Series 7

Series 7 is the seventh series of Call the Midwife. It began airing on 21st January 2018 on BBC1 and 25th March 2018 on PBS.

Plot[]

Series 7 takes the series into 1963 but the year arrives with challenges and changes to Nonnatus House, one of those being the historical big freeze seeing unprecedented levels of coldness in England but the midwives continue mission, striving to serve the women of the community and living alongside them. Changes come when Barbara and Tom Hereward take a leave of absence to work in another district, but the place at Nonnatus is not left unfilled when a new nurse Lucille Anderson arrives at the doorstep being part of a rush of nurses coming from the commonwealth. And her service is needed as the midwives face troubles as dementia, racial abuse, leprosy, and meningitis featuring in storylines. The series also covers historical events like Valentina Tereshkova becoming the first female cosmonaut and the assassination of US President John F Kennedy.

Much of the roster however remains the same with characters like Trixie with her new boyfriend Christopher navigate their relationship. Unfortunately Christophers ex wife and commitments to his daughter make Trixie decide to end the relationship but she doesn’t do this lightly and is very upset. She turns to alcoholism once again and stops going to her AA meetings, in the end she goes to stay with her godmother in Portofino to get past her addiction. Newest nurse Lucille faces hardships of her own as she is blamed for a new mother having a stroke by the grandmother and faces racial abuse and even at her own church she is made to feel unwelcome, but she finds a close friend in Valerie Dyer and finds a new church that she feels welcome in. Other smaller sublots include the Turner family getting an au pair Magda and Sister Monica Joan needing an operation for cataracts.

Unfortunately, when Tom and Barbara return their happiness is short lived as Barbara is taken into hospital with septicaemia caused by meningitis and despite showing signs of improvement dies with her husband and best friend Phyllis by her side. The nuns and midwives, the Turners, the Buckles and the community come together in mourning the loss of the beloved midwife Barbara. For Sister Monica Joan’s birthday the community make her a video reel which includes a tribute to Barbara who would forever live on as a memory.

Episodes[]

See also: List of Episodes

Series 7 (2018)[]

