Ever since arriving at Holby City from war-torn Sierra Leone, Casualty's Senior House
Officer Lara Stone has dealt with no end of medical traumas. But, in a chilling turn of
events, its the feisty blond, who's in need of help this week, after nasty Detective
Inspector David Collier's, threats take a sinister turn.
All too aware that Lara knows he raped his wife Melanie - a recent patient of hers - last
Saturday's episode ended in a classic cliffhanger, with Collier (Dorian Healy) lunging at
Lara in the hospital car park, intent on making her his second victim. This Saturday, Lara
makes a desperate escape after striking Collier with a brick, but things don't get any
easier for her.
Colette (Adjoa Andoh) persuades Lara to go the police, but convincing them that their boss
raped his wife and then tried to rape her proves near impossible. As if that wasn't
traumatic enough, she finds herself trading places from that of doctor to patient 'Lara has
to go into the rape victim's suite, have mouth swabs taken, and is asked to remove her top,'
says actress Christine Stephen-Daly, who plays the tough doctor. 'It's a humiliating
situation to be in, especially for Lara, who's such a strong person and likes to be in
control. She normally gives this treatment to patients. Now she's the victim.'
Coming just months after the death of her fiance, Patrick Spiller (played by Ian Kelsey),
Lara's having a tough time. As is Christine, who admits she found the attempted rape
scenes harrowing to film. While the attack's merely implied this week, the next series
of Casualty, to be screened in the autumn, shows the brutal truth in a series of flashbacks.
'I've never been attacked myself so I read a few books and watched Jodie Foster in the
film The Accused, to try to put myself in Lara's situation,' says Christine, 29. 'But a
rape is something you can't really research. Unless it's physically happened to you, it's
difficult to understand the mental implications. 'It was only after filming those flashback
scenes for the next series that I realised the powerlessness of the situation. You're
fighting through adrenaline, instinct and out of sheer terror and there's a point where
your strength just drains away and there's nothing more you can do. The feeling of being
completely overpowered was absolutely terrifying and I went home in floods of tears.'
Thankfully, the Australian-born star, who lives alone in Bristol, where Casualty is
filmed, didn't have too far to turn when she needed a sympathetic ear. Shortly after
arriving in England two years ago for an extended holiday (she has dual nationality),
Christine met her partner, Simon, a marketing consultant based in London. 'Our phone
bill is huge,' she grins. She also has the benefit of a close-knit family. Her three
sisters also live in London, and though Mum and Dad, Rhonda and Paul, are thousands of
miles away in Melbourne, they catch up with their daughter on a regular basis through
repeats of Casualty on satellite channel UK Gold.
Which is just as well, because Christine reveals it was her parents who helped her catch
the acting 'bug'. 'My dad was an actor when he was young, so I get a little bit of it
from him, and Mum also sparked my interest at an early age. She's a huge movie buff and
I remember watching the golden Hollywood films when I was six or seven and being
absolutely star-struck. I used to skive off school and she'd write me a sick note and
take me out to see a film. 'I was quite shy growing up and found it really difficult
to be accepted, but when I had the opportunity to get up on stage, I could express myself
in away that I didn't have the courage to do as an individual. It was a fantastic feeling.'
And, as with her recent storyline, acting helps Christine re-examine some deeply-rooted
beliefs. 'It's exciting, you explore areas of life that you wouldn't necessarily come in
contact with in your private life,' she says.
'I don't have the authority to be a spokesperson about rape - after all, I'm an actor and
I play a role - but this storyline has certainly been an eye-opener. I always thought,
"No one can rape me, no one could overpower me, how do people get themselves into that
situation?" I know different now and I have a much deeper understanding.' With all that's
happened to Lara, it's easy to forget that Christine has only been in the BBC1 drama for
just over a year. Reflecting on the current series - which ends next week - Christine's
delighted to have had such strong storylines, but admits they've taken their toil.
'It's been a downward spiral for Lara since Patrick died and, personally, it takes a lot
out of you,' she says. 'But I'm sure things will change for her. You can't keep a character
down for too long.' In the meantime, however, there's another twist in the tale surrounding
Lara's trauma. Collier is lying unconscious in a hospital bed and if he doesn't recover,
he can't be brought to justice. What's more, it could be Lara, herself, standing accused...
Ever since arriving at Holby City from war-torn Sierra Leone, Casualty's Senior House
Officer Lara Stone has dealt with no end of medical traumas. But, in a chilling turn of
events, its the feisty blond, who's in need of help this week, after nasty Detective
Inspector David Collier's, threats take a sinister turn.
All too aware that Lara knows he raped his wife Melanie - a recent patient of hers - last
Saturday's episode ended in a classic cliffhanger, with Collier (Dorian Healy) lunging at
Lara in the hospital car park, intent on making her his second victim. This Saturday, Lara
makes a desperate escape after striking Collier with a brick, but things don't get any
easier for her.
