Spy: Is this the most explosive Shortland Street cliff-hanger ever?

Shortland Street Hospital chief executive TK Samuels (Ben Mitchell) and former CEO Chris Warner (Michael Galvin). Photo / Supplied

Could the Shortland Street hospital explode in the soap’s dramatic season cliffhanger this week?

What is promised nightly this week is drama, chaos and mini cliff-hangers leading up to the explosive one-hour finale on Thursday evening.

Spy is told that hospital chief executive TK Samuels (Ben Mitchell) and former CEO Chris Warner (Michael Galvin) must put their past grudges aside to keep the hospital open and functioning to help people in need. Nobody is left untouched by the events of the last week of the year.

An exclusive pic released to Spy shows the pair covered in soot, their faces pained.

With Galvin being the longest and Mitchell the second longest-serving cast members in Ferndale - unless they are hit by flying shrapnel - it is unlikely they meet their demise this week. But nothing is for sure in the world of Shorty.

It’s been a big year for New Zealand’s longest-running soap with cast and crew celebrating 30 years on air, in May. There have been several cast departures and in the past few weeks, the exits have gone into overdrive.

Of late, the residents of Ferndale and fans of the show have gone through some major ups and downs; the sudden death of Jojo (Ava Diakhaby), the drowning of Wilder (Darby McKessar) and the shock accident that left Damo (Grant Lobban) fighting for his life and eventually saw Desi (Kura Forrester) and Damo depart the show.

All this seems to be setting the show up for a rebirth in 2023. Who knows what faces from the past might show up next year?

Producer Oliver Driver tells Spy to expect the unexpected next year.

“Next year is going to be unmissable; births, deaths, marriages, disasters, drama - we’ve got the lot.

“What these final episodes of 2022 do is set up the show for a very different return in 2023, it won’t be Shortland Street as you know it now.”

Driver says they are filming the 2023 return episodes now and the feel is very different, but still has the mix of happy and nice stuff that makes viewers’ hearts feel full.

“But at the same time, there’s always going to be drama because it’s Shortland Street after all.”

As for the drama set to unfold this week, Driver says lives will be lost or left hanging in the balance.

Ngahuia Piripi, who plays Esther, has been with the show for more than seven years, is pregnant in real life and soon due to give birth to her third child.

What better time for an exit from the show perhaps and in spectacularly dramatic fashion?