All Saints (season 11)

Plot overview

The season opens by following up with the cliffhanger of the final episode of the previous season in which the ED is held at gunpoint by three intruders. The bomb set up by the intruders goes off, blowing up the Pathology lab.

Von has a traumatic experience on a house call in which she is harshly reminded of a time when was sexually assaulted thirty years ago. She faces up to this secret she has been carrying and tells Gabrielle.

Ann-Marie's health deteriorates she initially refuses treatment but Bart persuades her into doing so. As her battle against cancer becomes harder for her to fight, she discontinues treatment, leaving Bart traumatised. After arguing with her that treatment is the best option, Bart finally respects her decision. Ann-Marie passes away in Bart's arms in her apartment.

Frank's conflict with hospital administration continues. He makes a disparaging comments about hospital administration to the media in the aftermath of the bomb blast which nearly costs him his job. Oliver Marone uses Elizabeth Foy as a mole to try to get Frank to admit that he was the whistle-blower in the 'faulty bed' incident. At the pinnacle of the conflict Franks resigns as head of ED with Oliver pushing for Zoe to become the new head of the ED. A short time later, Oliver discovers how closely knit the ED team are and pleads that Frank returns to hold the ED together. Zoe leaves All Saints hospital for a position at St Angela's. Mike donates his kidney to his son. Erica disappears and is found murdered and Dan also disappears.

Mark Priestley's Death

Actor Mark Priestley, who played Dan Goldman on the show, took his own life on 27 August 2008. As a result, the show's final two episodes had to be re-filmed. It is presumed that the nature of these episodes, in which Mark's on-screen wife goes missing, led Mark to suicide. The Seven Network paid tribute with a video clip in the following episode, along with actor John Howard in a plea to all those suffering from depression to get help.

As a result of Mark's death, the on-screen wife, played by Jolene Anderson was killed off the show as Jolene believed she could not go on playing the role. Mark's final episode was aired on 18 November.

Controversy

The Seven Network faced potential legal action after the airing of episode 432, "Never Tell" on 27 May 2008. The episode suggested that children with Down Syndrome are a result of incestuous relationships, provoking advocacy group Down Syndrome Australia to lodge a complaint with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission and the Australian Communications and Media Authority, insisting that major advertisers in the show's timeslot boycott it and asking for a public apology from Seven. In the episode, a brother and sister are told that their unborn child is at risk of developing Down Syndrome as a result of their sexual relationship - according to Down Syndrome Australia, there is no evidence to support such a claim:

All Saints has stigmatised every person with Down syndrome and their families. We already know of one instance where a child has been victimised because of this episode.

Seven responded with an apology through a newspaper on 2 June.

All Saints values its audience and has the greatest respect for their commitment to the program.

Without reservation, to any members of the audience who have found an element of a recent story offensive, Channel Seven apologises.

Down Syndrome Australia rejected the apology on 3 June, saying that the Seven Network's response was insufficient.:

We're not going to accept a wishy-washy attempt at an apology that's come second-hand through a newspaper. They must say once and for all that there is categorically no link between Down syndrome and incest. We'll give them the opportunity to make a retraction during tonight's episode before we formally pursue legal advice and write official letters of complaint to the show's advertisers.

Until there's a formal recognition of error, it's not enough. First they flat refused to apologise at all, and now they've apologised if they happened to offended anyone. The next step is to broadcast a message saying 'if we implied Down syndrome is a product of incestuous relationships, we were wrong. It's an easy thing to do and the only way to put this thing to bed.