Casualty Saved My Life

Quite frankly, the only way TV's Casualty seems likely to save anyone's life is by driving them out of the house - on a night when a meteorite demolishes the building.

But that's not the case, apparently. You see, there's a lot more to the medical soap than just mindless entertainment (no smartass remarks please). For some viewers it has been like a first-aid primer, showing them techniques they have later used to great effect.

This documentary tells their stories: 14-year-old Rachel who gave her two-year-old sister life-saving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation; Don, who delivered his own child (with wife Jeanette, of course); and Graham, who punched the chest of a man who who had stopped breathing - a "precordial thump", as seen on Casualty. It's all very heart-warming stuff, which shows that TV can really be a force for good.

Must admit, I've always fancied trying my hand at a heart transplant. Just let me find my scissors and kitchen knife...