No.overall	Episode	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	UK viewers (millions)
Special
52	Christmas Special	Syd Macartney	Heidi Thomas	25 December 2017	9.57
The exceptionally harsh winter of 1962–63 causes disruption for the residents of Poplar. Valerie seeks to reassure an unmarried expectant mother that her partner, who is not the father, will be able to love the baby as his own. But Valerie delivers the baby one month premature which she believes is stillborn, leaving all three grieving. On her way back to Nonnatus House, however, she discovers that the baby is actually alive. The death of a local man leads Sister Julienne to discover a dark history of emotional, physical and sexual abuse that have split the family. Tom and Barbara depart for Birmingham after he is appointed to a temporary post there. Meanwhile, Shelagh is forced to return to work as the weather increases pressure on Nonnatus and the practice.
Series
53	Episode 1	Syd Macartney	Heidi Thomas	21 January 2018	9.09
In early 1963, with Barbara away and Patsy and Delia having also departed, young Jamaican midwife Lucille Anderson (Leonie Elliott) joins the staff at Nonnatus House. Phyllis crosses swords with formidable policeman Sergeant Woolf while handling the case of an elderly woman who is dying of cancer but refuses to leave her house even as the street around her is demolished. Handling the case of a single mother helps Trixie come to terms with the fact that boyfriend Christopher wishes to take their relationship further.
54	Episode 2	Claire Winyard	Louise Ironside	28 January 2018	8.81
Lucille experiences bigotry because of her West Indian background, and when a young woman unexpectedly suffers a stroke shortly after giving birth, her domineering mother blames Lucille. An expectant mother wishes her husband to be present at the birth, but he refuses. When his wife goes into labour, however, he must assist with the birth. The arrival of a beautiful young Hungarian au pair, Magda, shakes up the Turners' household.
55	Episode 3	Claire Winyard	Kelly Jones	4 February 2018	9.39
An expectant mother is diagnosed with the degenerative neurological disorder Huntington's disease, and quickly deteriorates to the point where she is unable to look after her children. Magda is shocked to discover that she is pregnant; after reading the Turners' medical books, she steals ergometrine from Nonnatus House in an attempt to induce an abortion, but puts her own life in danger. Fred and Violet organise a charity beauty contest. Concerned for his young daughter, Trixie ends her relationship with Christopher and turns to drink once again.
56	Episode 4	Rebecca Johnson	Lauren Klee & Heidi Thomas	11 February 2018	9.57
A Pakistani woman is aghast to find that, during a return to Pakistan, her husband has taken a second wife, a teenager who is now expecting a baby. Unable to have children herself, she is initially resentful of the second wife, but comes to her assistance when the young woman finds motherhood difficult. Sister Monica Joan is diagnosed with cataracts and risks losing her sight, but refuses to have an operation until Fred persuades her otherwise. Trixie's personal problems continue to increase and she is granted a leave of absence for six months.
57	Episode 5	Rebecca Johnson	Helen Blakeman	18 February 2018	9.33
Rumours that a newly arrived sailor from Nigeria is suffering from smallpox cause panic in the community, and he hides away in fear and shame. After determining that he instead has leprosy, the midwives find a place for him to receive healing care in a residential facility. Lucille endeavours to assist a pregnant woman who has developed a phobia of giving birth after an earlier traumatic delivery. Tom and Barbara return to Poplar.
58	Episode 6	Emma Sullivan	Louise Ironside	25 February 2018	9.33
An Irish family with two children and a third on the way arrive in Poplar to take over the newsagent's shop, but the husband is killed in a car crash. When the shop is damaged by a fire, Barbara and Fred lead efforts to get the family back on their feet. Valerie and Lucille lead health and relationship classes for teen girls at the youth club, but a stern mother complains about the sexual education. When Valerie digs deeper, she finds that the mother's attitude is coloured by her own sister's promiscuous behaviour in her teenage years. Valerie helps the mother track down her sister, who had been committed to an asylum. After complaining of a cold, Barbara is rushed to hospital with suspected sepsis. Meanwhile, Sister Monica Joan undergoes successful cataract surgery but must endure an annoying, talkative roommate in hospital.
59	Episode 7	Syd Macartney	Andrea Gibb	4 March 2018	9.57
Barbara's condition is diagnosed as meningococcal sepsis. At first she seems to be making a recovery, but she subsequently begins to deteriorate and dies, leaving everyone devastated. Dr Turner assists at a remand home, where he encounters a teenaged car thief, who is the same age as Timothy, but has a pregnant wife. Dr Turner tries to help him plead his case in court and later to cope in prison to overcome depression and bullying by other inmates.
60	Episode 8	Syd Macartney	Heidi Thomas	11 March 2018	8.99
The staff all find the aftermath of Barbara's funeral hard to handle, and Sister Winifred tries to aid a grieving Tom by holding Barbara's uniform and midwife supplies rather than letting him give them away. They find comfort in organising a birthday celebration for Sister Monica Joan, but their joy is interrupted by the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy. An expectant mother prepares for single motherhood after leaving her philandering husband, but she is distraught to learn that her widowed father has been in a long-term relationship with a man — who is now suffering from dementia and must move in.

Cast[]

Midwives[]

Helen George as Trixie Franklin
Charlotte Ritchie as Barbara Hereward
Jennifer Kirby as Valerie Dyer
Leonie Elliott as Lucille Anderson

Nuns[]

Jenny Agutter as Sister Julienne
Judy Parfitt as Sister Monica Joan
Victoria Yeates as Sister Winifred

Other[]

Stephen McGann as Patrick Turner
Laura Main as Shelagh Turner
Max Macmillan as Timothy Turner
Alice Brown as Angela Turner
Ned Shaw as Edward Turner
Cliff Parisi as Frederick Buckle
Annabelle Apsion as Violet Buckle
Daniel Laurie as Reggie Jackson
Naomi Capron as Dr Eastwell

Reception[]

Coming soon...

References[]