The first name of House M.D.’s lead diagnostician, Dr. House, is Gregory.
Dr. Gregory House is the central character of the series and is played by Hugh Laurie. He heads a diagnostic medicine department at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, where he investigates cases that other doctors have been unable to solve.
House is characterized by exceptional medical reasoning, sarcasm, and dependence on the painkiller Vicodin. A leg infarction left him with chronic pain and a distinctive limp, creating an important part of both his medical history and his behavior. His methods are often ethically contentious, but the show presents his diagnostic ability as extraordinary.
The character’s surname is a deliberate clue to the series title. House is also strongly modeled on Sherlock Holmes, including his deductive approach, drug use, difficult social manner, and friendship with a doctor equivalent in James Wilson.