Gregory House, M.D., is a fictional character and protagonist of the Fox medical drama House. Portrayed by Hugh Laurie, the character is a maverick medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. House's character has been described as a "misanthrope", a "cynic" and a "curmudgeon", the last of which was named one of the top television words of 2006 in honor of the character.
On the series, the character's unorthodox diagnostic approaches, radical therapeutic motives, and stalwart rationality has resulted in much conflict between himself and his colleagues. House is also often portrayed as lacking empathy and sympathy for his patients, a practice that allots him the time to solve pathological enigmas. The character is partly inspired by Sherlock Holmes.
