Oh, I agree. I also felt that it was more to emphasise her fragile state of mind. The bit I couldn't understand was that they had clearly been building towards a romantic plot with Raf for months, and surely that would have been the best context within which to explore her fragile state of mind, rather than via a swift move to Darwin. It had seemed to be the end purpose of her whole storyline so far.

I get the feeling that there have been a lot of sudden u turns in plot direction and writing lately. I know I mentioned previously that I think Digby and Morven were originally intended to be a longer term will they/won't they plot with Digby to stay on AAU for a longer period, but I can understand the swift u turn, (resolving the romantic plot very quickly and rushing him back to Keller) in that case if Ostlere handed his notice in with several months left to plot his departure.

I really didn't get why Adele was moved to Keller for all of a few weeks and then back to Darwin, without explanation, for the final few episodes before her departure. I am presuming now that that was also for the purposes of putting her back with Mo and in her most lengthy habitat before she departed. In several weeks they rushed through her suddenly being qualified, moving back to Darwin, getting a job on neuro and then in the space of one episode deciding to leave. You would almost think that there was relatively late notice on Petra's departure and they had limited time to fit everything in, it all happened so quickly.

Likewise, with Jesse's character, they seem to be jumping around all over the place: changing direction, moving him between wards, changing his profession etc, every few episodes! They really don't seem to know what to do with him, which is a shame as Gillet is a fine actor.

Speaking of which; did they forget that Adele and Jesse were ever meant to be getting married?!? There has literally barely been a passing reference to it from the wedding day she jilted him on. The lack of effect it seems to have had upon either character is entirely unrealistic. He wasn't even mentioned in her leaving episode.

Have they been building to a Cara/Raf romance for months? I don't think they have. There was one episode recently where they both seemed interested in each other, but I think that was to give some sort of buildup to this one so it didn't come out of nowhere. Before that, I never saw it. Cara and Raf got on well, had a good professional and personal relationship with each other, and he was involved in the Jed storyline, but that doesn't mean anything. Just because a woman opens up to a man and trusts him, that doesn't mean they're romantically interested, does it? There are lots of platonic male/female friendships. Obviously in this case it turned out that they were interested in each other, but I'd say the recent episode that made that obvious was the first time it was properly suggested.

Rob Ostlere gave his notice with several months to spare? I'm amazed he didn't just go home at the end of a filming day and not return next day, seeing as the producers obviously think that's how people normally leave their jobs.

As for Adele... I don't know this for certain (correct me if anyone knows better) but I feel like they may have decided to just pull the plug on her, rather than Petra Letang choosing to leave. You can't deny that they really tried to make the character work when she didn't take off straight away, but no matter what they've done she's been more and more disliked. I don't find it hard to believe that one of the producers said, 'Sorry guys, but Adele just isn't working out, the viewers simply hate her' and they just wanted to give her as quick an exit as possible so they could get back to focussing on other characters.

I quite liked the Cara/Raf plot. I felt it gave a natural, satisfying temporary resolution to the will they/won't they which can't go on forever treading water without becoming annoying. Always with these things, after a while, they either have to get them together (which leads to a break up soon afterwards usually because together, happoy couples are boring), an artificial complication is brought in to stop them getting together (like Bonnie and then the custody case for Janny) or it is just on the back burner with no explanation so viewers don't know what is going on (like Zollie for several months last Autumn).

What they'?e done here is confirm the status of the relationship - that they are attracted to each other and care very much, indeed care so much they don't want to risk hurting each other by entering into it properly when one of them is still emotionally vulnerable and confused due to the break up of their marriage. But they hope (plan) to continue the relationship in time.

It's unusually adult for a couple in a Soap and makes me root for them more (always quite liked both characters and think they do have some chemistry although i wouldn't say i 'ship' them per se - but then i rarely ship any couples - Jac and Joseph and then Jac and Jonny are the only ones) but not be impatient that nothing happens quickly.

Re changing wards, i think it is just a changing of the guard thing as it is the mid point of the season so they want to take things in new directions. And as they won't be continuing her and Raf anytime soon (it appears) they might as well try her out with new characters.

Thanks everyone for your sympathies.

I think there have been indications from very early on that there was an attraction between Raf and Cara. Of course people can just get on but i think there were indications there was more to it than that but it was largely left unspoken because of the situations they were in. Raf recently out of a long marriage (they were supposed to have been together since university so he will have been out of practice at 'courting') which ended badly so vulnerable and Cara first in a long distance marriage (on the rigs) and then them learning the truth that he was undercover Police, corrupt and had been cheating. I'd say Raf's involvement in that was more than just friendship, Jed certainly thought there was more to it, hence beating the crap out of Raf.

