'This is crazy,' says Stephen Mangan

Five of the stars of Green Wing have joined striking junior doctors at the hospital where the cult comedy was filmed.

Stephen Mangan, Tamsin Greig, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Pippa Haywood and Oliver Chris headed to Northwick Park Hospital in North West London to show their support.

They donned green scrubs to pose for pictures with protestors and their banners.

The sublimely brilliant Green Wing cast support us #juniordoctors in ongoing #JuniorDoctorsStrike - a million thanks pic.twitter.com/03eMknFzYL

— Alexander Gates (@dr_alex_gates) April 6, 2016

Mangan said health secretary Jeremy Hunt had 'completely botched' negotiations and said that the junior doctors are 'reasonable people, as far as I can make out. They’re nothing like the characters we played in Green Wing – they seem to be quite intelligent and sensible most of the time. So get round the table and work this out. This is crazy. Nobody wants these strikes – least of all the junior doctors.'

Rhind-Tutt said he was protesting against 'the devaluing of the NHS as a whole entity'.

Johann Malawana, the obstetrician who chairs the NHS junior doctors committee, said: 'Amazing coverage from today. Thank you to all the Green Wing cast members that turned out to support junior doctors.'

The British Medical Association is holding a 48-hour strike over changes to working conditions being imposed by Hunt. The new contracts include reduced overtime for weekend work as part of his drive towards a 'seven-day NHS', but doctors say it will lead to more irregular hours with no increase in pay.

Malawana has previously warned: 'The Government's shambolic mishandling of the process, from start to finish, has alienated a generation of doctors — the hospital doctors and GPs of the future — leaving a real risk that some will vote with their feet and the future of patient care will be affected.'

Northwick Park was one of two working hospitals used for Green Wing, which ran on Channel 4 from 2004 to 2007, along with North Hampshire in Basingstoke.

As well as Green Wing, Northwick Park Hospital also featured in Fawlty Towers, with Sybil admitted there for an ingrowing toenail in The Germans episode.

Published: 6 Apr 2016