Meet the paramedics of BBC1's Ambulance

Narrated by Christopher Eccleston, the show follows “the stories behind the sirens”, taking an in-depth look at the nation's ambulance services and the people who spend their days helping to save lives, and even bringing new ones into the world.

Here are eight of the paramedics and co we'll be meeting in a sometimes harrowing but often uplifting series...

Nat and Nat, Paramedics

Having previously worked in the care sector, Nat G (right) joined the ambulance service aged 34. She was motivated by personal experience, after paramedics arrived at her home to treat her daughter, who has cerebral palsy. She is often seen with her best friend, colleague and namesake, Nat, and claims they don’t go a day without speaking.

Shanie, Call Assessor

Still a relative newcomer to the job – she only joined the service three months ago – Shanie was just three weeks into the job when she delivered her first baby. She is also the mother of two children of her own.

Ozzy, Paramedic

Ozzy qualified as a paramedic last November, but he already finds himself in a position of responsibility, guiding student Matt.

Mark, Paramedic

Mark has worked with the ambulance service since he first saw a job advert 16 years ago, and says he's never looked back. Before joining the service, Mark was with the RAF's Mountain Rescue, and then at a factory in Hereford, where he worked for nine years.

Christine, Paramedic

Referred to by her colleagues as both “the work mum” and “the Nanny McPhee of the service” Christine has been a paramedic for 34 years. In that time she has carried out almost every possible role: starting in the control room and working as a controller, technician, paramedic, emergency care practitioner and mentor.

James, Paramedic Officer

A former employee of Cadbury’s, James has been with the service for 16 years, including ten as an incident commander. His role is to quickly develop incident objectives on busy scenes, manage all incident operations, allocate resources and take responsibility for all persons involved.

Katie, Paramedic

Katie was inspired to become a paramedic after an act of heroism while on holiday in Zante at the age of 27. After witnessing a man have a heart attack whilst swimming in a pool, Katie performed CPR on him and saved his life.

Ambulance returns to BBC1 at 9:00pm on Thursday 26th April