Doctors is a British medical soap opera which began broadcasting on BBC One on 26 March 2000. Set in the fictional West Midlands town of Letherbridge, the soap follows the lives of the staff and patients of the Mill Health Centre, a fictional NHS doctor's surgery, as well as its sister surgery located at a nearby university campus. The following is a list of characters that first appeared in Doctors in 2009, by order of first appearance. All characters are introduced by the programme's executive producer, Will Trotter. Lisa Torres (Michelle Lukes) is introduced in January, with Karen Hollins (Jan Pearson) introduced in February as a receptionist. Simon Bond (David Sturzaker) debuts in May, while Zara Carmichael (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh) begins appearing in June. A month later, Rob Hollins (Chris Walker) was introduced as the husband of Karen, followed by their children, Imogen (Charlie Clemmow) and Jack (Nicholas Woodman). Additionally, multiple other characters appeared throughout the year.
Lisa Torres
Lisa Torres, portrayed by Michelle Lukes, first appeared on 28 January 2009 and made her final appearance on 28 March 2011. Lisa later returned in November 2018, with the role having been recast to Leila Birch.
Lisa was introduced as the mother of Izzie Torres (Jasmin and Nicole Parkinson) and the partner of Daniel Granger (Michael Chambers). Having previously abandoned Izzie at the reception of the Mill Health Centre, Lisa turns up on Daniel's doorstep and informs him that she has had a change of heart. Daniel is devastated and although he tries to fight her on this, they eventually agree to share custody of their daughter but the arrangement comes to an end when Daniel's ex-girlfriend Ruth Pearce (Selina Chilton) tells Lisa about Daniel's past. Over the course of the next few years, Lisa and Daniel's rocky relationship continues to play out. They reconcile after Izzie is kidnapped, but separate once again following Daniel's begins an affair with Zara Carmichael (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh). Lisa moves to Nottingham with Izzie.
After Lisa and Izzie (now Bethan Moore) have an offscreen argument, Izzie returns to Letherbridge to live with Daniel and Zara. When Izzie is slapped by Zara, she phones Lisa (now Leila Birch) and she returns to take Izzie back to Nottingham.
Karen Hollins
Karen Hollins (also Teale), portrayed by Jan Pearson, was introduced as a receptionist at the Mill Health Centre on 23 February 2009. Karen was created by series producer Peter Eryl Lloyd as a replacement for former receptionist Vivien March (Anita Carey). Karen is the wife of Letherbridge police sergeant Rob (Chris Walker) and the mother of Imogen (Charlie Clemmow) and Jack (Nicolas Woodman). Her storylines in the programme have included becoming a healthcare assistant, having an abortion, the breakdown and reconciliation of her marriage, becoming a foster parent and having amnesia after being involved a car accident. Since her arrival, Pearson has been nominated at the 2010, 2011 and 2012 British Soap Awards. Along with co-star Walker, Pearson won the award for Best On-Screen Partnership at the 2010 ceremony. In 2011, she was nominated for Best Storyline and Best Single Episode for her portrayal of Karen going through her pregnancy and later abortion storyline. Furthermore, Pearson has been nominated for Best Comedy Performance at the 2012 British Soap Awards.
Cherry Clay
Cherry Clay (also Malone), portrayed by Sophie Abelson, first appeared on 6 April 2009 and made her final appearance on 19 October 2012.
When Cherry arrives at the Mill Health Centre, she turns heads amongst the male staff, specifically Jimmi Clay (Adrian Lewis Morgan) and Daniel Granger (Matthew Chambers). However, she tries to form a relationship with Simon Bond (David Sturzaker), unaware that he is gay until Zara Carmichael (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh) informs her.