Call the Midwife Sisters in Arms: BBC One confirms start of prequel series set in Poplar during WW2
Oh, we love this cast!
Call the Midwife fans rejoice – BBC One has confirmed that the prequel Sisters in Arms has started filming. And we can expect it on our screens this Christmas.
Viewers know that the long-running drama is taking a break, after the heartbreaking series 15 finale earlier this year. The future of Nonnatus House and our favourite nuns and midwives were left uncertain…
The finale aired in March 2026 said goodbye to one of the longest serving characters, and saw the closure of Nonnatus House. However there was a silver lining of sorts. The closure was only temporary. And good news came in the form of Cyril and Rosalind’s wedding, the return of Sister Veronica to The Order, and a change of fate for Trixie…
While the series take a break, fans can expect a film and a prequel series (with a 16th series arriving in due course). As the Beeb told us: “Call the Midwife isn’t going anywhere.”
So here’s everything we know about the prequel series, Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms, as BBC One reveals key details.
What is Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms about?
Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms is the prequel series, created by Heidi Thomas. It will be set in Poplar during World War Two, specifically 1939.
Fans will meet a young Sister Monica Joan, who is “in her prime”, alongside “young and zealous” Sister Julienne and Sister Evangelina. At this time, “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, they are faced with life-threatening challenges, including no gas and air, no penicillin, no cure for TB, and no welfare state.
Don't miss a single story! Add us as a Preferred Source in Google for all your television news
The synopsis tells us: “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.”
Anybody else feeling emosh just thinking about it?
Who many episodes is it?
Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms is a three-part series, with each episode coming in at one hour.
At three hours, that’s a very decent chunk of Christmas taken care of…
What’s the release date?
Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms is a three-part Christmas special, which is now filming at Call the Midwife’s studio home in Longcross, Surrey.
Further details about a full length Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms series will be announced in due course.
Who’s in the cast of Call the Midwife: Sisters in the Arms?
The Beeb are keeping their cards – or rather their cast – close to their chest, but they have revealed some names. Coronation Street legend Julie Hesmondhalgh, who recently appeared in Mr Bates vs the Post Office, will play Sister Alice.
Down Cemetery Road actress Amy Booth-Steel takes on the role of Sister Evangelina, opposite Ted Lasso’s Helen Schlesinger as Sister Monica Joan. The Hills of California’s Helena Wilson stars as Sister Julienne. Slow Horses’ Bally Gill portrays Dr Kit Malhotra.
Guest stars include Blue Lights’ Martin McCann as Tommy Moffat, opposite EastEnders’ Rachel O’Connell as his wife Mary.
Other names in the ensemble cast include:
- The Witcher’s Liv Andrusier stars as Marianne Siegler.
- Grantchester’s Lizzie Back plays Sybil Maxted.
- Hijack’s Ellie Mckay portrays Olive Dobbs.
- Pierre’s Ciaran Bowling stars as Fred Buckle.
- Sister Boniface Mysteries’ Ami Metcalf portrays his wife Betty.
- This Town’s Ben Rose will play Dr Patrick Turner.
‘I found myself longing to tell the story of the Blitz’
Talking about the upcoming prequel series, creator and writer Heidi Thomas OBE, said: “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.
“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.”
She added: “I thought I had cried all my tears when Sister Monica Joan died, at the end of Call the Midwife’s 15th series. But the thought of her back on her bike, cycling through an air raid, set me off again. As did images of young Sister Julienne shaking when the sirens sound, and Fred Buckle still in his 20s, black with soot and sweat as a volunteer fireman.
“Then I’d be laughing at Sister Evangelina, in her element as an Air Raid Warden, or the juvenile Dr Turner turning up at a dance and being shy with girls.”
‘The backdrop of WW2 adds a completely fresh layer of tension’
Dame Pippa Harris DBE, executive producer, told us: “It’s thrilling to watch Heidi Thomas create a series which I know will delight our loyal Call the Midwife audience, as well as drawing in new viewers.
“It echoes the original through its blend of engrossing medical stories, wit, and pathos. While the backdrop of WW2 adds a completely fresh layer of tension and jeopardy to the drama.”
Read more: The 15 best BBC dramas to stream on BBC iPlayer right now
