Sky has picked up ‘Best Medicine’, the US remake of the beloved British comedy-drama ‘Doc Martin’, bringing a transatlantic dose of blunt medical advice, awkward small-town encounters, and one very socially challenged doctor to UK viewers.
The series stars Josh Charles (The Good Wife) as Dr. Martin Best, a brilliant Boston surgeon who abruptly swaps his high-flying hospital career for life as the local GP in Port Wenn, a quaint East Coast fishing village where he spent childhood summers. Unfortunately, while Martin may be excellent at diagnosing patients, he is spectacularly bad at dealing with them as actual human beings.
As with ‘Doc Martin’, the joy of the setup comes from dropping a highly capable but emotionally prickly doctor into a town full of people who are not remotely interested in leaving him alone. Martin’s blunt, borderline rude bedside manner quickly alienates the locals, even though he is, inconveniently, the doctor they now have to rely on. To make matters worse, he is also hiding a debilitating blood phobia, which is not ideal when your job involves, well… medicine.
The cast also includes Abigail Spencer (Timeless) as schoolteacher Louisa Gavin, Josh Segarra (She-Hulk: Attorney at Law) as Sheriff Mark Mylow, Annie Potts (Young Sheldon) as Martin’s Aunt Sarah, a local lobster woman, and Cree (And Just Like That…) as Elaine Denton, Martin’s administrative assistant.
In a nice link back to the original UK series, Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) also appears in ‘Best Medicine’, although not as Dr. Martin Ellingham. Instead, he plays Dr. Robert Best, Martin’s father, described as an accomplished, headstrong gastroenterologist whose own abrasive personality suggests the apple may not have fallen especially far from the medically qualified tree.
The US version has already launched on FOX in America, where it proved successful enough to earn a second season renewal. Season 1 consists of 13 episodes, with Season 2 expected to follow during the 2026/27 US TV season.
The original ‘Doc Martin’ ran for 10 series on ITV, with Martin Clunes starring as the grumpy but brilliant Dr. Martin Ellingham, a former surgeon who relocates to the Cornish village of Portwenn after developing a fear of blood. The series became one of ITV’s most enduring comedy-dramas, mixing medical cases, village eccentricity, and Martin’s spectacular lack of social grace.
While ‘Best Medicine’ shifts the action from Cornwall to Maine, the DNA is very much intact: a brilliant doctor, a small community, a spectacular shortage of charm, and plenty of locals who will not stop needing help.
‘Best Medicine’ does not yet have a confirmed premiere date but is currently pencilled in to air on Sky in the UK in June. If you want to keep track of this or any other shows, you can add them via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date. Visit Never Miss.
1 comment
It was quite unusual to hear Martin Clunes act with an American accent!
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