List of Doctors characters (2000)

Dr. Brendan "Mac" McGuire, portrayed by Christopher Timothy, first appeared on 26 March 2000 and made his final appearance on 26 May 2006. Mac is twice-married, first to Julia Parsons (Diane Keen) in 1968, to whom he had three children, sons Patrick (Alan McKenna) and Liam (Tim Matthews), and daughter Samantha. This marriage breaks down after Mac has an affair with a drugs sales rep, who returns in 2000 and ends up having a business meeting/lunch with Mac. In the early ‘90s, Mac marries Kate (Maggie Cronin), with whom he has one son, Ciaran (Tomas Hughes), in 2001, whose traumatic birth led to Mac becoming an alcoholic. This marriage lasted just over 10 years when, in 2002, Kate has an affair with a priest, Father David. Kate leaves Mac, taking Ciaran with her, which results in Mac having a heart attack. The near-death experience leads to ex-wife Julia coming back into his life, and the two resume their relationship. Mac then remarries Julia in 2003, shortly after the deaths of Father David, and Riverside’s ex-receptionist, Carolina Shaw. Mac becomes friends with Dr Peter Kendrick (Robert Cavanah), however Peter became depressed and soon committed suicide. On 26 May 2006, Mac leaves Letherbridge, moving to Ireland, after Julia orders him and Kate to leave when she discovers he had an affair with Kate, and they divorce the following year.

In the press release for ''Doctors'' in March 2000, Timothy was said to be "thrilled" to be on the show, adding: "On set there's an amazing sense of drama and commitment from everyone around. People really want it to be a success". Described as an "old-fashioned and highly-respected physician who isn't afraid to speak his mind", Timothy added that Brendan (known to his colleagues as "Mac"), is "James Herriot grown older". In an interview with ''Sussex Life'', Timothy stated of his time on ''Doctors'' that he loved "the dramatic standards achieved by the fast-paced series, despite the kind of squeeze on time and resources unheard of" adding, "The budget was a joke and the pressure more intense than anything I’d ever experienced. But it was six years of great fun and I got to direct, which I loved". When asked if he had picked up any medical knowledge from the role he said, "No, not really. I spent a week with a real vet in Yorkshire and a day with a real GP in his surgery but I didn’t really watch procedures. The actual procedures – how to take blood pressure and that sort of thing – I picked up as I went along". He added that; "Working in something like ''Doctors'' you learn your lines, you say the scene and then forget them because you then have to remember another scene, and another scene". Head of Drama Mal Young said Timothy sat in a consultation room for a day, adding that people were "very good and mostly unfazed by the sight of an actor listening, they were very understanding, especially one woman who came in to talk about hormone replacement therapy!".

''TV Choice'' Nick Fiaca commented that Julia had a "torrid time" with Mac. In 2010, producer Peter Eryl Lloyd was asked by Digital Spy if Mac was to return, in which he replied, "I don't know why we'd do that unless there was a very good reason. The show has moved on since Chris was with us so I don't think anyone would want the character back just out of nostalgia. But if it's motivated, if it has an impact on our characters and makes sense dramatically, then never say never". ''The British Theatre Guide'', said Mac was "very successful".

At the 2003 British Soap Awards, Timothy was nominated for Best Actor, but lost out to Brian Capron who played ''Coronation Street'' Richard Hillman. Again, in 2004 and 2005, he was nominated for Best Actor, but Shane Richie who plays ''EastEnders'' Alfie Moon won both of the 2004 and 2005 awards. In the 2006 awards, he was nominated for "Best Actor" but lost out to Ross Kemp who played ''EastEnders'' Grant Mitchell. In the same 2006 awards, Timothy and Robert Cavanah who played Dr Peter Kendrick were nominated for "Best Storyline", in which Kendrick committed suicide, however Justin Burton (Chris Fountain) and Becca Hayton's (Ali Bastian) affair in ''Hollyoaks'' won. Provided by Wikipedia