Josh Griffiths is a fictional character played by actor Ian Bleasdale from the BBC medical drama Casualty.

Bleasdale decided to leave the show in 2007, and Griffiths departs in the twenty-second series episode "Finding the Words"; first broadcast on 3 November 2007.

[2] Actor Ian Bleasdale was initially contracted for a small number of episodes as a guest paramedic.

[3] After appearing in the show for eighteen years and becoming one of the longest serving actors, Bleasdale announced his departure in August 2007.

He then decided to leave Holby to be with her and shared a "touching farewell" with his friend Charlie Fairhead (Derek Thompson).

[6] Of his return, the actor commented, "My first feeling was of slight apprehension, and the first scene of the first day I had to deal with a technically complex script!

His return scenes were teased in the show's Autumn trailer, which caused Elaine Reilly of What's on TV to observe "Josh (Ian Bleasdale) has been no stranger to popping up in Holby as a paramedic manager recently.

[11] Josh is a paramedic, who in 18 years saved countless lives, risked his own life on many occasions and endured endless personal trauma.

His daughter was the only person rescued from the wreckage; his wife Helen and son Ashley (a Cystic fibrosis sufferer) died at the scene, whilst his daughter Sarah later died in hospital afterwards despite frantic attempts of the hospital staff to save her life.

Josh returned to work within two weeks of the tragedy, but later developed a gambling and drinking addiction which took two years to overcome.

His most recent date proved a disaster as he prepared a meal of duck for a vegetarian and had his overflowing bath fall through the ceiling and collapse on him.

At the end of "Killing Me Softly," (episode 15 from Season 21) Josh was stabbed in the left hand side of his neck in the back of an ambulance.

Josh was tending to a man who had just jumped out of a window on one of the upper floors of the ED when he saw Laura walking away with an unconscious Rosie in a wheelchair.

Laura sought shelter in an unlocked ambulance but when Josh entered, she thought that he was trying to take her daughter, Rosie, away from her, so she stabbed him.

After saying his goodbyes to Charlie, Josh left the series at the end of 2006 and set off on his travels to see cricket and culture around the world.