After an emotional series finale, Doc Martin fans have one more trip to Portwenn to enjoy as Martin Clunes is returning to his iconic role for the last time this festive season.
Doc Martin season 10 ended with the cynical medic finally making strides towards leaving his sleepy Cornish town, before a near-death experience stopped him in his tracks.
The traumatic incident gives him a new outlook on life, where he finally learnt to appreciate the value that Portwenn has gifted him during his considerable time living there.
It was quite a turnaround and capped off a heartwarming arc told across almost two decades of television, but there’s one more chapter to come in the form of the Doc Martin 2022 Christmas special – aptly titled Last Christmas in Portwenn.
Read on for everything we know so far.
Doc Martin Christmas special 2022 release date rumours
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Last Christmas in Portwenn is only the second festive special in Doc Martin’s long history and the first since 2006, when feature-length episode On the Edge was first broadcast.
That episode aired on Christmas Day itself, so it’s possible that this year’s offering could return to that coveted date, although we won’t know for sure until ITV confirms what is sure to be a packed festive schedule.
We’ll update this page as soon as we know more.
Doc Martin season 10 ending explained – does Doc Martin die?
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Fortunately not! Otherwise a Christmas special would be a rather bleak affair, unless it took the form of some kind of Christmas Carol-style ghost story.
Our beloved Doc Martin does have a brush with death in the series’s final episode, though, after bursting a major artery on barbed wire in a scene that some viewers will have found tough to watch.
The accident occurred as the doc and his wife, Louisa, were attempting to escape a stampeding herd of cows and instantly became one of the most dramatic events in the entire show.
Fortunately, after being rushed to hospital, medical professionals were able to save his life and he awoke with a more enlightened view of his picturesque Cornish lifestyle.
Abandoning all plans to sell up and leave, he happily put down roots in the town of Portwenn that he now calls home.
Doc Martin Christmas special 2022 cast
The current Doc Martin cast is expected to return for the special this Christmas, including Martin Clunes in the title role of Dr Martin Ellingham and Caroline Catz as his wife and local primary school teacher Louisa.
Other familiar faces from around Portwenn who are likely to return include Ian McNeice as entrepreneur Bert Large, Joe Absolom as his on-screen son Al, Jessica Ransom as receptionist Morwenna, and Selina Cadell as doting pharmacist Sally Tishell.
We can also expect appearances from John Marquez as local copper Joe Penhale, as well as Eileen Atkins as the good doctor’s aunt and retired forensic psychiatrist, Ruth.
What is the Doc Martin 2022 Christmas special about?
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ITV is yet to disclose any plot information about this year’s Doc Martin Christmas special, with the only confirmation being that the current regular cast will all feature.
We do know, however, that the episode will be suitably Christmassy, with the centre of Port Isaac (where Doc Martin is filmed) reportedly filled with festive decorations in February of this year as filming took place.
We’ll update this page with more information as it comes in.
Is there a Doc Martin Christmas special 2022 trailer?
There’s no trailer just yet, but we will likely get a look at the episode sometime in December as the festive season approaches, so do check back nearer the time.
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