In The Bleak Midwinter…

- Caren Clark

NEW DRAMA

Call the Midwife

CHRISTMAS DAY / BBC1 / 7.40PM

There wasn’t much seasonal snow in last year’s Call the Midwife Christmas special, which transported our favourite nuns and midwives to the sun of South Africa.

But this year’s instalment, set back in their native Poplar, more than makes up for that as the residents of Nonnatus House are inundated with the white stuff when they face the Big Freeze, the harshest winter for 300 years, that started just after Christmas in 1962 and lasted well into the New Year.

While there’s fun to be had for some in the wintry weather, and even a panto to prepare for, the treacherous conditions mean a lack of water and other basic supplies, blocked roads, and even the ruining of plans Trixie (Helen George) has for a holiday in Switzerland. Two heart-breaking cases also test their festive spirit to the limit.

TV Times visited the cast during filming, where Jenny Agutter (Sister Julienne), Charlotte Ritchie (Barbara Hereward), Linda Bassett (Nurse Crane) and Stephen McGann (Doctor Turner) revealed more…

So, what cases do the midwives deal with this Christmas?