I think.

[Perdita]

Monday, 26 September 2011, 9:00PM - 10:00PM

Episode Three

Sleepless nights are taking their toll on Dr Martin Ellingham and Louisa Glasson. Tempers are frayed as they try to find ways to comfort their constantly wailing baby.

Just as they manage to get him off to sleep, Buddy, the dog who thinks Martin is his best pal, barks and wakes the baby. Exasperated Martin scoops up the little dog and takes him to Aunt Ruth.

Aunt Ruth has problems of her own: She is dealing with an intruder on the farm who has stolen the hub caps from her car. The thief is identified as Michael Dunwich (Andrew Lee Potts), who lives with his mother Shirley (Miriam Margolyes) on a neighbouring farm.

She decides to pay a visit to mother and son. As a psychiatrist it soon becomes clear to Ruth that Michael is a bit odd. He has a collection of metal objects strewn around the garden. Ruth catches him taking pot shots at her hubcaps.

Shirley makes an appointment with Martin to discuss the crippling stomach pains she has been suffering. When her son is out of the room, Shirley tells the doc she thinks her son is trying to poison her so he can have the house to himself.

New receptionist Morwenna Newcross (Jessica Ransom) fails to make a good impression on the doc by arriving late on her first day. Her grandfather William (Peter Vaughan) gives her some ‘magic pills’ to make sure she is on time, and bright as a button at work.

The pills make Morwenna hyperactive and the doc sacks her alleging she is high on drugs.
It is only when William collapses with a suspected heart attack that the doc discovers the ‘magic pills’ he and his granddaughter have been taking are actually methamphetamines which were given to soldiers during the war to keep them alert. William appeals to the doc to give Morwenna another chance.

The results of the tests on Shirley Dunwich show a heavy concentration of arsenic in her system. The doc immediately calls PC Penhale (John Marquez) suspecting that Shirley is actually being poisoned by her son. There’s a real crime for Penhale to deal with at last, but he seems less than confident about how to proceed.

When they arrive at the Dunwich farm they find Ruth trying to help Shirley, and Michael wielding a gun. The gun goes off and Penhale thinks he has been shot. It is the doc who manages to calm the situation and seize the gun.

Martin also notices the odour from old wallpaper in the house. He realises the copper arsenate from the old wallpaper which Michael had started to strip had produced deadly fumes and caused Shirley’s illness.

[Perdita]

Monday, 3 October 2011, 9:00PM - 10:00PM
Drama


It’s Portwenn Fun Day and the village is buzzing with excitement about this major fund raising event. PC Penhale is in his element rallying the runners and whipping up support.

The event sparks culinary rivalry between Bert Large (Ian McNeice) who runs Large’s restaurant with son Al (Joe Absolom) and Mark (Tim Goodman Hill), the landlord of the Crab and Lobster pub. They are both keen to take advantage of the day to boost their takings by providing food for the runners and spectators.

The ‘seafood soiree’ and cut price drinks at the Crab and Lobster look set to win the culinary competition. Bert smells a rat. He suspects Mark is selling duty free booze, and calls in PC Penhale to investigate.

But the doc puts paid to Mark’s enterprise when he diagnoses an infection which means he must not handle food, and bans him from going into the kitchen. Bert seizes the opportunity to take over the ‘soiree’.

Louisa’s mum Eleanor (Louise Jameson) arrives in Portwenn unexpectedly. Louisa is far from happy about her arrival. She hasn’t seen her mother for years, so why the sudden interest?

Martin is even less pleased to see Louisa’s hippyish mother, who takes over his kitchen to cook up a herbal tonic. Eleanor takes great delight in her grandson, and offers to babysit.

Martin and Louisa are puzzled to find their previously wailing baby is sound asleep, and continues to sleep through his feed times. Eleanor confesses she gave him a drop of her herbal brew to soothe him. Martin points out that the concoction has alcohol content, which explains why the baby has been sleeping so much.

Louisa asks her mother to leave. But Eleanor manages to win her round, and she relents.

