<P> McHale wrote the series' first episode, and served as the show's lead writer . His 2006 promotion to executive producer was part of a bid by Controller of BBC Drama Production John Yorke to "put writers back at the heart of the process". Yorke called McHale's promotion "fantastic", explaining: "It means that for the first time you've got a writer running one of our big powerhouse BBC1 shows ." Following McHale's resignation, his replacement as lead writer was Justin Young, who intends to introduce a more writer - led commissioning process from series 13 onwards, with writers creating more of the theme and story of their episodes than was previously the case . </P> <P> To ensure accuracy in scriptwriting, the serial employs a team of researchers to advise writers on nursing issues and health service politics . One medical advisor was given a cameo role in the series as an orthopaedic surgeon, and another, recovery nurse Rachel Carter, appears in Holby City as a scrub nurse . Another adviser, a heart surgeon, has occasionally left open - heart surgery to advise Holby City writers over the telephone . The programme utilises surgeons from different disciplines, who check scripts for accuracy . Carter believes this is particularly important in case viewers copy procedures they have seen in the show, such as CPR . Series star Amanda Mealing commented: "We pride ourselves on being realistic . You need to know what you are doing and why . It is a complex and foreign thing to act out an operation . For training, I watched a number of real ones ." Cast members are taught how to give realistic injections, monitor blood pressure and check a pulse, and some are given the opportunity to observe procedures in real hospitals . Original cast member George Irving observed coronary artery bypass surgery performed at Papworth and Middlesex Hospital in preparation for his role as Anton Meyer, while Edward MacLiam observed laparoscopic surgery being performed before joining the cast as Greg Douglas in series twelve . </P> <P> Holby City and Casualty are both set in Holby City Hospital, in the fictional county of Wyvern, in the southwest of England close to the Welsh border . The city exterior is represented by Bristol, though Holby City is filmed at BBC Elstree Centre in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire . The Casualty set in Bristol was not large enough to encompass the surgical ward and operating theatre required for Holby City, and as a result, some crossover scenes in the first episode had to be shot twice, first on the Casualty set and then again at Elstree, with cast members travelling between the two locations . In October 2007, BBC cutbacks led The Daily Telegraph to report that the Elstree site would be sold, and Holby City relocated to share a set with Casualty, possibly in Cardiff . In March 2009, the BBC confirmed that Casualty would move to a new set in Cardiff, however in the following month, The Guardian announced that the BBC would retain Elstree Studios for at least another four years . </P> <P> Several episodes of the series have been shot on location abroad . In 2004, the romance between nurse Jess Griffin (Verona Joseph) and anaesthetist Zubin Khan (Art Malik) culminated in an episode set in Paris . The following year, registrar Diane Lloyd (Patricia Potter) followed consultant Ric Griffin (Hugh Quarshie) to Ghana as part of the BBC's "Africa lives" series, a week of programmes bringing an exploration of African culture to UK audiences . In 2006, an episode shot in Switzerland featured consultant Elliot Hope's (Paul Bradley) wife Gina (Gillian Bevan) committing assisted suicide after her motor neurone disease worsened . A 2007 episode filmed in Dubai focussed on Holby registrars Jac Naylor (Rosie Marcel) and Joseph Byrne (Luke Roberts) meeting new nurse Faye Morton (Patsy Kensit), and in 2008, Joseph and consultant Linden Cullen (Duncan Pow) travelled to Cape Town when Faye experienced difficulties there . Series producer Diana Kyle stated in November 2008 that due to major BBC budget cuts, the series would not be filming abroad again for the "foreseeable future". However, in an episode screened on 8 January 2013, Jac Naylor travelled to Stockholm, Sweden to track down Henrik Hanssen and convince him to return to Holby . She succeeded and Hanssen returned to the hospital and resumed his role . </P>

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