I do suspect that maybe some of the cast either haven't given as much notice as usual or the Producers have decided not to offer new contracts fairly late in the day for the reasons Little Star had outlined and also their tenures being quite odd lengths. Generally characters are in (give or take a couple of weeks) for multiple of years - one, two, three, five years because that is the length of contracts. But Adele has gone after 2 years, 3 months, assuming Arthur goes when we think he is going to (late Spring/early summer) it will be 3 and a half years. That isn't unheard of but usually you can see a storyline reason - Jonny went after 2 years and 9 months but I think they probably let him go early so he could leave with Jac and they had no control over when Rosie Marcel would have to go on Maternity Leave. In this case, I'm wondering if the decision was made, on either side, to go at the end of the two or three year contract late in the day (so it hadn't been part of the original storylining) but they were asked to stay on for another 3 or 6 months so they could be written out properly but it has still been rushed.

I'm still not convinced that Jesse is going, i think he may just have been on the backburner to allow him to split his time between HC and EE over the last 6 months but will come back now he has finished on EE, which I'm pretty sure he has. But, there is the mystery of him being missing from the photo so who knows.

Of course Jed thought that there was, but I honestly think Jed would have been paranoid about any man that Cara was working closely with, regardless of how likely it was. This mostly stemmed from guilt of his own infidelity, and insecurities surrounding that. It is harder to trust that your partner will remain faithful to you if you yourself have not been faithful - in that circumstance, you can't deny even to yourself that there is a problem with the relationship. Other than Jed's reaction, I can't see exactly what it was about that whole set-up that suggested that they were into each other. Obviously they have turned out to be so maybe the discussion is a bit redundant, but I feel like Cara's attraction to Raf at least has come about more because he was there for her across that situation. There's an indication that even though a genuine attraction exists, Cara is in a frame of mind right now where she's lonely enough to latch onto the nearest reasonably attractive man

I agree with everything else you've said though. It is nice that Raf is being so mature about the whole thing. I didn't start to like Raf until after Amy left (I wasn't his biggest fan even before she arrived). Since she has gone, I've consistently found him both likeable and professional, and I put that down to the fact that there were probably issues in their relationship that were stressing him out even before Harry. If you've been with someone as long as Raf and Amy were together, then if it stops working you'll fight with your own conscience to try to convince yourself that it's still as good as ever, and that is ultimately harmful. Since she's gone, Raf is a lot more content with himself, and he's a lot nicer and more mature for it.

Do you think that together happy couples are boring, or is that just the producers? I personally don't find them that way, it depends on how much believability they have as a couple. There can be lots of storylines that can be done with a couple that are still together - pretty much any major storyline involving one of the characters will by extension involve the other one. Ignoring what has come up in the trailer, I really like Ollie and Zosia together and I think they could work long-term without difficulties. Sacha and Essie I don't like so much (them sneaking off together was stupid) but it's nice that they seem to be keeping them together for a good long while, and it seems to be working out. I find it more boring when storylines are so predictable because they've done them over and over again with different characters, but maybe I'm in the minority there as a TV fan.

I don't think settled couples are boring no - there are a lot of other sources of conflict to make the relationship interesting or, god forbid, in a work based drama like Holby they could just concentrate on the work issues and leave the relationship alone all together except for the odd scene. Which, to be fair, is pretty much what they've done with Sacha and Essie for the last year. There have been odd scenes where we know they are still together and happy but examining things that could become problems but ultimately don't - like whether to try for a baby (Sacha might not want another at his age when he already has 3), her spending time with his children, his family accepting her with her family history.

It's why them introducing Bonnie always annoyed me. Not the character herself, she was interesting enough (if rather annoying) and played by a decent actress but she was so obviously there only as a source of conflict (before and after death) for Janny and whilst i didn't object to them having problems, the baby being sick and then the difficulties of co-parenting, especially with Jac's inevitable doubts about her ability to parent given her upbringing, would and should have been enough. But the Producers just had to ramp up the misery with a triangle and then custody case.

I did think about the idea that Jed is the type of person to get jealous about anybody but he didn't see any issue with Fletch or Digby and I'd say Cara is just as friendly with them, especially fletch. I think that was there for a reason, to indicate an attraction even if they were unaware of it as very often, in my experience other people do spot the signs before the couple have seen it themselves or at least are willing to admit it. It is a common dramatic device to communicate things to the Audience, yes something is there because other characters are commenting on it - especially if the character is one that knows one of the parties very well. Jed knows Cara well so could see it n her as he knows what she was like with him. They did a similar thing a few months in with Janny, having Mo comment that she'd never seen Jonny like this with anybody else, thus telling is the audience that it was serious even though Jonny was making light of it.

