Browse all episodes of Dr. Finlay's Casebook

The year is 1928 and the place Glasgow.  Alan Finlay, a hard-up young medical student with a passionate ambition to become a surgeon, becomes involved in the strange disappearance of his landlady's husband.  Finlay ventures an opinion and by chance finds himself in conflict with the veteran Dr. Cameron, a former surgeon now in general practice.  It is a chance that is to shape Finlay's career.

It's All In The Mind

An outbreak of scarlet fever leads Alan Finlay to investigate a local dairy, where he encounters the owner's wife.

A Taste Of Dust

Dr. Lestrange is a quack doctor - a striking character with flowing cape and hair.  His methods upset Dr. Finlay but charm his Glasgow patients.

The Quack

Dr. Finlay meets Miss Malcolm, the local schoolmistress, at the Village Ball.

Conduct Unbecoming

A self-made financier who would cheat his own doctor - a wife with heart trouble who decides to have a baby - two doctors wanting to marry the same girl.  All problems for Dr. Finlay.

What Money Can't Buy

Cough Mixture

Janet is keeping a strict eye on the domestic affairs of Dr. Cameron.

Carver Tam

A fall of coal at the local pit traps Tannochbrae's star footballer and brings with it problems for Alan Finlay.  Dr. Cameron has his own troubles when Willie Craig, the local insurance agent, comes to visit Janet.

What Women Will Do

Dr. Cameron is worried about his gardener, Alex Dean, and he has good cause to be.  But it is Dr. Finlay who has to cope with the problem of trying to help Dean and in doing so comes into conflict with another of Tannochbrae's medical men, Dr. Snoddie.

Snap Diagnosis

The Dragon Plate

A Spotless Reputation

Behind Closed Doors

Meg McBain, the stock-breeder's wife, gives birth to a son.  But who is the father?  Is it McBain, or could it be the carefree Irish tinker Tim O'Shea?

A Time For Laughing

The 'dirty Fergusons' live like pigs and seem happy to do so.  But by doing so they offend against Alan Finlay's strict sense of sanitary propriety.  On the other hand Mrs. Elgin and her aged sister live in an atmosphere of pathological cleanliness, and they become Dr. Cameron's reluctant concern.

Clean Sweep

The Heat Of The Moment

Dr. Cameron is concerned at the sudden increase in the number of women coming to the surgery with serious diseases.  Soon he begins to wonder if a newcomer to Tannochbrae could have anything to do with it.  With the aid of Janet and Dr. Finlay he sets out to investigate.

Cup, Hands Or Cards

A Time For Discretion

Alice, Where Art Thou?

Ride In a Wheelchair

A Questionable Practice

Odds On Johnny

Young Elsie comes out in spots, and for Alan Finlay the root cause is quite clear.  It must be the unsatisfactory emotional atmosphere in Elsie's family.  Dr. Cameron disagrees, insisting it is something she ate.  But whatever their cause these little red marks look like putting a severe strain on the partnership.

The Face Saver

Room For Doubt

Possessed Of Devils

Cry Wolf

To the grocers of Tannochbrae George Harris is simply a commercial traveller who sells biscuits.  But to Debbie Wilson he is an unpleasant reminder of the past.  When she tries to commit suicide Dr. Cameron, with the help of Janet, tries to unravel the mystery surrounding Harris.

The Deep End

The Polygraph

It's Hogmanay in Tannochbrae.  The two doctors at Arden House are busy and have also taken over Dr. Snoddie's practice while the latter is away visiting his sister.  Dr. Finlay is called in by Robert Ferguson, one of Snoddie's wealthiest patients, who has been taken ill at his family's annual New Year gathering.

A Present From Father

A Test Of Intelligence

Charlie Is My Darlin'

Braeside is Tannochbrae's most select residential hotel for elderly gentlefolk.  The unexpected arrival of Colonel Cayley, former Indian administrator, threatens to upset the whole delicate social balance of the hotel.

My Late Dear Husband

The Whit Hunter

When Denny Drummond loses his eyesight in a rock-blasting accident it appears that the local quarry company is to blame.  His mother and father start legal proceedings to claim damages.  Then Dr. Finlay discovers something that could alter the outcome of the case... if he tells the whole truth.

