Joseph Byrne

Joseph Byrne is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Holby City, portrayed by Luke Roberts. Joseph first appeared in the series eight episode "Mother Love", broadcast on 3 January 2006. Roberts had made an unrelated guest appearance in the previous series of the show, playing the relative of a deceased patient, and was asked to return in a more permanent role by the series producers. Joseph's role in the show is that of troubled surgeon – the resultant angst of his brother's attempted suicide and his own anally retentive personality lead to the revelation the character suffers from Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). His major storylines included an accidental drugs overdose, and a relationship with fellow surgical registrar Jac Naylor (Rosie Marcel), who cheated on him with his own father. In 2019, Roberts agreed to reprise the role as part of the show's twentieth anniversary celebrations. He returned again for the show's final episode in 2022. Roberts' performance resulted in a longlist nomination for the Most Popular Newcomer award at the 2006 National Television Awards. Development Creation and casting Prior to joining the cast of Holby City as Joseph, Luke Roberts made a guest appearance in the series seven episode "No Pain, No Gain" as Daniel Fryer, the son of a deceased patient. Roberts was approached about returning in a more permanent role by BBC casting director Julie Harkin, who was also responsible for casting fellow newcomers Rakie Ayola as Kyla Tyson and Tom Chambers as Sam Strachan. Although his guest appearance constituted a single scene, Roberts believes it was enough to secure his call-back for the part of Joseph. He recalls that it "got the attention of the producers", and that actress Amanda Mealing, who portrayed Connie Beauchamp, "put a good word in for [him]". He felt lucky to join alongside Chambers and Rosie Marcel as Jac Naylor, due to the "feeling of solidarity" which developed between them.