Pride and JOYCE

RENEE BAILEY on loving life at Nonnatus, and the struggles ahead for her character...

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Dedicated nurse Joyce Highland only made her debut in BBC1 period drama Call the Midwife last year, but it's now hard to imagine Nonnatus House without her sensitivity, wit and no-nonsense efficiency.

'I have a soft spot for her,' enthuses the delightfully chatty Renee Bailey, who portrays the fan-favourite character, as she joins TV Times for an exclusive interview. 'I love that she's so competent but caring, and she enjoys her rum and dancing - I'd like to party with Joyce! But she's showing her vulnerability, too.'

We first saw glimpses of that more fragile side to Trinidad-born Joyce during the previous series, when it emerged she had been using a new identity to escape her abusive husband.

Now, as the 14th run continues this week, Joyce faces turmoil of a different kind as she encounters racist patient Alf Cottered (The Bay star David Troughton). But after an explosion occurs in Alf's squalid tenement building, will everyone make it out alive?

Here, Renee tells us about the challenging chapter ahead...

On her district nursing rounds, Joyce pays regular visits to elderly Alf, who is recently out of hospital following prostate surgery. How does she respond to his racist remarks?