Dr Zosia March is struggling to deal with friend Arthur's illness in this week's Holby City. But she doesn't want Ollie's help, as Camilla Arfwedson reveals…
As Dr Zosia March sits with her pal, Dr Arthur Digby, while he undergoes chemotherapy for cancer this week, it seems it’s the last place she wants to be. Why is that?
"Zosia can't cope with Arthur's illness and is really struggling with the fact she might lose him. She feels she's just standing by like a spectator and can't just jump in and solve things."
Zosia's boyfriend Ollie notices she's out of sorts, but she refuses to tell him what's wrong – why?
"Zosia's learned to block out anything painful; it's just a defence mechanism. She's bottling everything up and trying to put on a brave face because she's so scared of what's happening to Arthur."
Ollie teases Zosia saying she's as 'cold as ice' and an 'ice queen'…
"I know, which is surprising because Ollie can be as 'cold as ice' too about certain things, so this really is a case of the pot calling the kettle black. It comes from a good place though - by saying she's as cold as ice Ollie is just trying to provoke her a little bit, hoping it might trigger something."
Ollie won't let Zosia shut him out, though, and keeps prodding her in an attempt to get her to open up to him. What happens then?
"Ollie's like a dog with bone, he knows something's up with Zosia and wants to get a reaction out of her. But Zosia doesn't want him tapping into her emotions and feels he's harassing her – that's when she finally snaps!"
Later, though Zosia does confide in Ollie about what’s really troubling her. So why IS she struggling to be around her cancer-stricken friend, Arthur?
"Zosia lost her own mother to cancer, but wasn't aware of how ill she was and wasn't there for her so, now that she can be there for Arthur, she doesn't quite know how to handle it."
Does Ollie help Zosia sort her head out?
"Yes! With Ollie's help, Zosia realises she needs to be with her friend – Ollie needed to press Zosia's buttons to make her take a good look at herself."
Holby City continues on Tuesdays at 8pm on BBC1.
