the departure of the village's resident GP, decides to stay and fill the vacancy. In these three films the village is not known as Portwenn. The Martin Bamford character is friendly and laid-back, seeming to enjoy his retreat from the career pressures and conflicts he left behind in London. He drinks and smokes carelessly, including a mild illegal drug, and has no problem getting his hands and clothes dirty by temporarily working as a lobster and crab fisherman aboard a local boat. The original deal had been to produce two television films per year for three years, but Sky Pictures folded after the first two episodes were made, so Clunes's company tried to sell the franchise to ITV. The new network felt that the doctor character should be portrayed as a "townie", a fish out of water who is uncomfortable in the countryside. They also wanted something darker, so Clunes suggested that the doctor be curmudgeonly, socially inept, and formal. The new doctor's surname was changed to Ellingham, an anagram of the last name of the new writer, Dominic Minghella, who was brought in to rework the doctor's background and create a new cast of supporting characters. Apart from Clunes, the only actors to appear in both versions of Doc Martin are Tristan Sturrock and Tony Maudsley. Episodes Ten series totalling 79 episodes aired on ITV in the UK between 2004 and 2022. Episodes are just under 50 minutes long, except for the 2006 TV film which is 92 minutes, and the 2022 Christmas special. In the US, American Public Television provided the 2006 TV film as a two-part episode, with the second episode airing a week after the first. In April 2020 director Nigel Cole confirmed plans for a tenth and final series, which aired in Autumn 2022. Reception Ratings In the UK, Doc Martin has been a ratings success for ITV, with the third series achieving ITV's best midweek drama performance in the 9pm Monday slot since December 2004. The final episode of the third series was watched by 10.37 million viewers, which is the programme's highest-ever viewing figure for a single episode. In 2009, Doc Martin was moved to a 9pm Sunday time slot for the broadcast of Series 4. That change meant that it followed-on from ITV's The X Factor programme. Series 4 ratings were adversely affected by STV not screening the majority of ITV drama