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Portwenn Online
A Magical Cornish Village
Doc Martin is IN
Consulting Room
Click photos to enlarge - click again to close
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Desk Area
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The desk that Martin brings to Portwenn is very modern and looks like a desk that
belongs in London.  It has chrome legs and trim and a wooden top painted black.  
If you look closely at some of the pictures you can see the grain in the wood.  
There is one drawer on either side of the desk.  We saw him take his checkbook
out of the left drawer in S1 when he was going to write a check for Elaine's
wages.  We saw him look into the right side drawer in S4 when he gazed at his
baby's ultrasound picture.

Below are some pictures of the desk and the items on the desk.  There is a
large, beautiful Asian chest in one corner.  At the beginning of S4 it disappears
and it reappears in S7 on top of the tall secretary in the back right corner.
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Desk
Series 1 - 4
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When Dr Dibbs came to the Surgery she brought this wooden desk - Martin's
modern desk was on its way to London.  For all of S5, Martin kept the Consulting
Room pretty much as Dr Dibbs left it.  He made some changes as time went on,
but he kept the wooden desk.  I think that this desk fits better into Portwenn and
all of the additional drawer space makes it a more practical option.
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Desk
Series 5 - 9
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Here are the desk chairs that Martin and the patients have used.
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Chairs
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Here are a couple of shots of the built-in cabinet behind the desk, closeups of the
carpet (I hadn't noticed that step stool underneath the exam couch, but it's been
there since S2!), and an interesting camera vantage point through the window.
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Wall Cabinet
Carpet
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Series 3
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Series 3
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Series 1
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Series 4
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Series 1
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Series 2
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Series 1
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Series 4
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Series 5
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Series 7
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Series 6
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Series 8
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Martin's original chair was a black leather
swivel chair.  Dr Dibbs brought in a green
fabric swivel chair that Martin used all
through S5.  In S6, he brought back the
black leather one and has used it
ever since.
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There have been five different pairs of wooden patient chairs.
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Series 1
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Series 2
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Series 2 -
Christmas Sp
Series 3
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Series 5 - 9
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Series 4
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Series 9
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Miscellaneous
.imo
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As Martin schools us in the very first episode, the proper name for a blood
pressure monitor is a Sphygmomanometer.  We have seen him use 4 different
types on his patients: Mercury, Aneroid, Digital w/upper arm cuff, and Digital wrist.
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Blood Pressure
Monitors
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Martin has had 2 different rolling
exam stools.

S1-S4 it had a black leather seat
and round chrome base.

S5-S9 has a thicker green leather
seat and black metal base.
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Series 1-4
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Series 5-9
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In S1E1 Martin checks the
mercury device that is
attached to the wall and
finds that it doesn't work.

Starting with Episode 2,
every time you see someone
walking into the room you
can see the new one on the
rolling cart that usually sits
right next to the door.  This
one also uses mercury and
is enclosed in an orange
metal box.  The orange
monitor is a staple in the
room through S4.
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When Dr Dibbs arrived in
S5E1, she was spotted twice
in that episode using an
identical mercury monitor,
except that it was blue.

We had actually seen that
blue metal box in S3 sitting
on the table in the front
right corner, and in S4
occasionally sitting on top
of the rolling cart - right near
the identical orange one.
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Series 1
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Series 3
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Series 3
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Series 4
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Series 3
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Series 4
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For the rest of S5, the blue
monitor moved around -
sometimes next to the door
and sometimes in the front
right corner.  Interestingly,
you could spot the orange
one inside the bottom drawer
in the rolling cart.

We saw the blue one used
by Martin one time - on
Louisa's mother just before
the emergency surgery.
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Episode 4
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Episode 6
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Episode 5
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S6 took an odd turn.  During
this series, sometimes we
saw the orange one and
sometimes the blue one on
the cart next to the door.  
When the blue one was on
top you could see the orange
one in the bottom drawer.

But then, the first time we
saw Martin taking anyone's
Blood Pressure (Mr Moysey
in Episode 4), for the first
time he was using a digital
BP monitor.  Later in the
series, Martin took his own
blood pressure - but he was
back to using the orange
mercury one.  S6 was the last
time we saw either of the
mercury monitors.
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Starting in S7 the orange and
blue mercury monitors are
gone.  The digital monitor
that we saw Martin use in S6
was the only one used in this
series.  It was used on an
unnamed patient in Episode
3 and Beth Traywick in
Episode 7.  In addition, Peter
Cronk used it on himself
while he was shadowing
Martin in Episode 4.
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In S8 we saw the same digital
monitor used twice - on the
Curate in Episode 1 and on
Amy Vincent in Episode 3.  
Then Martin used a digital
wrist monitor for the first
time on himself in Episode 7
after his fainting spell.  
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Here is a look at the case for the
digital monitor.  It was
sometimes kept in the upper
cabinets next to the door and
sometimes on the rolling cart.
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Something strange happened
in S9 - Martin went "old
school" and started using an
Aneroid monitor.  This is the
type that is probably familiar
to many people - a round dial
clips onto the cuff or is
simply held by the doctor.  
He used it in Episode 2 on
Lorna (new headmistress),
in Episode 3 on Tony, and in
Episode 6 on the very
pregnant Mags.  For some
reason, in Episode 4 he went
back to the wrist monitor on
Ken.
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.imois a white articulated
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We've seen 3 different exam tables.  The first one, inherited from Dr Sim, was
never used.  Starting in S1E2 there was a new one with a dark grey leather top.  It
had a cabinet of drawers in the base - in S1 you could see the drawers, but
starting in S2 they were turned toward the front wall.  When Dr Dibbs arrived in
S5, there was a new table.  This one had a slightly thicker green leather top and
was open underneath (no cabinet).
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Exam Tables
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Series 1 Ep 1
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Series 1
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Series 5-9
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Series 2-4
.imo
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As with almost everything else in the room, Martin found the exam light needed
replacing.  For the rest of S1 he had a tall thin light that sat against the front wall.  
Starting in S2 there was a white articulated light that sat on the table in the front
right corner.  It was not only an exam light, but a magnifier.  Most of the time we
saw it in S2 it had a bright blue cover over the light.  The light was missing in S3
& S4, but one time in S4 one appeared when he was attending to Pauline's foot.  
But this was obviously not the same light.  In S5 the light from S2 was back - and
has remained in the front right corner ever since - although the blue cover has
never been seen again.  

