The doors of Holby City Hospital opened on January 12 1999 as a spin-off from the long-running drama Casualty – and the trials and tribulations of the staff and patients have set viewers’ pulses racing ever since.

Like Casualty before it, Holby City has produced some of TV’s best-loved characters – or, in the case of unforgiving surgical consultant Anton Meyer, characters we love to hate! And let’s not forget ladies’ man, consultant Nick Jordan and ball-breaking clinical lead Connie Beauchamp.

As well as having to deal with the clinical and ethical issues of running a busy hospital, the staff of Holby have had their own fair share of personal problems – not least Tom Campbell-Gore’s alcoholism, Ric’s gambling addiction and Trisha’s cancer trauma.

Then there’s the love triangles: first of all clinical matron Chrissie Williams cheated on consultant obstetrician Owen Davis with registrar Ed Keating – before Owen decided to keep it in the family by having an affair with her mum! And viewers were kept on tenterhooks wondering who SHO Sam Kennedy would go for – dependable surgeon Ric Griffin or sexy surgical registrar Alex Adams?

Holby City has made household names of many of its stars and many special guests have stumbled through the doors of Holby City Hospital, including Eric Sykes, Phill Jupitus and Ronnie Ancona.

There’s plenty more drama to come Darwin and Keller wards in 2007. Will motherhood soften Connie? And how will Mark cope without Tricia? Log on to whatsontv.co.uk to keep up with all the latest goings on…