Characters of Casualty - Charlie Fairhead

Charlie Fairhead played by Derek Thompson, is a Senior Charge Nurse and the longest serving cast member of Casualty, having appeared from 1986–2004, 2005–2007 and 2008 onwards. He is the Senior Charge Nurse at Casualty, Charlie appears in the first episodes of the spin-off, Holby City, and its spin-off, Holby Blue, a police drama.

He has dated numerous women during the show. The most notable is Barbara Wilder - another original character - who was eventually his wife. Baz left Casualty after series one but returned nearly a decade later. Unhappily married, she reconciles with Charlie and gets pregnant with their son, Louis. Baz divorces her husband and marries Charlie in 1998 but they separate when Baz gets a job in Canada two years later. She briefly returns in late 2003 to visit her father but dies after a road accident so Charlie gets custody of Louis. Charlie has come close to death on several occasions since 1990 as a result of a shooting and later a hit and run involving a stolen ambulance, a pulmonary embolism, attempted drowning and a heart attack.

Charlie's son, Louis, sets him up with Maggie Coldwell. They date for a while and he proposes but she refuses, agreeing inside to stay in touch. In series 22, Charlie celebrates thirty-five years in nursing. However, he struggles with childcare issues and the news that he or Tess Bateman will be made redundant. Although Tess volunteers, Charlie is asked to leave after a fight with a patient. He returns several months later, working in the private sector. Charlie becomes a grandfather after teenager Louis's brief relationship with Shona Wark results in a daughter. Shona, unable to cope, leaves her with Charlie and he named her Megan, after his long term friend and one time colleague, Megan Roach. While searching for his missing granddaughter (taken by a mentally ill patient), Charlie sees Ruth Winters's husband kissing his lover, James. Charlie debates whether to tell Ruth and confesses when comforting her. Hurt and humiliated by his deception, Ruth has Charlie transferred.

He is described by the BBC as "the lynchpin of Holby's ED. an indispensable, trustworthy and diplomatic member of the team." Ex-series producer Oliver Kent has described Charlie as "by far our most important character" and "absolutely core to the show's success". In 2012, Inside Soap described Charlie and Tess as 'the mum and dad of Casualty'. Current producer Nikki Wilson talked about the importance of Charlie and Tess saying, "I think it's really crucial that we keep them around. Charlie has been in the show for 25 years, and he's such an iconic character. It's fantastic he's still here. His relationship with Tess is quite important - as you say, they're like the parents of the whole department - so long may it continue."