Preston Burke

Dr. Preston Xavier Burke
First appearance	"A Hard Day's Night"
Last appearance	"Didn't We Almost Have It All?"
Created by	Shonda Rhimes
Portrayed by	Isaiah Washington
In-universe information
Gender	Male
Title	M.D., F.A.C.S.
Occupation	Former Head of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Seattle Grace Hospital
Spouse	Dr. Cristina Yang (ex-fiancée)
Relatives	Jane Burke (mother) Donald Burke (father)

Preston Xavier Burke was the name of a fictional character on the ABC television series Grey's Anatomy. The character was portrayed by actor Isaiah Washington.

Fictional Biography

Dr. Preston Burke used to be the chief cardiothoracic surgeon at Seattle Grace Hospital. After completing pre-medical studies at Tulane University, Burke graduated first in his class from Johns Hopkins Medical School. He was once the interim chief of surgery while Dr. Webber was healing from brain surgery. He began a relationship with intern Cristina Yang but broke it off because he feared it would ruin both of their reputations. Her miscarriage brought them back together. He and Cristina lived together in his perfectly-kept apartment. He plays the trumpet and enjoys jazz music, especially Eugene Foote's. He actually performs a surgery on his musical hero, but the patient dies during the surgery.

In the second season finale he was shot, affecting his control of his right-hand. His temporary fix to this possibly long-term problem was to work together with Cristina during every one of his surgeries so that she could take over in case he might have trouble with his hand. The arrangement fell apart after Cristina, reacting to growing stress after George caught onto their secret, went to the Chief and confessed everything. Initially, he was engaged in a cold war with Cristina, where neither of them spoke (neither would "say Uncle") but after she broke the silence, he proposed to her and she has accepted his proposal. Until their secret was revealed, Burke was set to become the next Chief of Surgery, but now he has to compete with his fellow attendings for the position. He has since recovered, after being operated on by Dr. Derek Shepherd.

However, in the finale of season three, on the day of their wedding, Burke tells Cristina that he no longer wishes to make her do anything against her will, and Burke realized he was trying to make Cristina the woman he wanted her to be, and not accept her as the woman she is. Cristina said she "thought this was what she wanted" . He wanted her to say she knew it was what she wanted, so he leaves her in the chapel. Cristina then returns to their apartment and discovers Burke has left, taking with him the things that meant something to only him (his trumpet, his Eugene Foote collection, his grandmother's picture and his lucky scrub cap), leaving Cristina devastated.

In season 4 of Grey's Anatomy, Preston's long-time rival and love-to-hate medic Dr. Erica Hahn replaced him as the head of cardiothoracic surgery. Having such, she has a huge respect for Burke although she would never admit it to him in his face. She was even appropriately nicknamed The New Burke and Dr. McHardcore. Hahn dislikes Christina Yang because of her relationship with Dr. Burke.

Reason For Departure

On June 7, 2007, it was announced that Isaiah Washington was released from his contract. This was reportedly due to the controversy of Washington using the derogatory word "faggot" towards cast mate T.R. Knight during an off camera argument and following a physical altercation with Patrick Dempsey.