[Perdita]

Monday, 10 October 2011, 9:00PM - 10:00PM

Episode Five

PC Joe Penhale (John Marquez) has an unexpected visitor- his ex wife Maggie (Julie Graham). She appears to have completely forgotten that they split up a couple of years ago.

When he tries to tell her they are no longer married she accuses him of over-reacting, and wants to know why he packed his bags and left her.

Joe struggles with a mixture of distress and elation at seeing Maggie again. He has thought about her every day since they parted.

He realises she is clearly not well, especially when she tells him she thinks it is April 2008, and that she woke up to find him gone, when she has actually been living with another man since their split. He tries discreetly to ask Dr Ellingham about her symptoms without telling him that he is talking about his ex wife.

Joe is terrified of losing Maggie again, and wants to make the most of every moment of being back together. He arranges a romantic evening for them at the local restaurant, Large’s, only to find Dr Ellingham and Louisa there. When Louisa invites Joe and Maggie to join them, the doctor quickly spots that Maggie has a problem, and is showing symptoms of transient global amnesia. He tells Joe and Maggie he will arrange urgent brain scans for her to determine the diagnosis. For Joe his hopes of their marriage working again are dashed.

It looks as if romance may be in the air for Louisa’s mother Eleanor. She meets an old school friend, Paul (John Duttine), a local fisherman who takes her out on a date.

But the relationship is strictly business, as Louisa discovers when Paul collapses on his boat and falls overboard. Paul has stopped breathing and the doctor has to give mouth to mouth to resuscitate him. Eleanor shows such a lack of compassion for the poor man’s condition she is forced to explain to her daughter that she’d struck a deal with a Spanish company to supply seafood, and Paul has been working all hours to meet the demand.

Morwenna arrives at work with blood dripping from her foot after standing on a nail. The doctor grimaces at the sight of the blood and fights the nausea rising in his throat as he treats the wound. He is about to give Morwenna a tetanus injection when she disappears from the surgery. She confesses she’s scared of needles.

Martin and Louisa’s baby still doesn’t have a name, and PC Penhale warns them that time is running out. If they don’t register a name for the baby soon the State will step in and name the baby. After protracted discussions the couple finally reaches an agreement; their baby son is named James Henry.

[Perdita]

Monday, 17 October 2011, 9:00PM - 10:00PM

PC Joe Penhale is desperate to keep Maggie and show her he’s changed; that he’s the macho husband she wants. But once she has the all clear from the doctor, Maggie plans to return to Bude.

Penhale resorts to desperate measures to convince her to stay, including surreptitiously paying people to be nasty to her so he can step in and assert his authority, and show her he can be tough. His subterfuge almost works. But a final effort at bravado in trying to climb a ladder to rescue school caretaker Mr Coley (Brian Pettifer) from the roof fails miserably. When he is frozen with fear half way up the ladder, Maggie is very disappointed, and Penhale knows he has blown it with her.

Mr Coley has become increasingly muddled, and has put the children at risk by spraying poisonous fertiliser. He becomes so confused that he decides to climb onto the school roof, and doesn’t know why he’s there. Seeing Mr Coley swaying precariously on the roof, Dr Martin Ellingham bravely scales the ladder to rescue him. The root of Mr Coley’s problem lies in his potting shed where a paraffin heater has been giving off toxic fumes.

Aunt Ruth uncovers a chest of family heirlooms when she clears out a barn at the farm, including photos as Martin as a six year old schoolboy. The photos bring back poignant memories of an unhappy childhood for Martin.

It prompts Martin to think of registering James Henry for boarding school. But Louisa is horrified at the thought of sending their son miles away to school.

Tension is mounting between Louisa and Martin. They can’t seem to agree on anything, from the schooling for their son, to what to cook for supper. The final straw for Louisa comes when she discovers Martin has set a date for their baby’s christening without even consulting her. Louisa decides she has had enough. She packs a bag, and takes the baby back home to her mum.

