What's Up, Doc?

Doc Martin’s career hangs in the balance as the comedy drama returns.

There’s a prescription for trouble when Martin Clunes returns as ITV’s gloriously grumpy Cornish GP Martin Ellingham this week.

The doctor will be forced to fight for his job when the General Medical Council launches an investigation into his blood phobia and professional competency. Guest star Tom Conti will play Bernard Newton, a respected surgeon deciding Martin’s fate, while Game of Thrones’ Conleth Hill plays GP Edward Mullen, who is also scrutinising his conduct.

Meanwhile, Clunes’ former Men Behaving Badly co-star Caroline Quentin returns later in the series as Martin’s nemesis, homeopathic vet Angela Sim.

We asked Clunes, 57, what’s in store...

Is it a worrying time for Martin with the GMC breathing down his neck?