Ben "Lofty" Chiltern is a fictional character from the BBC medical dramas Casualty and Holby City, played by actor Lee Mead. He first appeared in Casualty twenty-eighth series episode "The Last Chance Saloon", broadcast on 1 March 2014. The character is introduced to fill the role of a young, male nurse. Mead previously appeared in the drama in the twenty-sixth series of Casualty. Lofty originally appears as a staff nurse but is promoted to senior staff nurse in 2016. The character is specifically written for Mead and he was contracted to the show for a year. Lofty is portrayed as a nice person who is likeable and popular. His clumsiness often leaves him in awkward situations although he is a brilliant nurse and a team player. Lofty's backstory states that when his parents grew tired of his wild behaviour, they kicked him out.
The character's introduction sees him found to be living in Robyn Miller (Amanda Henderson) and Max Walker's (Jamie Davis) loft. In Casualty, Lofty develops friendships with Robyn, Max and Dylan Keogh (William Beck). Mead took a sabbatical from the show in 2015 and Lofty departs after feeling responsible for the death of an agency nurse. The character departed in the series thirty episode "High Tide", broadcast on 12 March 2016. Eighteen months later, Mead decided to reprise the role in Holby City. Lofty first appears in the series nineteen episode "Project Aurous", broadcast on 16 May 2017, when he joins the fictional Keller ward as a staff nurse. Producers explored Lofty's absence and his ability to work in the hospital, as well as establishing friendships with his new colleagues.
Through his absence, Lofty's sexuality is explored and he is revealed to be bisexual. After initially clashing, Lofty develops a friendship and on-off relationship with Dominic "Dom" Copeland (David Ames). They later marry and face problems in their marriage. Mead also appears in one episode of Casualty in June 2017. The character and Mead's portrayal are well received from critics, with Lofty's relationships with Dylan and Dom gaining a positive response. For his portrayal, Mead has been nominated for two Newcomer awards at the 2014 TV Times Awards and the 20th National Television Awards respectively.
Casting The character of Lofty was written with Mead in mind. Producers created the role after Daniel Anthony's decision to quit his role as nurse, Jamie Collier. They realised the show would be lacking a young, male nurse and decided to cast Mead. Mead explained that they were looking for a nurse who "had a big heart and cares for his patients with a unique insight". Show writer Matthew Barry said that having Mead in mind helped the writing team write for Lofty. The show's executive producer Oliver Kent asked Mead's agent if Mead would read for the role and when his agent told him the news, Mead believed he was "joking". At the audition, Mead read for the show's producer and casting directors. He believed that he had delivered what they wanted, but was not sure he was "in the frame" for the character. He was originally signed to the serial for a year and expressed a possibility in renewing his contract.
Mead originally auditioned for the role of Kieron Fletcher in 2010, but was told he did not have enough acting experience. He later made an appearance on the show as patient Harry Timms in the series twenty-six episode "Starting Out". Mead enjoyed the appearance and described Lofty as "a completely different challenge" in comparison. After his guest appearance on the show, he received a handwritten letter from Kent, who said that he would remember his performance for any future roles. Mead felt honoured to be invited back to the show. In the guest appearance, Mead filmed scenes with Jane Hazlegrove, who plays paramedic Kathleen "Dixie" Dixon, and expressed his delight to filming again with Hazlegrove.
Due to the on-set team of professional medical staff, Mead did not require any medical training for the role. Nurses would regularly help him with medical terminology and procedures to add realism to the scenes. He added that he found learning the terminology enjoyable and formed an interest in the show's prosthetic department. He described the show's twelve hours a day routine as "very intense". Casualty is Mead's first regular television role after ten years in musical theatre and he described it as "a new phase" in his career. Mead struggled to make the transition from musical theatre to television and said it was "a whole new career" for him. In addition to his work in musical theatre, Mead is a singer and producers allowed him to perform in concerts while contracted to the show.
The character and Mead's casting were publicised on 19 September 2013. On his casting, Mead said, "I'm thrilled to be joining Casualty. I am hoping [Lofty] will charm audiences and they will get behind him. I can't wait to get started and to learn all of the medical jargon!" Kent said, "As the character Lofty was being developed, we couldn't think of anyone else to better to play him. We can't wait to start filming and are thrilled to have Lee join the team. With a very different background to most of the other nurses, his clumsy charm is sure to win everyone over." Mead expressed his delight at joining the show in several media interviews and in a BBC Online interview, he described it is as an "honour".
At the time of filming five episodes for the show, Mead expressed his content at being involved in the show. In June 2015, Mead reflected on his casting and expressed his gratitude for Kent for creating the role as it had "brought more variety into [his] working life". He added that he the show had provided him with a "fantastic" experience.
