Casualty fan, 7, saves brother with TV technique

Seven-year-old Cavan Day's parents are reaping the rewards of allowing their son to stay up watching telly on Saturday evenings.

While playing in the garden with his younger brother, Ethan, aged two, Cavan's love of BBC medical drama Casualty played a crucial role in helping dislodge a ball that had become stuck in his brother's throat.

The boys' mum, Sarah, had been chatting to her neighbour when Ethan began choking on the 1.5 inch ball. Quick-thinking Cavan from Shrivenam, Swindon thumped his brother between the shoulder blades as part of the first steps of the Heimlich manoeuvre and managed to dislodge the item...

"I saw a scene on Casualty once where someone was choking on something and I just remembered what to do when I saw Ethan with the ball in his mouth," Cavan, who wants to be a paramedic when he grows up, told The Sun.

"I love Casualty because I want to be a paramedic and I watch it to see how to treat people. I want to be a paramedic because you get to drive an ambulance and bring the trolley in - that's my favourite bit."

Cavan's fascination with all things medical began when his fire fighter father, Derek brought home a doctor's bag. Since then his parents have encouraged his interest.

"That's when it all started," says Sarah. "Cavan has always been obsessed by Casualty. He knows it's all fake so we just monitor the content and don't let him watch anything too gory.

"He just loves the medical side of things. He's already told us he wants to be a paramedic and when he's old enough we'll let him join St John Ambulance. I'm so proud of him."