BREATHTAKING viewers have been left 'swearing at the TV' as they fumed over its 'heartbreaking and raw' scenes.
The brand new ITV series kicked off last night as it documented the Coronavirus pandemic.
Stripped over three nights, Breathtaking recreates and dramatises the affect of the virus on medical staff.
It follows Dr Abbey Henderson, who is played by Joanne Froggatt, as a junior doctor as she navigates her way through 2020.
However, just minutes into the new series viewers were left floored as they took to social media with their thoughts.
Spectacular New Year fireworks light up London sky as huge crowds celebrate across UK for first time in three years
One said: "I'm struggling to watch #BREATHTAKING if I'm honest. Sometimes it's just still a bit raw. But I'm glad at least some of our story is being heard."
A second wrote: "This #breathtaking show is absolutely heartbreaking :((( heroes of the nation."
"Watching #Breathtaking is really taking me back. It’s the dates that get me. My son was born in late February 2020. We were incredibly lucky to get in before the s**t hit the fan. I was vaguely aware of Covid but obviously we were a little distracted at the time," said a third.
While a fourth commented: "Remembering my colleagues who died, they were young, they were healthy, they went to work to help others, they were paid pittance, they left grieving children behind."
In the first episode viewers watched as the medical teams dealt with the 'containment' phase.
Doctor Abbey and her team dealt with rising numbers of Covid cases entering the hospital.
Speaking about the role, Joanne told ITV: “I feel truly honoured to be playing Dr Abbey Henderson in Breathtaking, based on Dr Rachel Clarke’s beautifully written, poignant and shocking book of the same name.
"When I first read the incredible scripts they moved me to tears on many occasions.
"I felt so passionately that I had to be a part of telling this story, the real story, of what was really happening behind the closed doors of the hospitals during the pandemic.”