[Perdita]

Monday, 24 October 2011, 9:00PM - 10:00PM

Episode Seven

Bert Large’s restaurant business is financial trouble. He can’t even afford the food and drink for a charity event to raise money for Florence Dingle’s (Anne Reid) cat sanctuary. Mrs Dingle is distraught. She desperately needs the money to continue to look after the cats and kittens in her care.

Bert is also being chased by loan sharks Alastair Tonken (Alan Williams) and his son Norman (Marcus Cunningham) for the repayment of £1000 they gave him to clear his debts, warning of repercussions if he doesn’t pay up. Al is furious with his father for losing all their money and bringing them to the verge of bankruptcy. Bert blames Al for spending too much time working for Ruth instead of helping him with the restaurant.

When Ruth gives Al £800 to pay for the fencing on the farm he decides to use the money to pay back the some of the loan, even though he is wracked by guilt. Bert and Al manage to scrape together another £200 and present the cash to the Tonkens. But Alastair Tonken tells them they still owe him another £350 for interest and late payment charge.

Al says it is time they stood up to the loan sharks and refuse to pay - but just to be on the safe side they want to enrol the help of village police officer Joe Penhale. But PC Penhale says he can’t help them, it is a civil not a criminal matter.

Bert and Al confront the loan sharks just as they are approaching Mrs Dingley to pressure her for the money they loaned to her. But Mrs Dingley has fallen off her bike and is lapsing in and out of consciousness, with the doctor and Penhale in attendance.

The row between the Tonkens and the Larges becomes so heated that Penhale has to step in to break them up. Summoning up all his authority Penhale tells the Tonkens to leave the village and never come back.

Eleanor comes to Bert’s rescue with a plan to boost custom at the restaurant. She tells him she used to run a very successful bar in Andalucia, and suggests they have a Spanish theme night to attract customers.

She rolls up her sleeves and begins preparing for the Spanish feast. But she begins to feel very ill and Louisa insists she must see the doc. He diagnoses a strangulated hernia, and says she needs an urgent operation. Morwenna calls an ambulance, but when it goes to the wrong village, the Doc decides there is no alternative: he must operate now on Eleanor in his surgery or she could die.

He deftly demonstrates his expertise as a surgeon. Without doubt his swift treatment saves Eleanor’s life.

Dr Martin Ellingham is planning to leave Portwenn in a week’s time to resume his career as a surgeon, leaving Louisa and their baby son James Henry in the village.

They have their baby’s christening to organise before he leaves. But as usual the doc shows little interest in the event, leaving it all to Louisa.

[Perdita]

Monday, 31 October 2011, 9:00PM - 10:00PM
Drama


Mrs Tishell’s (Selina Cadell) long standing crush on Dr Martin Ellingham takes a dramatic turn in this final episode in the series.

Fuelled by a cocktail of drugs Mrs Tishell can no longer hide her unrequieted love for the doc, and decides she must take drastic action. Her husband Clive (Malcolm Storry) arrives back unexpectedly from his work on the oil rigs announcing his intention to retire so they can spend more time together.

It’s now or never for Mrs Tishell to make her romantic notions of a relationship with the doc come true. With baby James Henry in her care, she boards a bus out of the village leaving an enigmatic message for Dr Ellingham to meet them at the castle.

Her husband Clive is furious to think his wife has been having an affair with the doc. But Dr Ellingham doesn’t have time to worry about Mr Tishell’s fury. He has to find his baby.

Dr Ellingham is joined by Louisa, who is beside herself with worry, and his Aunt Ruth, as they go off in search of Mrs Tishell. PC Penhale is called in; he can barely contain his excitement at having a real crime to deal with.

They race to the Castle Hotel where they think Mrs Tishell is, but there’s no sign of her. Mrs Tishell then phones him, but refuses to say where she is. All she will say is that he sent a couple to her to tell her where to meet him.

Martin guesses she is referring to a honeymoon couple who had sought treatment from him earlier in the day. A hasty call to Morwenna reveals the couple were staying at Pentire Castle, a magnificent house perched high on a cliff edge with spectacular views of the sea. The perfect romantic rendezvous.

Mrs Tishell is watching from a window high up in the castle when Martin arrives. With the baby in her arms she looks perilously close to jumping out of the window.