The Whole Truth

Dr. Cameron is called out urgently to find his patient, Roderick McDougall, unconscious on the floor.  He is baffled as to the cause.  One curious aspect of the case is that McDougall seems to fall ill only on Tuesdays.  Eventually Cameron thinks he has solved the puzzle, but as he proceeds with the case he finds himself in conflict not only with Dr. Snoddie, but with his partner Dr. Finlay as well.

A Shot In The Arm

Tannochbrae's librarian, Thomas Fordyce, has problems of a very personal nature, complicated by an assistant at the library who tipples and a wife who is a member of the Standfast Brethren.

A Matter Of Proof

Urged on by Dr. Cameron, Dr. Finlay joins the golf club and meets a club member whose chronic hypochondria is matched only by his anxiety for free medical advice.

A Call From Cogger

Local tenant farmer Graham Mackenzie, once considered to be an intelligent and pleasant man, has now taken to drink, to the obvious distress of his wife Nan.

A Man May Drink

Ben Hogan, out of work for a very long time, is offered a job as a sparring partner in a fairground boxing booth - much to Alan Finlay's disapproval, for the doctor has strong views about this sport.

The Big Fight

Stranger In Town

When a baby is abandoned outside Arden House it provokes typically different reactions in the household.  For Janet the poor wee mite is an unexpected guest; for Dr. Cameron it is something of a nuisance and for Dr. Finlay it is a problem demanding a solution.

The Yellow Streak

Without The City

The Aristocrats

The Spirit Of Dr. McGregor

Mortal Sin

As it is elsewhere in Scotland in the 1920's, the war between the 'wets' and the 'drys' is a hard-fought affair.  The local leader of the 'wets' is Dougie Mumford, a tough veteran of the Black Watch: the 'drys' are led by doughty little widow Annie Feenan.  When she comes into the local pub selling 'War Cry' the insults begin to fly.

The Hallelujah Stakes

Doctors Finlay and Cameron are not burying their heads in the sand when it comes to new techniques, but they reserve their enthusiasm over the success of a certain Dr. Stephens.  They have good reasons to make them sceptical and suspicious.

Short Of A Miracle

The True Lochiel

The Old Indomitable

A suspected case of salmonella leads Dr. Snoddie, as local Medical Officer of Health, to seal up a well used by a number of local residents.  Dr. Finlay protests at the delay in clearing and reopening the well.  But when distinguished specialist Sir James Greig visits Arden House for dinner and is struck down by a severe attack of food poisoning the search for the answer to the problem is widened considerably.

The Red Herring

The Confrontation

Dear Doctor

Dr. Finlay is sorely troubled by a situation that runs out of control.  Two boys inquisitively exploring his car, the disappearance of an opthalmoscope - and Finlay finds himself powerless to stop an apparently cruel legal process.

The Doctor Cried

Alan Findlay runs into trouble when he is asked by the Ministry of Health to organise a free milk experiment at the local school.

The Control Group

Roddy Munro is the envy of every lad in Tannochbrae.  After giving up his clerical job it is the day of his first match as a professional footballer and the Tannochbrae United Supporters' Club are away in force to Kinleven to cheer him on.  An added incentive for Roddy is the news that several of the bigger English clubs are sending scouts to watch him.  There is just one snag - and it is Dr. Finlay, himself a keen supporter of the local team, who spots it and becomes involved in a most unprofessional piece of work.

The Raiders

On a fishing expedition Dr. Finlay makes an unusual 'catch' when he attends to a stranger hurt in a fall.  His patient is Anthony Hay, a well-known London actor staying in Tannochbrae to rest, so he says.  But there is something about him that arouses Finlay's suspicions.  And why is Hay's wife so anxious to keep him away from doctors?

The Eternal Spring

When Finlay delivers a baby at the Cottage Hospital the result is entirely unexpected and he finds himself up against two dilemmas in quick succession.  How can he aid a mother who refuses to be aided, and has he or has he not a case of murder on his hands?

A Right To Live

When Alan Finlay is persuaded to act as midwife to a prize cow his act of kindness to a dumb animal provokes the wrath of local vet Lewis Gilbride.  In no time at all there is a state of war between Gilbride and Arden House and it takes a spot of quiet detective work by Dr. Cameron to restore peace.

