Zoe Hanna is a fictional character in BBC's medical drama Casualty, portrayed by Sunetra Sarker. She first appeared in the series twenty-two episode "Take a Cup of Kindness", broadcast on 29 December 2007. The character was a consultant in emergency medicine at Holby City Hospital's emergency department. Sarker chose to take a temporary break from the show in 2014 and Zoe departed from the show in the series 28 episode "A Life Less Lived", broadcast on 23 August 2014. She returned in the series 29 episode "Return to Sender", broadcast on 25 October 2014. Sarker later decided to leave the series indefinitely, but producers asked that she did not announce her departure in order to surprise viewers. After over 8 years on-screen, Zoe departed the series in the series 30 episode "Hello, I Must Be Going", broadcast on 7 May 2016. It was confirmed in September 2017 that Zoe would return for a single episode. She appeared in the nineteenth episode of series 32, broadcast on 13 January 2018. Sarker reprised the role again in 2023 for two episodes linked to Charlie Fairhead's (Derek Thompson) exit; they feature in series 38 and aired on the 9th and 16th of March 2024.
Zoe was described as a "maverick rebel-with-a-cause" and a "good doctor" who "knew what she was talking about" by Sarker. Sarker had portrayed nurses in previous roles who were billed as loveable, sweet girls and preferred playing a feisty character. Zoe enjoys being a doctor and prefers saving lives than working on paperwork, which influenced her decision to step down as clinical lead in 2014. Zoe's personal life is featured frequently in the series and Sarker described Zoe as "kooky" outside of work, but focused upon entering resus.
Zoe's storylines upon her introduction included an affair with married man Sean Anderson (Richard Dillane), being blackmailed for her affair with a fifteen-year-old while unaware of his age and being appointed the emergency department's clinical lead. Zoe later resigned from the post when she began struggling with the demands it involved. In 2008, Zoe became embroiled in helping Abby Evans (Amy Manson), who was being abused and when Abby was killed, Zoe fostered and planned to adopt her daughter Sharice Brooks (Adrianna Bertola). She later began a relationship with her colleague Nick Jordan (Michael French), which dissolved when she lied about being pregnant with his child. They continued a friendship and when Nick refused surgery for a brain tumour, Zoe forged his signature.
A long-running storyline for Zoe was her discovery that she was infertile, something which affected her relationship with Matt Strong (Raymond Coulthard). Zoe developed close friendships with Dylan Keogh (William Beck) and Tess Bateman (Suzanne Packer) during her time in the ED. Zoe was appointed acting clinical lead in 2012, a role which she began permanently in early 2013. She clashed with her deputy Connie Beauchamp (Amanda Mealing) over her management of the emergency department and passed over the role to her in mid-2014. Show producers created a May–December romance for Zoe in early 2014 with porter Max Walker (Jamie Davis). The relationship was well-received by viewers and was labelled "Zax" by fans. They married in 2015 which was followed by an explosive wedding reception that endangered various lives.
Casting Actress Sunetra Sarker was cast in the role of Zoe Hanna in 2007, joining the show during the twenty-second series. Zoe was introduced as the emergency department's new consultant. Despite being the daughter of a doctor and having portrayed nurses in three of her previous roles, Sarker struggled with the medical jargon and admitted that she learns the terminology phonetically. Sarker said her father was delighted that she was portraying "a good doctor". Sarker added that Zoe's personality attracted her to the role, stating it was a "relief" to play someone feisty as she played "loveable, sweet girls" in her previous roles.
Development Prior to appearing in Casualty, Sarker had played a guest role in sister show Holby City. Sarker describes Zoe as: "strong, cheeky and rebellious." In 2009, during Zoe's fostering storyline, Sarker commented on her character's feelings, saying: "she felt very guilty about Sharice's mother dying and being partially to blame for it all and I think she's tried to do the right thing.". Sarker then continued, claiming that Zoe was "layered in a lot of selfishness, a lot of righteousness, a lot of pigheadedness". Later on, having given up Sharice, Zoe then embarks on a relationship with department head Nick Jordan. Sarker explained that Zoe and Nick have a very interesting dynamic" and that: "You can see that they're very similar people which would make them allies or enemies. [...] Zoe's the first female to meet Jordan's professional standards. She's no pussycat and Jordan knows that. He's got a certain amount of respect for her, as she has for him. Characterising the relationship, Sarker explained: "They've both been single for a very long time through their own choices and neither of them feel any pressure or expectations, which is a good combination for something to happen. I think this is the grown-up version of a flirtation. It's a bit more factual with these two; there isn't much softness or gooeyness to them. They are more like steel on steel!"
In 2014, series producer Erika Hossington spoke to Digital Spy about future plans for Zoe, saying that one of three standalone episodes aired by the series would be centred around Zoe, "The second standalone is an episode for Zoe, which has been written by Barbara Machin. It's a 'What if?'-themed episode." Hossington also spoke about Zoe's relationship with Max, saying that it was the light relief she needed whilst clinical lead, but when the audience began engaging into their relationship, they became pleased with the fanbase. She continued to state they are "great" together as well as comparing them to Moonlighting's Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis. Hossington also revealed that following their rivalry, Connie and Zoe would call a truce.
