Series six of the nostalgic medical drama set in St Aidan's Royal Free Hospital, Elinsby, continues and sees the Heartbeat spin-off cast off any connection to the rural drama set just up the road in Aidensfield.

The ITV1 series opened with shades of Wild At Heart, with Dr Jeff Goodwin (ex Coronation Street actor Paul Fox) working as a missionary in war-torn Biafra (a short-lived country in south-east Nigeria). And the end of the last instalment, we saw him fall for a beautiful French doctor and leave The Royal to follow his heart.

Elsewhere at The Royal, hospital administrator Adam Carnegie (Robert Cavanah) was stunned to learn from Matron (Wendy Craig) that nurse Deane (Amelia Curtis) was pregnant. While he was stressing about whether or not he's the father, firm friends Stella (Natalie Anderson) and Lizzie (Michelle Hardwick) fought for the affections of one man. But worse was to come for Stella when she suffered a harrowing rape ordeal.

Then Dr Goodwin's replacement, Dr Mike Banner (Sam Callis) turned up at The Royal. And he soon ruffled a few feathers, particularly senior partner Dr Gordon Ormerod's (Robert Daws). Sam says: "He doesn't wear a suit and tie, so his colleagues don't think he's very good at his job! He does come up against people like Ormerod, who has a very specific way of working, but by the end they reach a kind of mutual respect."

As the next dose of drama unfolds, Stella is still feeling vulnerable after her attack, so the last thing she wants is a new room mate in the shape of Nurse Marian McKaig (Kari Corbett). Meanwhile, Dr Banner gets stuck into his rounds and is soon faced with an angry father who refuses to let his daughter recieve treatment. Elsewhere, Mr Middleditch returns to The Royal - but he soon becomes wary of the changes Carnegie has been making.

Can Stella and Nurse Marian become firm friends? Will Dr Banner fit into The Royal? And will Middleditch and Carnegie be able to see eye-to-eye?

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