The Bull Call

Problems in one of the two local bakehouses have Drs. Finlay and Cameron taking a strictly professional interest in a batch of twelve twopenny mutton pies which have caused a good deal of trouble in Tannochbrae.

Devils Dozen

Charity, Dr. Finlay

The meanest man in Tannochbrae is Mr. Cogger.  When Dr. Finlay is called out to visit Cogger's housekeeper he finds that her trouble is an ailment of the pay-packet.  He gives her cheeseparing employer a simple piece of advice.

Laughing Gas

The Gate Of The Year

Alan Finlay has been attending a course in medical hypnotism.  Though Dr. Cameron refuses to let him try out his new knowledge on his asthma, but Finlay soon gets the chance when treating Hilda, daughter of the local pawnbroker Henry Brown.  But he comes across much deeper problems than he expected.

Off The Hook

All seem set for Henry MacAlpine to be elected Treasurer of the Burgh Council, just one step away from almost certain appointment as the next Provost.  But he is involved in a car crash in unusual circumstances - a situation which presents Dr. Finlay with one of the most difficult decisions of his life.

The Next Provost But One

Old Mr. Lennox, a retired university lecturer, has been smitten with an incurable and painful disease.  He hints to Dr. Cameron that he would welcome an 'accident, but naturally Cameron has to remain deaf to any such suggestion.  However, Lennox has a housekeeper, Maggie Rankin, who is deeply devoted to him.  Overworked and under intense emotional strain she has to watch him suffer needless agony.

Soon Or Late

A new minister, the Rev. Craig, arrives in Tannochbrae.  A keen angler, he and Dr. Finlay appear to have a lot in common at first.  But in dealing with the problems of bedridden widower Tom Farquhar and his daughter Betty their temperaments and views of life come into opposition.

The Good Fisherman

Lucy Burns, a new young teacher at the local school, is giving the dominie Mr. Miller an uneasy time.  Matters come to a head when she tries to have a family of tinkers enrolled at the school.  But Miller is not the only one worried over Miss Burns.  Young Dr. Finlay has his concerns as well.

A Little Learning

Dr. Finlay discovers that a sixteen year old girl has had an illegal operation, but she won't name the person who carried it out.  Her father encourages her silence as he fears the shame that the disclosure will bring to his family.  Meanwhile Dr. Cameron has to cope with Mrs. Yeldham, pregnant and already with a large family - and a husband who has just been sacked from his job at the local quarry.

Belle

In Committee

An outbreak of measles means extra work for Dr. Finlay, and Dr. Snoddie adds to the burden by demanding that the relevant paperwork is brought up to date immediately.  Then Dr. Cameron takes to his bed with what he thinks is measles and Finlay diagnoses as a heavy cold.  To make matters worse Finlay is called out urgently to Ian Grant, the greengrocer's son.  Not knowing young Grant has deserted from a Military Hospital because the surgeon is going to amputate his leg, Finlay rushes him to the local hospital and calls in a specialist.

Another Opinion

The Spinster

Doctors Finlay and Cameron are faced with the annual problem of sorting out their financial affairs.  Cameron is far too easy-going about making his patients pay promptly: Finlay believes in trying to run things on a businesslike basis.  But the real bogey man is the local Income Tax Inspector!

Medical Finance

Alan Finlay and local vet Lewis Gilbride team up when a local farmer shoots an Alsatian dog which has all the symptoms of the dreaded disease rabies.  There is more concern when it appears that one of Finlay's patients has been bitten by a dog.  Is there a connection?

Beware Of The Dog

Doctor's Lines

The Deceivers

The End Of The Season

A Woman's Work

The Immortal Memory

An upper-crust English girl falls for Dr. Finlay.

An Evening Out

Lord Moorcroft is trying to persuade the Council to put up a memorial to the fallen of the 1914-18 war.  But there is a section of the community who feel that the money would be better spent on such necessities as street lamps than on what the local schoolmaster calls 'vast marble eyesores'.

The Phantom Piper Of Tannochbrae

Kevin McDonald is Tannochbrae's shot-putting hope for the Highland Games.  He is big, handsome and good-natured, but something brings about a change in his temperament.  Finlay's efforts to help him only earn him a black eye.  The partners at Arden House each have their own theory but neither can convince the other that he is right.  It takes a near tragedy to provide the truth.