Relationship with Dylan Keogh In 2012, after the characters of Sam Nicholls (Charlotte Salt) and Dylan Keogh (William Beck) were revealed to be married, Casualty producer Nikki Wilson teased Zoe's relationship to Inside Soap with Dylan saying, "The relationship between Dylan and Zoe is very interesting, because when we first mentioned the obvious chemistry between the pair to the actors who play them [Beck and Sarker], they genuinely had no idea! So in one way it's great that they're not playing it in that way. But we really enjoy their banter, and there's definitely a lot more stuff to happen between them. Whether they'll get together remains to be seen...."
Break (2014) Series producer Erika Hossington revealed in an interview with Digital Spy that Sarker had temporarily departed the show and that Zoe's exit scenes would air on 23 August, "That was because Sunetra Sarker, who has been fantastically faithful to Casualty over the last few years, just wanted to have a bit of time out. That gave us an opportunity to come up with a new story for the character."
Departure and returns
Sarker chose to leave the role in May 2016 after eight and a half years and on 7 May 2016, Zoe's exit aired as she chose to leave Holby and Max behind and join Nick in Michigan. Sarker's exit had not been announced prior to transmission, surprising viewers. Sarker had appeared in the series for nearly eight and a half years at the time of her departure. She described her time on the show as "a privilege and a pleasure", before thanking cast, crew and the "wonderful fans". Kent commented that he "missed" Sarker on-set. Hossington said Zoe's departure was "like losing a member of your family" and "it really, really hits [the team] and we get very emotional about it." She added that Sarker continuing to appear in the series after eight years was "a huge commitment" and "a testament to how special the show is and how passionate [she is] about it".
Producer Lucy Raffety confirmed in September 2017 that Sarker had reprised her role as Zoe and the character would return for one episode in early 2018. Zoe's return is billed as "sensational". Sarker revealed that, following her decision to leave the show, Jamie Davis who plays Max asked her to promise she would return when he decided to depart, a promise she honoured by appearing in the episode broadcast on 13 January 2018.
In September 2023, Sarker announced during an appearance of daytime talkshow Loose Women that she had returned to filming Casualty. She revealed that Zoe would feature in a double episode linked with the departure of Charlie Fairhead (Derek Thompson), the show's longest-serving character. The episodes will air in 2024 and feature in the thirty-eighth series. Sarker was excited to reprise the role and explained that she wanted her "last little moment" with Charlie.
Storylines Zoe joins the emergency department after being appointed by Harry Harper (Simon MacCorkindale) as a new consultant. Not long after her arrival, Zoe had an affair with Orthopedic Consultant Sean Anderson (Richard Dillane), unaware he is the husband of her colleague and friend, staff nurse Jessica Harrison (Gillian Kearney). In series 22 episode 29, Zoe goes head to head with Maggie Coldwell (Susan Cookson) for Harry's position, following his departure and successfully wins the post. When Maggie later appears at a tribunal for negligence, the hospital manager Marilyn Fox (Caroline Langrishe) asks Zoe to lie in court, condemning Maggie. Marilyn blackmails Zoe, threatening to reveal her affair with Sean to Jessica. Zoe disregards her threat, clears Maggie's name and admits her affair to everyone. Zoe then bids farewell to Maggie, who has decided to leave Holby to travel abroad.
Zoe is left upset when she discovers she cannot naturally conceive. Zoe later becomes close to Abby Evans (Amy Manson), a patient she has treated who is being abused by her husband and his father. After Abby manages to escape from them with her daughter, Sharice (Adrianna Bertola), Zoe lets them stay with her. Abby is extremely kind to Zoe and thankfully that she let them stay. When Abby and her husband are both killed in a fight, Zoe takes in Sharice permanently and begins fostering her. She begins taking steps to adopting Sharice, however, once Zoe realizes that she is struggling to balance her career and Sharice, she allows her to live with Abby's parents.
Zoe later begins a relationship with Nick Jordan (Michael French), which Nick ends when he leaves the ED at the end of series 23. At the beginning of series 24, Nick's clinical lead replacement, Adam Trueman (Tristan Gemmill), assigns Zoe three of the new junior doctors – May Phelps (Laura Aikman), Lenny Lyons (Steven Miller) and Yuki Reid (Will Sharpe) – to her to show them the ropes of the ED and Zoe reassigns May to Ruth Winters (Georgia Taylor) and Yuki to Jeff Collier and Polly Emmerson (Matt Bardock and Sophia Di Martino), while she keeps Lenny under her wing. Zoe later discovers that Nick left because he has a brain tumor and wanted to die alone. Zoe then lies to save his life against his will by forging his signature on documents allowing him treatment. Much remains unsaid in the relationship as he originally didn't appreciate the actions she made. As time goes on, Nick begins to assume she signed the papers saving his life because Zoe is pregnant, prompting her to begin failed cycles of fertility treatments. Nick never realized that she was not pregnant, but after she tells him that she isn't pregnant, Nick ends the relationship again. Nick and Zoe, however, continue to be great friends and close colleagues.