Jac Naylor is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Holby City, portrayed by Rosie Marcel. She made her first screen appearance during the series eight episode "Bird on a Wire", which was originally broadcast on 22 November 2005. The character is introduced alongside Luke Roberts and Tom Chambers as Joseph Byrne and Sam Strachan, respectively. Jac is characterised as a highly ambitious, forthright surgeon who is career-oriented. Her backstory states that her mother placed her in foster care aged twelve.
Marcel took maternity leave in 2014 and Jac temporarily departs in the seventeenth series episode "Go the Distance", originally broadcast on 14 April 2015, after reuniting with Jonny Maconie (Michael Thomson). Marcel returns for two appearances during her maternity leave, before returning in the eighteenth series episode "A Delicate Truth", originally broadcast on 24 November 2015. Marcel worked with producers to emphasise Jac's bitchy characterisation on her return. After noticing a connection between Marcel and Alex Walkinshaw, Jac was paired with his character, director of nursing Adrian "Fletch" Fletcher, in 2017. Jac was written out in series 22 but made an unannounced return in the following series. Her departure was originally advertised as permanent but Marcel later claimed it was a publicity stunt. In 2021, the BBC cancelled Holby City and producers decided to end the series with Jac's death. They created a terminal brain tumour storyline and portrayed Jac determined to find a cure. Producer Ben Wadey has stated he believed Jac's death was the show's end and thought a miracle cure would have been unrealistic. Jac's death and final scenes occur in the final episode of Holby City, which was broadcast on 29 March 2022. Additionally, Jac has made multiple appearances on Holby City sister shows, HolbyBlue and Casualty.
Development
Casting and introduction
Prior to her casting, Marcel had appeared in Holby City in an unrelated role, as a drug addict named Elinor. After joining the main cast of Holby City as Jac, Marcel signed a three-year contract with the drama, securing her on the show until 2008. Marcel was introduced to the series alongside Luke Roberts and Tom Chambers, who portray cardiothoracic registrars Joseph Byrne and Sam Strachan, respectively. Jac is introduced during the episode titled "Bird on a Wire", which was broadcast on 22 November 2005. A writer from Inside Soap reported that Jac arrives at the hospital determined to impress consultant Ric Griffin (Hugh Quarshie). She offers to help on a double amputation procedure and insists that Ric will be so impressed he will offer her a permanent role at Holby. Medical trainee Dean West (Paul Henshall) accidentally cuts Ric's hand and this puts him in a bad mood. Jac has to work harder to impress Ric as he insists he no longer needs her help. Following the broadcast of her introductory scenes, Jac returns in January 2006 determined to secure a full-time Surgical Registrar post. In two series twelve episodes, Cydney Dubavin-Hands played a teenage Jac in flashback scenes.
Writers soon developed a rivalry between Jac and fellow registrar Diane Lloyd (Patricia Potter). The story sees the pair fight for the role of locum consultant, which Diane goes onto secure. A writer from the Liverpool Echo stated that Jac took credit for work Diane had done. They added "Diane and Jac's working relationship hasn't exactly been an easy one to date, and it doesn't look as if it's going to improve". The pair later argue over patient care. When a paroled murderer is admitted to Darwin ward, they disagree on the cause of his pain. Jac decides to take over the case and orders x-rays to confirm her diagnosis. She goes to see consultant Dan Clifford (Peter Wingfield) and complains about having to work alongside Diane. He sides with Diane and throws Jac's diagnosis in the bin. When Diane realises that Jac was correct about the man's condition she is forced to apologise.