The Champion

Robert Finlay visits his son Alan at Tannochbrae for the first time.  Left to his own devices for much of the time he forms an association with Mrs. Hamilton.  Mr. Finlay thinks her a kind and generous person: the Doctor thinks exactly the opposite.

The Draper Of Dumfries

Alan Finlay is a poor sailor.  So when he is called out to visit old Strachan, the lighthouse keeper, who has spiked his finger, he dreads the trip.  But Strachan is far worse than anticipated and Finlay must be both doctor and nurse - cooped up with Strachan and two other keepers in a spot cut off by gales from the outside world.  Dr. Cameron is equally displeased as he has to cope with both his own and his partner's work while the latter is stormbound.

The Longest Visit

Angus Hendry, like many others in Tannochbrae, has been out of work for three years.  The partners at Arden House each have their own theory on the best way to help him.  What begins as an academic argument soon becomes a practical test of who is right.

Body And Soul

The Vision

Miss Letitia

Jamie looks to young Willie Kemp to help him over his bout of crematorium melancholia.

They Do It In Africa

The Anxious Man

Hear No Evil

The General

Dr. Finlay dreams of a free National Health Service, but Dr. Cameron is sceptical and fears the extra workload free health care might bring.  But as usual the older man's attitude is not as rigid as it seems, and when a top consultant is summoned to Tannochbrae to see a rich hypochondriac Cameron is not above instituting his own 'Medical Service'.

Free Medicine

The depression of the late 1920's was a time of sacrifice.  Sacrifice for food, for principle and for solidarity.

The Seniority Rule

Peter MacNab is a medical student of great promise who for one reason or another seems to have lost all confidence in himself.  But this changes when Dr. Cameron asks him to examine an ailing Dr. Finlay.

A Matter Of Confidence

There are times when a private patient is more trouble than he's worth.  Not many would dispute a doctor's moral right to be paid for services rendered, but how far should Finlay press this right in a case of a man whose wife has received urgent medical attention and does not feel inclined to settle the account?

For Services Rendered

When Willie Campbell returns after supposedly serving in the Army in India he finds that his wife Jeannie has given birth to a child.  Naturally there is a domestic explosion and Dr. Finlay becomes very concerned about the effect on the baby's health.

To Err Is Human

Hugh Armitage decides to stay at Lochend Guest House for a nice long holiday because of its reputation as ""one of the healthiest spots west of Dumfries"".  But when he finds himself in the midst of an outbreak of food poisoning his opinion of Tannochbrae changes completely.

Better Safe Than Sorry

John MacEwan, one time concert singer and now professional loafer, comes into conflict with Aldo Narduzzi, an amateur opera singer.  Caught up in the quarrel is young Tommy MacEwan, whose stubborn case of acne is causing Dr. Finlay a certain amount of concern.

O Sole Mio

Annie Laurie sets the tongues of Tannochbrae wagging when she takes in Willie Gillespie as a lodger.

No Subsidy For Sin

Dr. Cameron and Dr. Finlay successfully deliver Kate Sinclair's first child.  Later Finlay warns Kate and her husband that it would almost certainly be fatal for Kate to have another child.  The resulting marital problem is a particularly acute one.

Kate And Robert

Written With The Left Hand

A Settled Man

Dr Finlay's Casebook is a television series that was broadcast on the BBC from 1962 until 1971. Based on A. J. Cronin's novella ‘Country Doctor’, the storylines centred on a general medical practice in the fictional Scottish town of Tannochbrae during the late 1920s. Cronin was the primary writer for the show between 1962 and 1964.

All Episodes of Dr. Finlay's Casebook

All Episodes of Dr. Finlay's Casebook

Season 1

It's All In The Mind

Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 8/16/1962

A Taste Of Dust

Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 8/23/1962

The Quack

Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 8/30/1962

Conduct Unbecoming

Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 9/6/1962

What Money Can't Buy

Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 9/13/1962

Cough Mixture

Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 9/20/1962

Carver Tam

Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 9/27/1962

What Women Will Do

Season 1 Episode 8 - Aired 10/4/1962

Snap Diagnosis

Season 1 Episode 9 - Aired 10/11/1962

The Dragon Plate

Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 10/18/1962

A Spotless Reputation

Season 1 Episode 11 - Aired 10/25/1962

Behind Closed Doors

Season 1 Episode 12 - Aired 11/1/1962