The Nation's Health

A grim, talk-heavy plunge into institutional decay, watching idealism erode under bureaucracy and self-interest.

Created by

G.F. Newman

Genres

Drama

Starring

Vivienne Ritchie, Julian Fox, Ian McDiarmid

Overview

The Nation's Health is a 4 episode series written by G.F.Newman based on his book of the same name, originally broadcast on the fledgling Channel 4 UK TV channel in 1983. The series consists of four episodes that are, in order, titled: Acute, Decline, Chronic, and Collapse. In it we are faced with a maelstrom of political issues, illnesses, fatalities, personal greed and professional vanities. As may be clear from these titles, the series draws a relentlessly bleak view of the NHS in 1980s Britain. The protagonist of the series is a newly-qualified doctor, Jessie Marvill (Vivienne Ritchie). The series follows Jessie through four different sectors of the NHS, although the episodes are not focused entirely through Jessie: the NHS is seen from a variety of different perspectives, from doctors and patients to administrators and kitchen staff.

How it feels

Bleak, cynical, tense and melancholic. Slow-burning and demanding.

About

Corruption, power, class, work

Content

Mild violence, gore, sexual content and language.

Note

Written by AI, so it can be wrong. Full breakdown

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