‘Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms’ Confirmed for Christmas
We’re getting a backdoor pilot for Christmas this year.
It’s Christmas in June for Call the Midwife fans: The BBC has finally confirmed details about the long-anticipated spinoff series, including an official title, a release window, and cast. Now called Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms, the prequel, originally announced last year, will take us back to London on the eve of World War II and feature younger versions of many of the characters we came to know and love on the flagship series. Even better, we’ve got a release window: the series will kick off as a three-part Christmas special during the 2026 holiday season.
Set in 1939, the series takes us back to a Nonnatus House that was the heart of its community, but where serving those who need them most is much more challenging. After all, there’s no National Health Service, no penicillin, no nitrous oxide, no TB treatment protocols. (The looming threat of the Blitz lies ahead.) Yet, Sister Monica Joan, Sister Julienne, and Sister Evangelina work tirelessly to serve the mothers and babies who need them, with help from several new midwives and a local GP.
“Having loved and lived with the Sisters of Nonnatus House for so many years, I found myself longing to turn the clock back and tell the story of their finest hour - the Blitz,” creator Heidi Thomas said in a statement.
“Who were Sister Monica Joan, Sister Julienne, and Sister Evangelina when they were young? What did they do, how did they survive, and how did the conflict change them? Above all else, Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms is about what happens when women go to war. It is about love and birth, separation and courage, lipstick and nylons (or the lack thereof). But it is also a medical drama, set in a devastating landscape where even the nurses cannot know if they will live till morning.”
Here's the series’ synopsis.
In September 1939, Sister Monica Joan is in her prime, Sister Julienne and Sister Evangelina are young and zealous, and Nonnatus House is the beating heart of Poplar. Together with Sister Alice, and local GP Dr Kit, the nuns dedicate their lives to mothers, babies and the poor. But there is no gas and air, no penicillin, no cure for TB, and no welfare state. Then war is declared - and life gets even harder. The three young secular midwives who complete the team - Sybil, Olive and Marianne - receive a baptism of fire as the blackout and the Blitz take hold. While bombs rain from the sky, women give birth underground, families are shattered, children run wild, and whole streets are reduced to rubble. But courage, compassion and resilience triumph as the community unites in its efforts to survive.
The series stars Amy Booth-Steel (Down Cemetery Road) as Sister Evangelina, Helen Schlesinger (Ted Lasso) as Sister Monica Joan, Julie Hesmondhalgh (Mr Bates vs the Post Office) as Sister Alice, and Helena Wilson (National Theatre Live: Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead) as Sister Julienne. Bally Gill (Slow Horses) co-stars as Dr. Kit Malhotra. Original cast member Jenny Agutter, who plays Sister Julienne on the flagship series, will serve as the show’s narrator.
(If you’re having visions of Vanessa Redgrave, that’s on purpose.)
Megan Vick
Other members of the ensemble cast include Martin McCann (Blue Lights), Liv Andrusier (The Witcher), Lizzie Back (Grantchester), Ellie Mckay (Hijack), Ciaran Bowling (Dune: Prophecy), Ami Metcalf (Sister Boniface Mysteries), Ben Rose (This Town), and Rachel O’Connell (The Young Offenders).
The series is created and written by Thomas, with directors Ann Tricklebank and John Maidens confirmed to be splitting helming duties across the Christmas Special’s three episodes. Thomas and Tricklebank are also executive producers, alongside Pippa Harris for Neal Street Productions and Jo McClellan for the BBC.
We should note that the series does not yet have an American distributor. Most would assume PBS is the first and obvious choice, as it has been the home of the original series since its debut in 2012 and currently streams the Christmas specials the day they premiere. However, up until now, all spinoffs of hit BBC series (including Sister Boniface Mysteries, Beyond Paradise, Return to Paradise, and Make It At Market) have landed on BritBox. We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled to see where this year’s prequel Christmas special lands.
The three-part Call the Midwife: Sister in Arms Christmas special is now filming in Longcross, Surrey. The BBC says that further details about a full-length Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms series will be announced in due course.
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