Colette (Adjoa Andoh) persuades Lara to go the police, but convincing them that their boss
raped his wife and then tried to rape her proves near impossible. As if that wasn't
traumatic enough, she finds herself trading places from that of doctor to patient 'Lara has
to go into the rape victim's suite, have mouth swabs taken, and is asked to remove her top,'
says actress Christine Stephen-Daly, who plays the tough doctor. 'It's a humiliating
situation to be in, especially for Lara, who's such a strong person and likes to be in
control. She normally gives this treatment to patients. Now she's the victim.'
Ever since arriving at Holby City from war-torn Sierra Leone, Casualty's Senior House
Officer Lara Stone has dealt with no end of medical traumas. But, in a chilling turn of
events, its the feisty blond, who's in need of help this week, after nasty Detective
Inspector David Collier's, threats take a sinister turn.
All too aware that Lara knows he raped his wife Melanie - a recent patient of hers - last
Saturday's episode ended in a classic cliffhanger, with Collier (Dorian Healy) lunging at
Lara in the hospital car park, intent on making her his second victim. This Saturday, Lara
makes a desperate escape after striking Collier with a brick, but things don't get any
easier for her.
Colette (Adjoa Andoh) persuades Lara to go the police, but convincing them that their boss
raped his wife and then tried to rape her proves near impossible. As if that wasn't
traumatic enough, she finds herself trading places from that of doctor to patient 'Lara has
to go into the rape victim's suite, have mouth swabs taken, and is asked to remove her top,'
says actress Christine Stephen-Daly, who plays the tough doctor. 'It's a humiliating
situation to be in, especially for Lara, who's such a strong person and likes to be in
control. She normally gives this treatment to patients. Now she's the victim.'
Coming just months after the death of her fiance, Patrick Spiller (played by Ian Kelsey),
Lara's having a tough time. As is Christine, who admits she found the attempted rape
scenes harrowing to film. While the attack's merely implied this week, the next series
of Casualty, to be screened in the autumn, shows the brutal truth in a series of flashbacks.
'I've never been attacked myself so I read a few books and watched Jodie Foster in the
film The Accused, to try to put myself in Lara's situation,' says Christine, 29. 'But a
rape is something you can't really research. Unless it's physically happened to you, it's
difficult to understand the mental implications. 'It was only after filming those flashback
scenes for the next series that I realised the powerlessness of the situation. You're
fighting through adrenaline, instinct and out of sheer terror and there's a point where
your strength just drains away and there's nothing more you can do. The feeling of being
completely overpowered was absolutely terrifying and I went home in floods of tears.'
Thankfully, the Australian-born star, who lives alone in Bristol, where Casualty is
filmed, didn't have too far to turn when she needed a sympathetic ear. Shortly after
arriving in England two years ago for an extended holiday (she has dual nationality),
Christine met her partner, Simon, a marketing consultant based in London. 'Our phone
bill is huge,' she grins. She also has the benefit of a close-knit family. Her three
sisters also live in London, and though Mum and Dad, Rhonda and Paul, are thousands of
miles away in Melbourne, they catch up with their daughter on a regular basis through
repeats of Casualty on satellite channel UK Gold.
Which is just as well, because Christine reveals it was her parents who helped her catch
the acting 'bug'. 'My dad was an actor when he was young, so I get a little bit of it
from him, and Mum also sparked my interest at an early age. She's a huge movie buff and
I remember watching the golden Hollywood films when I was six or seven and being
absolutely star-struck. I used to skive off school and she'd write me a sick note and
take me out to see a film. 'I was quite shy growing up and found it really difficult
to be accepted, but when I had the opportunity to get up on stage, I could express myself
in away that I didn't have the courage to do as an individual. It was a fantastic feeling.'
And, as with her recent storyline, acting helps Christine re-examine some deeply-rooted
beliefs. 'It's exciting, you explore areas of life that you wouldn't necessarily come in
contact with in your private life,' she says.
'I don't have the authority to be a spokesperson about rape - after all, I'm an actor and
I play a role - but this storyline has certainly been an eye-opener. I always thought,
"No one can rape me, no one could overpower me, how do people get themselves into that
situation?" I know different now and I have a much deeper understanding.' With all that's
happened to Lara, it's easy to forget that Christine has only been in the BBC1 drama for
just over a year. Reflecting on the current series - which ends next week - Christine's
delighted to have had such strong storylines, but admits they've taken their toil.
'It's been a downward spiral for Lara since Patrick died and, personally, it takes a lot
out of you,' she says. 'But I'm sure things will change for her. You can't keep a character
down for too long.' In the meantime, however, there's another twist in the tale surrounding
Lara's trauma. Collier is lying unconscious in a hospital bed and if he doesn't recover,
he can't be brought to justice. What's more, it could be Lara, herself, standing accused...