When Martin was performing the surgery on Louisa's mother in S5 we saw a
large surgical light used for that scene.  So lucky he had it on hand!
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Exam Lights
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Series 1 Ep 1
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Series 2, 5-9
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Series 1
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Series 2, 5-9
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Series 2
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Series 4
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Series 5
.imoe
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A stadiometer is a device to measure height.  Dr Sim had a wooden one attached
to the wall in the back left corner (next to the built in closet).  When Martin
refurbished the room, he replaced it with a new white metal one on the wall just
to the left of the small square window in the front right corner.  At the start of S5
it was moved several feet to the left, closer to the fireplace.  
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Stadiometer
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Series 1 Ep 1
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Series 1 - 4
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Series 5 - 9
.imoe
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Martin has had a small floor scale in the office since S2 - usually sitting against
the front wall.  There was a change in S8 and at first it appeared that the black
non slip surface had been removed, but upon closer inspection, I think it might
be a different scale.  For two episodes in S6 (Episodes 7 & 8) a mechanical beam
scale appeared when Martin was concerned about his health and was weighing
himself.  It was still there in Episode 8 but never seen again.
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Scales
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Series 2 - 7
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Series 8 - 9
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Series 6
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.imoe
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In S8 we saw Martin using an ultrasound machine in his office for the first time.  
In Episode 4 he used it to diagnose that Morwenna's mother had cysts and not
cancer.  He then used it in Episode 6 on himself to verify that he had not broken
his ankle.  We never saw the machine in the room until it was being used, but
interestingly, it was right there when Louisa helped Martin into the office after
his fall.

In S9 he had a new, more modern machine.  It was used on Larmorna in Episode
1 after her accident in the cattle crush, and then in Episode 3 on Aunt Ruth's foot
to check her bone density.  Again, we never saw the machine in the room unless
it was being used,
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Ultrasound
Machines
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Series 8
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Series 9
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.imoe
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Martin's most useful item in the Consulting Room is his rolling cart.  It normally
sits next to the door, but is used all over the room as he is caring for patients.  
There have been two different carts - the first one had rounded handles on top
and was used in S1 - S4.  The one he has been using in S5 - S9 is slightly shorter
and the handle is on the side.  Both carts have plastic drawers filled with supplies.

There was one episode where both carts were visible in the room.  In the first
episode of S5, when Dr Dibbs was practicing, she had both carts.  You can see
them both as she is running through the room trying to escape from Martin.  We
never saw the taller cart again after that episode.
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Rolling Cart
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Series 1 - 4
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Series 5 - 9
.imoe
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In S3E2, Martin brought out a small ECG machine when Bert thought he was
having a heart attack.  That's the only time we have seen that machine, but
in S4, Martin was seen pulling leads off of Ted Nugent after Aunt Joan
brought him in suspecting he was having a heart attack.  We couldn't see the
machine, but I have to assume he was using the same device.  Then, in S6,
when Martin was concerned over his health, Morwenna walked in on him
attached to a different device.  I've asked around and the consensus seems to
be that it's a multipurpose device that includes ECG.  It also has a handle on top
so it might be something he could take with him on emergency calls.

Also, in the first episode there was a very old machine in this room.  I've asked
around and some think it could be for ECG.  Many think it is an autoclave
sterilizer.  And a couple thought it might be used for cauterization.  We might
never solve this one.
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ECG
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Series 3
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Series 4
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Series 6
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Series 1 Ep 1
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We saw Martin using the digital monitor
in Episodes 1 and 3, but right in the
middle, Episode 2, he used a different,
smaller one on Al.  Not sure why they
went to this one, but its noticeably
smaller than the other one.
Martin's consulting room is really at the heart of the show and the majority of scenes are filmed
in this room.  The room is filled with antique furniture and a lot of decor items.  There is also a
definite Asian flair for the decor in the room.  Every series there were changes in the room - new
items brought in, items leaving the room (and often showing up in other rooms in the surgery)
and items moved from one area of the room to another one.  One exception was in S3
where all kinds of changes happened halfway through the series.  I still haven't figured out a
good reason for that - maybe one day I will get to talk to the prop masters.  At the beginning of
S4 there were some big changes to the type of furniture and the way the room was
decorated (and big changes in other areas of the surgery).  I put this down to Martin needing to
make some changes after Louisa left Portwenn.  Maybe it has nothing to do with any of that - but
that's my theory!