Development Characterisation
Lofty is billed as a "likeable and popular nurse with a less-than-ordinary background". He is a good person who is cheerful and happy. Lofty is in his early thirties. Despite partying heavily, Lofty is a decent man with good intentions. Lofty is fun and has a positive outlook, which Mead thought made him "a very interesting character." Lofty can be clumsy and Mead explained that Lofty is prone to saying the "wrong thing" and falling over. Mead found that Lofty is normally "in his own little world", which leads to the "awkward situations" he finds himself in. Mead summarised the character as "decent but lazy." Reza Moradi, the director of Lofty's first episode, described the character as "a sweet nature guy who has had a temporary bit of bad luck". Reporters writing for Inside Soap called the character a "hunky nurse", "adorable", a "hapless medic" and a "beloved colleague". Holly Wade of Radio Times described Lofty as friendly and attractive but also "a bit oblivious and bumbling".
Lofty's energy creates a nice working environment; a contributor to BBC Online said that the ED are fortunate to employ such a positive person, who has "energy and spark". The character is naïve and a team player who contributes morale and liveliness. Lofty is a fantastic nurse and excels in helping children. Executive producer Kent described Lofty as "the most adorable character" and compared him to nurse John "Abs" Denham (James Redmond), who was well-received during his tenure on the show. Barry, who wrote Lofty's introduction, thought Lofty resembled a younger, less posh Hugh Grant and described the character as "a bumbly, lovely, nice chap." Elaine Reilly of What's on TV called Lofty a "mild-mannered medic" and a "loveable nurse". Other critics have described the character as "kind", "amiable" and "genuine".
Lofty retains similar characteristics when he joins Casualty spin-off series, Holby City. He is described as enjoyable and uncoordinated, while Mead calls Lofty a "happy-go-lucky" character. Mead believed that Lofty is enjoyable because he is a different and unconventional, which appears sweet to an audience. During his on-screen absence, Lofty develops a new-found confidence. Mead said that he returns "a new man". He also stated that another angle to Lofty's personality would be displayed in Holby City. Mead told a reporter from What's On TV that Lofty understands "what he wants from life". Despite Lofty's newly-developed confidence, Mead insisted that he has maintained his personality traits. Mead thought that Lofty had an unconventional method of treating patients and opined that he resembles fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. A BBC Online reporter found Lofty's clumsiness to be sweet rather than a flaw in his characterisation. They also stated that Lofty is not sophisticated, although this can be forgotten because he is warm and friendly. Lofty also does not believe in karma because he has witnessed "too many bad things happen to good people."
Backstory and introduction Lofty is a trained nurse who was living with his parents and using their money to party. Lofty repeatedly told his parents that he would apply for a job and find somewhere to live, which he never did. His parents grew tired of him and his father asked him to move out so Lofty lied and told them he had found a house. In May 2017, Mead revealed that Lofty's backstory would be explored, specifically the character's reasons for joining the nursing profession.
Lofty's first episode, entitled "The Last Chance Saloon", aired on 1 March 2014. In Lofty's first scenes, it emerges that he is living in the loft of a house owned by his father and rented by Robyn Miller (Amanda Henderson) and Max Walker (Jamie Davis), having stolen the keys to the house. The scenes provided the character with the nickname, "Lofty". Robyn found him in the house, topless and about to iron a shirt. Henderson explained that Robyn is scared and angry to find Lofty. Robyn chases him and so, Lofty — still topless — is "forced to make a run for it" by leaping over fences in the rain. Moradi believed that the chase sequence was something that Barry "had in mind when going over quite a lot of things", but struggled with due to the location's practicality. The chase sequence was the first scenes Mead filmed, which he found surreal.
In the chase, Robyn is injured after stepping on a rake and Lofty had to decide to either "leave her and run, or do the right thing"; Lofty chooses to help Robyn and Barry explained that it is in Lofty's nature to stay and help Robyn. Mead said Lofty stays because he is "a good guy". Because he helps Robyn, Lofty misses an interview at a local hospital. After discovering this, Robyn speaks to management about Lofty and he is offered a vacant nursing position at the hospital. Mead explained that Robyn is able to see that Lofty is a good person and so, as well as helping him receive a job, she offers him a place to live. Mead praised the character's introduction, expressing his enjoyment at filming it. In an interview with BBC Online, Mead revealed filming took place over a twelve hour day and summarised the day as having to "literally [roll] in mud." Henderson added that filming was interrupted by bad weather. Moradi praised Mead's approach to filming in his introduction, praising his professionalism; she said that Mead was "really cool" with the cast and crew on-set.
Friendships Lofty's friendly personality helps him form friendships with people. Barry thought that Lofty would fit in effortlessly with his colleagues because he is so easy-going. The writer expected Lofty to have good relations with Robyn, Max, and Noel Garcia (Tony Marshall). Lofty shares a close relationship with Robyn and likewise, Mead shares a good friendship with Henderson. They share many scenes and Barry compared their relationship to a relationship shared between siblings. In early 2015, Robyn developed feelings for Lofty and tries to form a relationship with him. Reflecting on Robyn's feelings, Henderson said "She was so in love with him, but he just didn't feel the same."