Charlie Fairhead walks out of Holby City Hospital alive after 38 years… but was he a Casualty of BBC cuts?

For 38 years he has been skilled at the BBC drama Casualty. Not anymore.

Senior nurse Charlie Fairhead left viewers in tears as he finally left the accident and emergency department at fictional Holby City Hospital after a shift spanning almost four decades. But it could have been worse.

Fans had feared that Charlie, played by Derek Thompson since the series began in 1986, would die after he was stabbed in the previous cliffhanger episode by a drug dealer. Instead, he survived – and promptly retired.

Sources say Thompson’s fate was sealed because his salary – between £349,999 and £399,999 a year – was too high for BBC bosses to justify after axing Casualty spin-off Holby City and Doctors.

Now The Mail on Sunday can reveal that the BBC will turn to popular Barney Walsh to fill the void left by Thompson, 75. Walsh, son of actor and presenter Bradley Walsh, joined the show last year, playing the hapless staff nurse Cameron ‘Cam’ Mickelthwaite.

Sources say Thompson’s fate was sealed because his salary – between £349,999 and £399,999 a year – was too high for BBC bosses

Thompson will now join another BBC drama, Blue Lights, which follows a group of rookie police officers in Northern Ireland

Bosses think they can cash in on his high profile. He presents Gladiators on the BBC and has appeared on ITV productions Breaking Dad and The Larkins alongside his father. In Charlie’s absence, Cam would have bigger stories and, executives hope, would attract younger viewers. Walsh, 26, was also approached to appear in this year’s Strictly Come Dancing but has turned it down.

A BBC insider said: ‘Charlie was a bit of a rubbish nurse when he first arrived, as was Cam, which is why it’s all such a lovely idea from the bosses. They think it’s a no-brainer to make Cam the “face of the nurses” instead of Charlie. His popularity has increased so much since Gladiators so it would mean he would get bigger stories and he would be used more to stop others from grabbing him.’

Last night’s episode, Cam was integral in saving Charlie’s life. He found him seriously ill and alerted his colleague Stevie Nash – portrayed by actress Elinor Lawless – who performed life-saving surgery on him.

After coming around, Charlie was joined at his bedside by his best friend, Josh Griffiths – played by actor Ian Bleasdale. He left the show in 2007 and has only appeared occasionally since then.

The couple then drove off in a yellow Beetle, along with cans attached to it and a sign in the back window that read: ‘Just Retired.’ Fans also learned that Charlie saved Stevie’s father’s life when she was a young girl.

Speaking about his departure, Thompson said: ‘I never imagined I would stay for 38 years. I originally signed up for three years, but it quickly became clear what a great character he was going to play.

‘Medicine and TV have both changed a lot since I started. But the basics are still there – the reception desk and the desk where people roll up still perform the same function as it did on my first day.’

Thompson will now join another BBC drama, Blue Lights, which follows a group of rookie police officers in Northern Ireland.