Dr. Martin

Original title: Doc Martin Production and year: United Kingdom, 2004–2009 Genre: Comedy-drama Cast: Martin Clunes, Caroline Catz, Stephanie Cole, Ian McNeice Medical focus: Family medicine Additional information: 5 seasons, 31 episodes Description: An excellent British comedy-drama series that follows the adventures of Martin Ellingham, a city surgeon whose unusual circumstances send him back to the small, close-knit port town of Portwenn, where he takes a position as a family doctor. From the very beginning, the doctor faces trouble, as the main character is by nature a principled man and quite difficult to get along with. He can be blunt and always tells the truth, regardless of how painful it may be for those around him. Understanding the carefree mentality of the provincial residents also comes with great difficulty. On his first day, he hires an incompetent but universally liked receptionist. He diagnoses one of his patients with gynecomastia, which nearly leads to the patient’s divorce. He causes a rift in half the town. He finds no support even from his aunt, who lives in the same town. To make matters worse, a stray dog takes a liking to him, and Dr. Martin, as the local community calls him, naturally does not like dogs.Top-notch, quintessentially British humor, intriguing and irritating residents, great acting, an idyllic atmosphere, and beautiful scenery are the best features of this cool series.