| Rita Freeman | |
|---|---|
| Casualty character | |
 Chloe Howman as Rita Freeman | |
| First appearance | "Once There Was a Way Home – Part One" 10 August 2013 |
| Last appearance | "The Fear" 16 July 2016 |
| Portrayed by | Chloe Howman |
| Spinoff(s) | "Mrs Walker-To-Be" (2015) |
| In-universe information | |
| Occupation |
|
| Spouse | Mark Richie (2005 - 2014) |
| Significant other | Iain Dean |
Rita Freeman is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Casualty, played by Chloe Howman. She first appears in the twenty-eighth series episode "Once There Was a Way Home – Part One", first broadcast on 10 August 2013. Howman's casting was announced four days before her debut. She attended multiple auditions against other actresses for the role. Rita is introduced as a new staff nurse at Holby City Hospital's emergency department (ED). She is characterised as fun, feisty, blunt and excellent at her job, which means patients are at ease around her. Howman compared the character to a Jack Russell Terrier. Despite being a popular member of staff, Rita struggles to make personal relationships. Rita's first episode features an incident at her flat when her ceiling caves in; Howman liked the introduction and found it dramatic. Throughout her tenure on the show, Rita has been promoted twice: on first instance to senior staff nurse and on second instance to clinical nurse manager.
The character's stories have mainly revolved around the exploration of her backstory. Joel Beckett was cast as Rita's estranged husband Mark Richie, who is a convicted child abuser. He is introduced a year after Rita's arrival when she files for divorce and he is admitted to the ED. Mark's appearance has a detrimental effect on Rita's mental wellbeing and she begins heavily drinking, sometimes during shifts. Producers reintroduced the character on two further occasions to challenge Rita and develop her other stories. On one occasion, Mark's appearance coincides with the disappearance of a child and on another occasion, he is admitted to the ED with the girl he abused, bringing a conclusion to the exploration of Rita's backstory.
Producers also establish a feud between Rita and lead ED consultant Connie Beauchamp (Amanda Mealing) following Mark's first return. Connie blames Rita for her daughter leaving and when Connie is arrested, Rita hides evidence proving her not guilty. The story ends when the truth emerges. Show bosses then romantically paired Rita with paramedic Iain Dean (Michael Stevenson) for lighter stories. Writers intertwined Mark's second return with the story to make it darker and Rita lies about being attacked by Mark. The story marks the character's exit in the thirtieth series episode "The Fear", first broadcast on 16 July 2016. Rita has been generally well received by critics who liked her strong and feisty personality. However, Radio Times critic Alison Graham branded the character "Mother Teresa in trainers" and "a frowning, joyless nun" following her darker stories.