So, I.m not disputing that some men (and women) will show jealousy with no just cause, or that some will do it out od displaced guilt over their own infidelity, I don't personally think that was the case here. They have also had Fletch comment on it, as shown in the 'previously' yesterday which was back last year as their Xmas decorations up so even if we only took that as their first indication (and i think it was much earlier than that) it is still at least 3 months ago rather than just a couple of weeks.

Oh I think they definitely have been indicating for quite some time that there was something brewing between Cara and Raf, pretty much from Cara's introduction. I actually thought it to be very blatant. When he was treating the medical student with the facial scars it was clear that she had more than a friendly interest in his relationship status. There were several hints where fletch mentioned to Raf that he thought they'd make a good couple and also teased Cara about her affection for him. There was also a moment where it seemed that they would nearly kiss after Jed beat him up in the changing room and he told her he cared for her.

I actually thought there were more indications of a mutual attraction between them than there ever were between Morven and Digby, until Digby suddenly realised that he reciprocated Morven's feelings and then told her he loved her, all in the space of about two episodes!

I do like both characters. Raf has come into his own lately and I would like to see them resolve it later. When the producer referred to a woman coming between raf and fletch I had presumed it would be Cara, but perhaps it isn't after all.

Yes, it's very possible that Adelle was axed rather than the actress deciding to leave, but either way I think the final decision looks like it was with relatively short notice on whichever side it was.

Yes KitKat the timings for both Petra's and robs contracts do seem different than the usual set yearly contracts so it's likely they either finished a few months earlier than the contract was up, or (more likely in Rob's case) agreed to stay on a few months for a final storyline.

That's exactly how I feel. I like the way Rita and Iain are being handled on Casualty. I groaned when they seemed about to start a relationship, not least because it seemed to come completely out of the blue, but actually I've quite enjoyed it. It's very consistent, but completely on the sidelines and doesn't affect anyone else. It's more like how things are when people get together in the workplace in real life, rather than on a TV show.

What's weird is the absence of Jesse. We all assumed that he had finished filming but they held back his exit to tie in with Adele's, but she's gone and Jesse had but a passing mention. Unless he leaves next week trying to pursue Adele, then maybe Jesse's got a separate leaving story. Or, he's not actually leaving, but just on a break to film Eastenders?

Yes, it is rather odd. I'm presuming now that the gaps were mainly due to his Eastenders filming. However, I am still inclined to think that he is going soon. He

Perhaps his leaving further down the line will in some way coincide with Adele's, given the lack of mention in her leaving. Perhaps Petra has banked scenes with him. Or, of course, their exits may just be entirely unrelated.

Speaking of actors being missing at certain times, does anyone else think that Rosie Marcel may be on reduced working hours since returning from maternity leave? Lately she seems to appear in one episode and then either not at all in the next one, or only for one or two scenes. In a similar way that Hansenn and Ric appear?

I have noticed that we haven't had a single Jac and Sacha scene since Rosie's return from maternity. That is a shame, given that they are such good friends and she has so few genuine allies in the hospital.

Of course, the viewers would have liked it more had she been sacked for gross incompetence. Or if Arthur hadn't quite been quick enough to knock her out of the way of the truck.

(Speaking of which, has anyone ever been killed off right at the start of an episode? They should try it some time... it would be a rubbish send-off for the character, but a real test on everyone else if they're all just starting their shifts, get tragic news and just have to soldier on. It wouldn't have the emotion of someone being killed off at the end, but it would be horribly quick, sudden and final, especially if they managed to keep the exit a deadly secret.)

The form that Self gave her was a late application to resit the "Acting for Beginners 101" course

I really do think that his recent absence has been because of EE. What you have to remember is they don't film in synch, by which I mean HC films further in advance than EE - generally HC is approx 4 months and EE 2 months. His EE scenes started late December and finished late March so would have been filmed Oct to Jan time. What we are currently seeing in Holby would have been filmed Novemberish so same time although of course they can swap schedules around to a certain extent and his EE stuff might have been done in an intensive block as they were all in one temporary set - the Prison.

I really think that he will become more prominent towards the end of the Spring/early Summer tying in with his enforced move to AAU and Rick seeming to have taken against him. Now, this might lead to an exit but I'm not at all sure. I fail to see how he can continue in EE in any significant capacity - even i'd he did escape Prison he'd have to go on the run, not move back to Albert Square.

