List of Doctors characters (2016)

Ben Owens, portrayed by James Daffern, first appeared on 11 March 2016, and made his final appearance on 1 April 2016. Ben is introduced as a man choking at the Icon bar, and Dr. Niamh Donoghue (Jessica Regan) performs the Heimlich manoeuvre on him. After Ben stops choking, he asks Niamh for her phone number.[2] He later calls her, and asks her out on a date.[3] While on the date, he reveals that his son Harry Owens (Cuchulainn Canning) has a systemic autoimmune condition that doctors are unable to diagnose, and that he shares care of Harry with his ex-wife Sarah Owens (Erin Shanagher).[4] Ben takes Niamh to visit Harry in hospital, where he informs Niamh that the most likely outcome is his death, pleading her to look at viable treatment options. She finds an experimental treatment option in Switzerland, but due to his condition, doctors conclude that he is too ill to travel abroad.[5] Niamh disagrees with the decision, and helps Ben, Harry and Sarah to get to Switzerland, where Harry responds well to the treatment.[6]

Paul Cuthbert, portrayed by Andy Moss, first appeared on 14 April 2016, and made his final appearance on 10 June 2016. Paul is introduced as the boyfriend of heavily pregnant Rhiannon Davies (Lucy-Jo Hudson).[7] After it transpires that Rhiannon's firstborn child was taken by social services due to neglect, Paul assists Rhiannon in a hearing called to debate whether or not she can care for the unborn child. The consensus is that she can, and days later, she gives birth to a boy, Nicholas. Weeks later, his death is reported, and Paul refuses to take accountability for his death, and negates any claims of child abuse from him or Rhiannon. He is later told by Rob Hollins (Chris Walker) that Rhiannon is responsible for Nicholas' death after violently shaking him, and he is let go by the police.

Rhiannon Davis, portrayed by Lucy-Jo Hudson, first appeared on 14 April 2016 and made her final appearance on 10 June 2016.[8] Rhiannon is introduced alongside boyfriend Paul Cuthbert (Andy Moss), and is a heavily pregnant patient under the care of Dr. Emma Reid (Dido Miles). Rhiannon confides in Emma that it is not her first child, and that her firstborn was taken away by social services.[9] It later transpires that Rhiannon was addicted to drugs, which led to the neglect of the child. When social services discover that she is pregnant, her rights to caring for the child are questioned, and there is eventually a hearing on whether she can or not, and the consensus is that Rhiannon can care for the child once it is born.[10] Days after the hearing, Rhiannon goes into early labour, and gives birth to a boy, Nicholas.[11] Weeks later, the death of Nicholas is reported to the police, and a post-mortem report reveals that he died after being repeatedly shaken by Rhiannon. When asked by sergeant Rob Hollins (Chris Walker), Rhiannon explains that Nicholas would not stop crying and that her stress led to her shaking him. She is subsequently charged with murder.

Hudson stated that despite appearing on Doctors for a short amount of time, she felt like "part of the furniture", and that her co-stars and the production team were "lovely".[12] After scenes depicting Rhiannon having a breakdown and her eventual arrest were aired, numerous viewers voiced via social media that Hudson and Doctors itself "deserve awards" for the "emotional" storyline.[13] A year later, for her portrayal of Rhiannon, Hudson won the award for Villain of the Year at the 2017 British Soap Awards. After winning the award, she stated that she was shocked to be nominated in the villain category, as Rhiannon is not "your stereotypical villain at all", and is rather a "depressive character".[12]

Jane Fairweather, portrayed by Patricia Potter, first appeared on 21 April 2016, and made her final appearance on 11 October 2017.[14] Jane is a social worker that is introduced when Emma Reid (Dido Miles) enquires about Rhiannon Davis' (Lucy-Jo Hudson) history with her firstborn child. Jane informs her that Rhiannon had a drug addiction, and that her neglect of her eight-month-old child led to her having development issues. Jane arranges and attends a hearing on whether or not Rhiannon should have rights to care for her upcoming child, of which the consensus is that she can. Jane disagrees with the result, and pledges to have the baby taken into foster care.

Jane is also involved with Karen (Jan Pearson) and Rob Hollins (Chris Walker), who want to become foster parents. Jane arranges an evening where potential foster parents can gather information about fostering, where she states that everybody must have rigorous background checks, involving health and other aspects of their lives. When Rob feels he is not ready to foster children, he visits Jane and informs her that Karen is too unwell to be a foster parent, due to having had amnesia. She later reveals this to Karen.

PC Tyler Green, portrayed by David Atkins, first appeared on 19 October 2016 and made his final appearance on 2 February 2017. Tyler is a police constable that begins working with Rob Hollins (Chris Walker). When he meets Ayesha Lee (Laura Rollins), he flirts with her, but she informs him that she is currently seeing Seb Gooder (Miles Yekinni).[15] When Ayesha is on a date with Seb, Tyler arrives, and the two try to outdo each other by impressing Ayesha. She chooses to further her relationship with Seb, but after seeing an angry Seb, she begins to doubt her choice.[16] However, when the pair go on numerous dates, their relationship develops. While on a shift, Tyler comes across Brenda (Andrea Gordon), the mother of Ayesha. Thinking Brenda would cause trouble for himself and Ayesha, Tyler begins to pay her to stay away from Ayesha.[17] Bren later reveals this to Ayesha, and she has an argument with him. Ayesha then learns that Tyler has left Letherbridge and transferred to a different police station.

Lena Baker, portrayed by Josephine Butler, first appeared on 30 November 2016,[18] and made her final appearance on 17 February 2020. Lena is introduced as a love interest for Emma Reid (Dido Miles), despite being married. She is also a friend to Valerie Pitman (Sarah Moyle), as the pair bond over both having cancer. Although Lena and Emma start as friends, they begin to develop romantic feelings for each other, and begin an affair. However, once their affair is exposed to Lena's husband and family, they begin a public a relationship. Over three years later, Lena surprises Emma when she comes to stay at her bed and breakfast with her new girlfriend. The pair catch up, and talk about their sexuality, which ends in Lena kissing Emma. After the kiss, they both affirm that it did not mean anything significant, and decide to move on.[19]