Holby fictional hospital within the city in which "Casualty" and "Holby City" are set. It is based on the Bristol Royal Infirmary which the original script writers spent time observing in the 1980s in order to garner ideas for "Casualty". Although both shows are set in the same hospital, "Casualty" is primarily filmed in Cardiff, whilst "Holby City" is filmed in Hertfordshire at BBC Elstree Centre. The indoor shots for the first series of "Casualty" were filmed at BBC Television Centre in London. The exterior shots of the hospital used in "Casualty" were formerly filmed at the City of Bristol College;
William Harvey Hospital Ashford, criticised proposals that some services would require patients to be bussed back to the old hospital when William Harvey Hospital opened. In 2000, the press reported that staff shortages at the hospital were putting patient's lives at risk, which drew local MP Damian Green to criticise the management of the NHS in parliament. Green continued to complain about the state of the hospital, noting in 2001 that patients had been waiting in the accident and emergency department for 24 hours. In 2013, hospital staff members threatened to quit due to proposed increases in parking permit charges from March 2014.