I actually think they could take Jesse in interesting new directions unshackled with Adele and maybe they are just regrouping on him.

Another thought about Cara... I still reckon they're planning to have some sort of storyline concerning her father. This is all speculation based on her comment a few weeks ago of 'I'm not donating any of my liver to my dad when he finally wears his out', just because it seemed like such a specific reference and it would be odd to put in if it wasn't going anywhere. It came across that she and her father aren't close, and if there was a storyline coming up like that, it could bring out her insecurities even more.

Speaking of actors working on 2 shows at the same time, rosie's last episode of 'The Bill' aired on Drama today and she had to combine filming her last couple of months of that with her first on Holby 10 years ago and Jac is noticeably absent a fair amount at first, one episode on, 2 months off, one episode on, three off etc whereas most new characters were quite full on at first.

It's more than possible that she is on a reduced workload or they are just being sensible and realising that even a character as good as Jc needs to be put on the backburner some of the time or the audience will get fed up of them monopolizing the show. She did go straight into a dominant storyline first 6 weeks back with Fran and was rarely not forefront all of her years until the maternity leave, except for when she was specifically written out for a few weeks.

I see that Holby has been nominated for a Bafta!

It might be leading to something planned or just a bit of character background. It was very much implied that Malick's father might have been violent, either towards him or his Mother, early on but they never followed up on that. We were told Jac had been brought up in Care and was 'sort of' an orphan3 years before her Mother turned up and we discovered the full story.

So, who knows.

I agree though that it very much implied that one, her father drinks too much and two, they aren't close which could well be down to him having an alcohol dependency. And whether he appears or not, that all helps give some insight into the formation of her character, perhaps even why she married quite young. Many people who have unhappy homelives when growing up seek the attention and security from elsewhere, for reassurance and also as an escape of subconsciously.

Does that mean they've made the shortlisted final 4? I think it is entered every year, it's just whether it makes the final 4. Good though, i wonder which episodes they put forward.

I was surprised that someone bothered to complain earlier that there was now too much information being included in trailers.

I try these days to avoid all trailers, comments in TV magazines and the voice-overs when a programme is about to start, as once I have decided to watch a programme, or series of programmes, I want to wait for the actual show before finding out what is about to happen.

I am very grateful to all posters who put in spoiler tags all information which has been obtained before the show is actually broadcast.

Looking at Petra's Instagram it seems she has been filming another film or something, perhaps she got offered another job and decided to take it, hence a rushed job? The film is listed on her upcoming projects on IMDb as 'The Naked Poet'

But we all got our wish, Adele is gone 90% of the good characters leave in a coffin, so fair enough.

They're down to the final four for best serial drama alongside Emmerdale, Eastenders and Corrie.

Personally, I think the best episode, by far, over the last year was 'Go the Distance' last April. The one where Jonny, MC and Harry left and Jac went on her break. It seemed to be largely overlooked at the fan awards around Christmas time though.

That's fair comment, nobody makes us watch these trailers. It's not even as though they transmit on BBC1 where you might just happen to see it between programmes - you have to actively go into the website and load it.

I personally don't mind, I openly admit to being a spoiler whore (though I do try to be discreet as i know many don't like to be spoilt) but it is more the dichotomy of TPTB trying to keep things like exits secret by not announcing the actor is leaving in advance and then virtually providing a dot to dot picture of a storyline (including characters exit) 3 months in advance in the trailer that they themselves edit together.

Personally I preferred 'Squeeze the Pips' but that is because it was more about Jonny (his last proper episode as there is only one scene in 'Go The Distance') but that is because I was more invested in him and Jac than Harry and Marie-Claire so completely subjective.

I'd say there is a good chance of Elliot's last episode having been put forward unless it isn't deemed 'representative' enough. But there are patients in it, all the Wards feature so I don't really see a problem with it. They have slightly flouted that rule in the past anyway as 'What Goes Around' was their entry for 2010 and all the location work with Spence and Jac looking for Paula isn't really 'representative'.

I watch the trailers on the site, both for the next few months and for the following episode, but I don't do anything else. I try not to read the discussions on here (again, thanks for people who use spoiler tags) and I don't even read the descriptions of upcoming episodes on the site. I like a taster, but it's nice to have the possibility of any assumptions that I make being wrong.

The individual episode trailers often just focus on one of the normally three storylines for that episode, so I'm still kept in the dark about much apart from what I pick up on here (and I don't click on the spoiler tags).