Dr Willoughby
Encyclopedia
Dr Willoughby is a British sitcom
broadcast on ITV
from 14 November - 13 December 1999.
The show was set on the set of a fictional soap opera
, also called Dr Willoughby and followed the often over dramatic storylines and the personal lives of the cast and crew.
Joanna Lumley
plays Donna Sinclair, who plays the fictional part of Dr Willoughby. Donna is less than popular with her co-stars and her producer and gets less fanmail than anyone else, including new cast member Crystal and long standing co-star Ralph Whatman.
Ralph Whatman is the male lead in Dr Willoughby and whenever Donna Sinclair has bad publicity or is heading for a fall he wastes no time in trying to make the show his own.
Emma Goodliffe is the shows producer, unable to cope with the stress she is begging to be removed from the show. She is even heard in one episode to be applying for a job in a supermarket only to be told she is over qualified.
Crystal is the new girl, she is receiving more fan mail than Donna after just two weeks on the show, something which Donna cannot stand. She demands that producer Emma remove her from the show but her request is rejected leading to Donna to advise Crystal not to wear a bra in order to put off her male fans.
Andy is the shows runner, he is at the beck and call of Donna. When Donna takes a shine to a new actor, she is furious when she walks into a store cupboard only to find that Andy is in there with him.
Dr Willoughby was originally broadcast in 1999 on ITV in the UK, it lasted for just one series of 6 episodes and has never been repeated or released on DVD or VHS. It was produced by Witzend Productions.
It was produced by Tony Charles and directed by David Skinner
British sitcom
A British sitcom tends, as it does in most other countries, to be based on a family, workplace or other institution, where the same group of contrasting characters is brought together in each episode. Unlike American sitcoms, where twenty or more episodes in a season is the norm, British sitcoms...
broadcast on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
from 14 November - 13 December 1999.
The show was set on the set of a fictional soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, also called Dr Willoughby and followed the often over dramatic storylines and the personal lives of the cast and crew.
Joanna Lumley
Joanna Lumley
Joanna Lamond Lumley, OBE, FRGS is a British actress, voice-over artist, former-model and author, best known for her roles in British television series Absolutely Fabulous portraying Edina Monsoon's best friend, Patsy Stone, as well as parts in The New Avengers, Sapphire & Steel, and Sensitive...
plays Donna Sinclair, who plays the fictional part of Dr Willoughby. Donna is less than popular with her co-stars and her producer and gets less fanmail than anyone else, including new cast member Crystal and long standing co-star Ralph Whatman.
Ralph Whatman is the male lead in Dr Willoughby and whenever Donna Sinclair has bad publicity or is heading for a fall he wastes no time in trying to make the show his own.
Emma Goodliffe is the shows producer, unable to cope with the stress she is begging to be removed from the show. She is even heard in one episode to be applying for a job in a supermarket only to be told she is over qualified.
Crystal is the new girl, she is receiving more fan mail than Donna after just two weeks on the show, something which Donna cannot stand. She demands that producer Emma remove her from the show but her request is rejected leading to Donna to advise Crystal not to wear a bra in order to put off her male fans.
Andy is the shows runner, he is at the beck and call of Donna. When Donna takes a shine to a new actor, she is furious when she walks into a store cupboard only to find that Andy is in there with him.
Dr Willoughby was originally broadcast in 1999 on ITV in the UK, it lasted for just one series of 6 episodes and has never been repeated or released on DVD or VHS. It was produced by Witzend Productions.
It was produced by Tony Charles and directed by David Skinner
Cast
Several episodes are available on Youtube and the following cast credits are taken from this.- Joanna Lumley - Donna Sinclair
- Brian ProtheroeBrian ProtheroeBrian Protheroe , of a Welsh father and English mother, is a musician and actor.-Career:Protheroe joined a local church choir when he was twelve years old, and started piano lessons at about the same time. The music of Cliff Richard and The Shadows inspired him to start learning the guitar...
- Ralph Whatman - Isobel Middleton - Emma Goodliffe
- Paula Bacon - Crystal Reynolds
- Ian Puleston-Davies - Steve Lipton
- Gillian Barge - Mrs Ajax
- Tanya Moodie - Geraldine
- Ursula Holden Gill - Gill
- Scott Hickman - Andy
- Michelle Joseph - Kelly
Episodes
All episodes were broadcast at 22:00 on ITV every Monday apart from the first episode which aired on a Sunday.- 1. Fan Mail (14 November 1999)
- 2. Young Pretender (15 November 1999)
- 3. Family Wedding (22 November 1999)
- 4. Speculation (29 November 1999)
- 5. Scandal (6 December 1999)
- 6. Awards (13 December 1999)