This is a series about a medical practice in a Scottish town immediately after the Second World War. It is based on A.J. Cronin's characters, Dr John Finlay and Dr Alexander Cameron, and is the second television series based on the Cronin characters: the first, a good one, was made by the BBC in the 1960s. All the ingredients are there for something fairly predictable: quirky minor characters fluttering around the bright lights of the good doctors respectfully played by actors not keen to grate against an audience's well set expectations. Fortunately, this is not what the writers, producers, and performers of this excellent series are content with doing. In a number of ways this is an unusual series. First, it almost completely eschews melodrama, opting instead for a far less 'finished' or convenient approach to story-telling. Secondly, the main characters are, all of them, a sometimes exasperating, but therefore more believable, mixture of foolishness and insight, decency and bloody-mindedness. The stories are written by various writers, and there is only the slightest attempt to knit the episodes together – it is not a serial – which makes for the third unusual quality. But the performances and character development achieved within this format are first class. The art direction is exceptionally good, and the attention paid to details of verisimilitude and continuity of action would put many a better known television series to shame. There are perhaps two or three episodes that do not come off or drift through less substantial subject matter, but the other 24 or so reach a high standard indeed. Enjoyable, engaging, substantial drama.
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eigaeye11 December 2012
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momnj2 June 2008This is an excellent series. The actors are well cast and do a great job. The scripts are well written, although the episode endings are occasionally unfinished or hard to understand. The one problem I have with the series is that David Rintoul sometimes plays Doctor Finlay as stiffly as he played Mr. Darcy. He really needs to loosen up a bit. I have a question. Does anyone out there know where I can get a copy of the last episode in season four called "Doctor Finlay Snowbound"? I think it may have been broadcast at a later date that year as a special. It's not included in "Doctor Finlay Days Of Grace" which is the last series available for purchase.
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bobwarn-938-5586722 May 2023A beautifully realised, sublime, and natural production. All of the cast were excellent. David Rintoul as Dr Finlay a terse, bottled-up, highly moral, human character. The wonderful Ian Bannen, so tragedly killed in a motor vehicle accident only a few years after the series ended, who's nuanced performance as the elder Dr Cameron, once mentor of Finlay and now partner. A young Jason Flemyng in the first series, added flavour and his character might have been further developed had he stayed in the series longer; Jackie Morison a delightful Rhona; the incomparable Annette Crosby as housekeeper Janet; and Ralph Riach as the somewhat 'oily' self important Dr Gilmore. All masters of their acting trade and a delight to watch. All this set against the beauty of the Scottish countryside.
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hgallon31 July 2001One of the enduring sources from which British television draws its plots is the works of author A.J. Cronin (e.g. "The Citadel"). These all involve questions of medical facts and ethics, but being written and set in the 1930's and 1940's, lack the urgency of a series such as "Casualty" or "E.R".
In the 1960's, there was a whole series, "Dr. Finlay's Casebook", built around one of Cronin's characters (starring Bill Simpson). Bravely, Scottish Television have brought Finlay back to life and rendered him in colour, something of a shock to those of us who remember the original in black-and-white from so many years ago.
The new series resumes in the aftermath of World War II. Dr. Finlay has been serving overseas in the Royal Army Medical Corps, and returns to the small town of Tannochbrae in Scotland expecting to resume life as it was. However, while his crusty colleague Dr. Cameron is unchanged, everything else has been affected by the war. His fiancée has decided not to wait for him, he must deal with new colleagues and even the arrangements of the practice are overturned as the resolutely chaste housekeeper is wooed by the local chemist.
The overall emotion to come from the first few episodes of the series is a sense of let-down, as Finlay finds that after a World War, familiar small tragedies caused by ignorance and poverty still persist. Later, as he and other members of his practice rebuild their lives, a more hopeful note emerges.
David Rintoul probably makes a better Dr. Finlay than Simpson did. (The late) Ian Bannen and Annette Crosbie are a superb double-act as Dr. Cameron and housekeeper Janet Macpherson. Other good performances come from Margo Gunn (Nurse Brenda Maitland), Jessica Turner (Dr. Elizabeth Napier) and Gordon Reid (chemist Angus Livingstone). Some viewers may find the harsh Scottish accents of some of the incidental characters such as Dr. Finlay's patients a little grating, but this adds to the faultless authenticity.
Overall, don't expect fireworks but be prepared to be entertained. -
clotblaster13 December 2005This production is one of the finest I've ever seen: whether it be live theater, television or cinema. The stories are dramatic and gritty. The show doesn't give in to touchy-feely good endings. The actors play their characters marvelously. The story takes place in a small Scottish town after WWII. Various, believable and sometimes intense personal dramas take place in this series--which has an authentic beginning and ending. NO room for sequels here. I watched it once and then two days later stayed up all night watching it again. It has some humor but this isn't another All Creatures Great And Small (which in its way is an excellent series). I highly recommend this five-star, 10 point series.
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littlelou197512 July 2009The 1990's version of Dr.Finlay was filmed in my home town of Auchtermuchty. A great number of residents were cast as extras which was a great opportunity (not to mention £58 a day for not doing very much!!!). The cast members were delightful, especially the very charming and humble David Rintoul. The crew were equally fantastic and great to see again in the village over the 4 years the series was filmed. However not all the scenes were filmed in Auchtermuchty (Arden House for instance was elsewhere). As a teen on location it inspired me to take an interest and go on to study Television production at college.
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salcedobob1 June 2021Very nice show although so many storylines just drop from the show. Just watch the end of season 3 and go straight to season 4... It's a miracle!
