12-month leave of absence". In September 2016, Mead expressed his interest in reprising the role. He reflected on the role in May 2017, commenting that he missed the show as he created "strong bonds" on the show. Holby City introduction In September 2016, Kent asked Mead to reprise the role of Lofty in Casualty spin-off show, Holby City. The actor initially believed Kent was asking him to reprise the role in Casualty so declined, but when Kent explained the situation, he accepted. Holby City is filmed at BBC Elstree Centre, which is a 45-minute journey from Mead's home and benefits him as he can continue to assist with the care of his daughter. Mead believed that he would never reprise the role, but felt that Lofty could be further explored so he was pleased to receive the call. Mead was initially signed up for a three month trial to explore whether the character works well with other characters. His contract was later extended to September 2017, with the potential to extend the contract beyond that. Mead confirmed in August that his contract had been extended to 2018, and told Michael Ball on his radio chat show that his contract expires in September 2018. In March 2019, Mead confirmed that he had signed another contract to remain on Holby City for another year. Mead spends an hour travelling from his home to BBC Elstree Centre, where Holby City is filmed. At the studios, he takes 30 minutes in hair and makeup. Mead is on-set for three hours when filming one scene, although he stated that when filming bigger storylines, he would be in the studios for twelve hours. The actor tends to read his lines for the following day of the filming in the evening. Lofty's reintroduction was publicised on 10 February 2017, when it was announced that he first appears in Spring 2017. Following his departure from Casualty, Lofty decided to retrain as a bereavement counsellor, specialising in palliative care as well as travel in Australia. It was teased that Lofty could be "still running away from his problems". The show's acting executive producer, Simon Harper, said, "It's thrilling [...] to have Lee make the 'trip upstairs' as Lofty. Keller Ward is going through some dark times, so Lofty's trademark warmth and kindness will come at just the right moment." Mead later tweeted his excitement and branded this "the next