With her background as a psychologist Aunt Ruth urges her nephew to stay calm, and not do or say anything to make Mrs Tishell do anything dangerous. With Louisa urging him to pretend he does love Mrs Tishell, Martin launches into a heartfelt appeal to Mrs Tishell about how he can’t leave the village because of her, he loves her, and begs her for another chance.

It is soon apparent that his words were not meant for Mrs Tishell at all, and that he was actually directing them to Louisa. But Mrs Tishell falls for it and rushes to kiss him. He snatches the baby from her, leaving her shocked to see Louisa and Ruth beside him.

PC Penhale who has been trying to scale the wall to try out his negotiating tactics on Mrs Tishell, eventually arrives to arrest her. But Aunt Ruth insists Mrs Tishell needs psychological help, and gently leads her away.

[Glen1]

Sadly the end of another good series, hope it returns. In the current series episode 1, a two years earlier sign was shown , I wonder if series 5 will finish bringing the whole series up to date ?

[alan45]

The nation’s favourite grumpy medic, Doc Martin, with his tactless and brusque bedside manner and a phobia of blood, is returning to ITV1 next year.

　
Martin Clunes will reprise his role as Dr. Martin Ellingham in eight new episodes of the enormously successful drama produced by Buffalo Pictures and set in the idyllic, sleepy hamlet of Port Wenn in Cornwall.

　
Filming will begin next spring on location in picturesque Port Isaac with all regular members of the cast returning to the popular series.
　
　
Doc Martin averaged 10.6 million viewers and a 37% share of the audience and peaked at 10.9 million when it last screened on ITV1 in 2010. Audience figures since the series was introduced in 2004 have averaged in excess of 9 million viewers.

　
Returning to the series, Caroline Catz will play Doc Martin’s long-suffering love interest and local schoolteacher, Louisa Glasson, who had a baby boy, James, with the doctor during the last series and is desperately trying to make a go of their relationship in spite of Martin’s tendency to be incredibly rude and obstinate.

　
Eileen Atkins plays Doc Martin’s no-nonsense, formidable Auntie Ruth who splendidly berates her nephew for his lack of personal skills, but clearly possesses his personality traits. She doesn’t suffer fool’s, just like her nephew, and doesn’t think twice about taking on her neighbours and creating confrontation.

　
Ian McNeice returns as local restaurateur and handyman, Bert Large, a character he has played from the beginning of the series. His tolerant and loveable son Al, played by Joe Absolom, who frequently has to cope with his fair share of Bert’s madcap schemes, will also reprise his role.

　
John Marquez has played eccentric local police officer PC Joe Penhale, who often panics when faced with an emergency, since series three. John returns for the new series and will no doubt create more problems than he solves as he attempts to instill law and order into the community.

　
Jessica Ransom, who became the doctor’s latest receptionist, Morwenna Newcross, in the last series, also returns to create chaos in the surgery and hopefully keep the doctor in line.

　
"I’m thrilled to be going back to the beautiful North Cornish coast to shoot series six of Doc Martin," said Martin. "Our challenge this season will be to force Louisa and the doctor to live together with Baby James which as far as I can see has disaster written all over it…..And then there’s the dog and Dame Eileen but not necessarily in that order!"

　
Created by Dominic Minghella, who gifted the main character Martin Ellingham with his surname as an anagram of his own, Doc Martin was an instant success and hit with viewers, winning a place in the hearts of the audience despite Doc Martin’s lack of social skills.

　
Philippa Braithwaite will produce the series and Mark Crowdy will executive produce.

　
Doc Martin has been recommissioned for ITV1 by Drama commissioning team Laura Mackie and Sally Haynes.

　
"Doc Martin is one of our most loved and valued dramas and I’m so pleased that we’re returning to Port Wenn to spend more time with the irascible Doctor, his family and patients," said Laura.

　
Doc Martin is screened worldwide including in Africa, Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Italy, Russia, Malaysia, Mexico, Poland, Sweden, Uruguay and Venezuela amongst other countries.