Doc Martin was created by Dominic Minghella by developing the character of Dr Martin Bamford from the Nigel Cole comedy film Saving Grace (2000), which had also spawned two made-for-TV films for Sky.

The original plan was to produce two television films per year for three years, but Sky Pictures folded after the first two films were made, prompting Martin Clunes's company to pitch the concept to ITV instead.

ITV wanted a darker, 'fish out of water' take on the doctor as an uncomfortable townie, so Martin Clunes suggested making him curmudgeonly, socially inept, and formal, transforming the friendly, laid-back Dr Bamford into the abrasive Dr Ellingham.

The new doctor's surname, Ellingham, is an anagram of the surname of writer Dominic Minghella, who was brought in to rework the character's background.

Apart from Martin Clunes, only actors Tristan Sturrock and Tony Maudsley appear in both the original Saving Grace-related Sky films and the ITV series Doc Martin.

Martin Clunes also plays Martin's father in a flashback episode depicting Martin's childhood.

The series is filmed on location in the real village of Port Isaac, Cornwall, standing in for the fictional Portwenn, with most interior scenes shot in a converted local barn and Fern Cottage used as Doctor Ellingham's home and surgery.

The final episode of Series 3 drew 10.37 million viewers, the programme's highest-ever single-episode audience, while the Series 4 finale attracted 10.29 million viewers despite Scottish broadcaster STV initially declining to air most ITV drama in Scotland.

Doc Martin won the British Comedy Award for 'Best TV Comedy Drama' in 2004, the same year Martin Clunes won 'Best TV Comedy Actor' largely for the role.

The show inspired several international adaptations, including versions in the Czech Republic/Slovakia, France (Doktor Martin Le Foll), Germany (Doktor Martin), Greece (Kliniki Periptosi), the Netherlands (Dokter Tinus), Spain (Doctor Mateo), and a 2025 American version for Fox titled Best Medicine starring Josh Charles, in which Clunes himself guest-starred as the lead's father.

Two novelisations by Sam Hawksmoor, published under the byline 'Sam North', adapted the teleplays of the first two series, using some timeline shifting tied to character point of view.