Pivotal to this series is the relationship between the impulsive Dr Danny Nash (Douglas Henshall) and his strikingly attractive colleague Dr Kate Millar (Neve McIntosh).
Psychos features a highly-talented cast of young actors generating electric and arresting dramatic action through some powerful ensemble playing.
In tonight's second episode, Motherwell fan Colin Goodall (John McGlynn) tries to hang himself with his football scarf.
The scarf rips and Colin is admitted to the psychiatric ward at Muirpark Hospital where he is assessed by Kate and Nash. Kate refuses to believe that Colin's depression is solely football related.
Nash, himself a lifelong Celtic fan, accuses Kate of never having been passionate about anything in her life. Kate is stumped for an answer until she remembers her teenage devotion to the band The Cure.
An elderly woman, Catherine Davis, (Margaret d'Arcy) is transferred to Nicholson Ward. She was found in her flat in a catatonic state and needs to be able to start eating and drinking again.
Senior consultant Dr Karen Smith (Lynsey Baxter) recommends a course of ECT (electro- convulsive therapy).
Martine (Indira Varma), Smith's junior doctor, has serious moral qualms about the use of ECT and tries to persuade Smith to consider an alternative.
As none of Catherine Davis's relatives can be traced, Smith presses ahead with a treatment order, at which point the old woman's lawyer son marches onto the ward and demands that the treatment is halted.
Meanwhile Colin Goodall's sister June (Anne-Marie Timoney) arrives and persuades the doctors that she is capable of looking after Colin at home.
Harvey (Nicholas Clay) agrees, despite Nash's reservations about whether or not Colin is ready to be discharged. Nash has formed a bond with Colin and, at a time when Nash has stopped taking medicine for his own illness, he even accompanies Colin on a trip to watch Celtic play Motherwell.
However, nobody can foresee that Colin staying with his sister will have unexpected repercussions
Psychos is a challenging and provocative new drama set in the psychiatric ward of a Glasgow hospital, and marks the TV writing debut of David Wolstencroft.
This six-part drama tracks the unusual lives and relationships of a young medical team and their parents as they struggle with the extraordinary pressures of life in a highly- charged, fast-moving and sometimes anarchic hospital environment.
Concentrating on the doctors and nurses on the ward, Psychos features a strong and distinctive cast of characters.
Their stories instantly engage attention, as their personal and professional alliances and animosities are played out against the challenges presented by a shifting patient population.
Daily Record 8th May 1999