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frankafear2 July 2021Well adapted from Cronin's novella. Screenplays were wonderful, and the range of topics impressive (especially for the time). Loved the cast. Rintoul was steady, Crosbie, too, and Turner added depth. Bannen was marvelous. I miss his contributions (ala Waking Ned Devine). He left us too soon. I enjoyed just about every episode. Well done!
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beadsworth28 March 2022Good show, surprised I never saw it 30 years ago when released. Good story lines but I'm not sure if it's due to poor lighting or make-up, but a lot of very "unfortunate looking" supporting cast members..
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paulfford-121 July 2006Set Two contains the following episodes: "A Delicate Balance," "Childsplay," "Stolen Lives," "Burning Bridges," Secrecy," and "In Arcadia."
Perhaps another fan can tell us which episodes to look for, to hope for the DVD release of.
My wife and I are enjoying all three sets so much. I was able to read Russell Baker's script of his introductions to series two on the Masterpiece Theatre website.
Can anyone suggest where I might find more material on "Doctor Finlay"?
I'd love to see a website devoted to "Doctor Finlay" as good as the one for "Foyle's War." -
alisonld4 December 2022Just finished watching this fantastic series and I thoroughly enjoyed every episode. There are wonderful characters, great storytelling and acting, as well as the series being very interesting because depicts the establishment of the NHS. I especially loved the performance of Annette Crosbie. I remember it first being broadcast back in the early 90's, but didn't watch it at the time. Maybe in my 20's, I thought it would be a little boring, although I watched Heartbeat which was on at the same time. I recently subscribed to Amazon Prime and discovered Dr Finlay on there and decided to give it a go. So glad I did. Highly recommended!
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hzyrme27 June 2021I am just beginning season 3...The worst part of the series s the main character's acting...so stiff at times and so short with people. That said, the 3 main supporting actors are great...Dr Cameron, Janet the housekeeper and Dr Neil are well played by the actors and believable in their roles. Even the chemist that Janet is going to marry was believable as a person. Some of the plots were messy and ended without much resolution.
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chrisevans-124 March 2004To add to the previous comment, only the original Dr Findlay's Casebook was made by the BBC.
The remake Dr Findlay was not - it was made by Scottish Television.
The new version is now available in the USA on DVD.
Unfortunately the original does not seem to be available anywhere.
The original by A J Cronin was of course just a short story and the TV versions are really new works using the characters from this story. -
For some reason Prime doesn't have season 3 so I binge watched seasons 1,2 and 4. Seasons 1 and 2 are the best. They have just the right amount of tension. As others have said, the brilliance of this show is in showing the three doctors( and others but particularly the three) as people with flaws. Not a one of them is a stereotypical perfect character. And yet they each bring unique and individual strengths that help solve a different situation. I think this is as it and should be in "real life" where a group that respects each other and is open to each others views and strengths can lead to better outcomes. There is conflict on the way and maybe that is the tension I detected in the first two seasons. And yet that sounds so corny doesnt it? But this program shows what that looks like. It isn't easy!
I don't know why it is called Dr Finlay. The other doctors were more interesting. And in fact I feel like it is Dr Cameron's show. In fact the last episode brought us around to him facing his choices. Well he had spoken about them with some regret in previous episodes but the last episode was a bit bizarre when it comes out how close he was considering a romantic or marital relationship with Janet.
And this speaks to the underlying theme of the program about how it is difficult to make choices in life. We are torn in multiple directions. In this case we see the four doctors and the nurse who had professional callings or ambitions (call it what you like but healthcare meant a lot to them) and this had to be balanced with possible romances, marriage and children. It is one of the few programs that shows the reality of being having a career: it can be bittersweet for men and women(usually it is only women who are shown with this dilemma since men can pass on the parenting to their female partner and society doesn't blink.) But there are men who are torn in this direction.
It is too bad the young doctor left. The new one was fine but she wasn't given the same story arc and character development. Of course I missed season 3 so maybe it happened there. -
pamelcook6 October 2022Wanted to like this series. Watched several episodes, then watched one that seemed to end mid story? Then there was another, then another, that would end and leave you saying, WHAT, that's the end???? Finally we gave up, it's so frustrating. The story lines are interesting, acting was good, and the location was beautiful. Costuming and sets were very authentic, but watching a story with no clear ending caused a loss of interest in the series. It was as if they ran out of time so they just cut off the episode and started running the credits. So much potential here, it's a shame the writing wasn't tighter.
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Boogalow27 April 2006According to the running schedule for this show, there were 27 episodes shot in the beautiful town of Auchtermuchty, Fife, Scotland. To date, there are three seasons released onto DVD in the UK. This means there are 8 episodes missing - where are they? The DVD sets themselves are nice but the order in which they are released is all over the place. DVD Set One comprises 6 episodes only, and they are: The Return/Working Together/Winning the Peace/A Bitter Pill/Forbidden Fruit and The Good Doctor. Can't find what's on Set Two (why don't online retailers put this info up??) Set Three comprises: Old Flames/Time Will Tell/Private Lives/The Earth's Sweet Being/A Natural Mistake/The Greatness & The Power and No Time for Heroes. I am waiting for set Two to arrive and when it does I'll post it's contents. Why, oh why can't distributors and TV companies work together to get the episodes out in the correct order and not just cherry pick a few eps here and there - we'd like the whole set please.
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qui_j5 February 2024This Scottish TV series from 30 years ago remains entertaining and interesting. It would have been better had the writing not been so haphazard and disorganized, and the editing followed a more linear and logical pattern. Some of the scenes seem to be randomly placed and not connected to either the one before or after it. In some episodes, the casting is just silly when children and parents appear to be almost the same age. As others have pointed out, stories are not completed or some they are just dropped without a satisfying conclusion. There is therefore no conclusion to many of the storylines. It's a watchable series, but could have been a whole lot better!