Dr. Finlay's Casebook (TV & Radio) - Controversy

Controversy

Cronin received copies of the scripts, and he wrote a blunt letter to the series' script editor in 1964, expressing his dissatisfaction with the progression of the show. Word leaked to the media, and in June 1964, stories appeared in the national press suggesting that the author wanted the series to end. One newspaper even accused the author of "maliciously doing millions out of legitimate enjoyment." The outcry from the viewing public was immediate, and sackfuls of mail were dispatched to Cronin's home in Switzerland. He issued a statement on 7 June to refute the charges made against him:

I have had hundreds of letters from viewers saying how sorry they were that the series was ending and that they were sorry that I was to blame. I don't like to disappoint anybody, but just lately the series has got out of line. The scripts have been getting ragged and introduced extraneous characters. If you overrun a programme, you end up with a soap opera. What annoys me is that the BBC have placed the whole onus of the row on me. I have written telling them it is a matter of improving scripts. I have no intention of stopping the series.

By the following year, the series was in every sense a cult, even a national institution. A Bill Simpson Fan Club was set up, Andy Stewart's Dr Finlay was in the Hit Parade for five weeks, and Andrew Cruikshank was invited as a guest of honour at the British Medical Association's annual dinner to speak on medical matters as if he were a real GP.