It started with admission interviews in November 1984, then followed their lives as medical students for five or six years, and ended with their first experiences of working as busy junior hospital doctors in the National Health Service.
[2] A sequel Doctors to Be: 20 Years On was first broadcast on BBC Four in 2007 and provided an update on the careers and lives of the same people after they had qualified.
[3] St Mary's Hospital, London was traditionally regarded as the refuge of sons of Welsh farmers and miners arriving by train from nearby Paddington station.
The sporting traditions of Mary's are reflected with its alumni, such as the Welsh rugby captain JPR Williams (commemorated in the annual ICSM vs. Imperial Varsity Rugby match, the JPR Williams Cup); and Roger Bannister (commemorated in the annual ICSM vs. Imperial Varsity athletics meet), the first man to run a mile in under four minutes.
[citation needed] Sir Alexander Fleming became familiar with the water polo team's commendable sportsmanship, which influenced his decision to come to St Mary's from Scotland.