Hospitals haven't been this tuneful since a chorus of consultants crooned Dem Bones to Michael Gambon in The Singing Detective. At Plymouth Theatre Royal, rehearsals have begun for a musical that traces the history of the National Health Service, from its birth in 1948 to the present day. Featuring such toe-tapping numbers as The Morning Song of the Poor Hard-Pressed GP and The Great Hospital Sweepstake, NHS The Musical! is described as a "living autopsy" by its director, Nick Stimson.

"The NHS is a sacred institution in this country," he said. "But who runs this thing? Is it the patients, big business, administration, politicians, medical people? And the answer is, nobody."

The show, which Stimson wrote with composer Jimmy Jewell, features 36 numbers performed by a small ensemble cast, and follows three patients through their diagnosis and treatment - a chain-smoker, a pensioner with a bad hip and a young mother-to-be. Stimson says he was bullied into writing it by his GP. "He eventually beat me down, and when I started researching it I realised there was an amazing story to be told," he said. While the musical is intended as a satire, Stimson is adamant that he is not attacking the health service. "We want it to be really entertaining, but to ask a lot of questions. It's very pro-NHS. We're not trying to rip it apart."

· NHS The Musical! opens at Plymouth Theatre Royal on May 15