The BBC has confirmed that new drama series Call the Midwife, based on the bestselling memoirs of Jennifer Worth, will begin airing on Sunday 15 January at 8 pm on BBC One for six weeks.
Starring newcomer Jessica Raine as young Jennifer, the stellar cast includes Jenny Agutter, Pam Ferris, Judy Parfitt and Miranda Hart in her first dramatic role.
Call the Midwife is a moving and intimate insight into the colourful world of midwifery and family life in 1950’s East London. We are introduced to the community through the eyes of young nurse Jenny Lee as she arrives at Nonnatus House to live and work as a midwife alongside an Order of Nuns.
The series was commissioned by Danny Cohen, Controller BBC One, and Ben Stephenson, Controller BBC Drama. It was adapted with the blessing and guidance of Jennifer Worth, who worked closely with Neal Street Productions and screenwriter Heidi Thomas (Upstairs Downstairs, Cranford) until she passed away shortly before filming began in the summer of 2011.
A No.1 Sunday Times bestseller, Call the Midwifewas followed by two further books based on Jennifer’s life in the East End, Shadows of the Workhouse and Farewell to the East End. Total series sales are now nearly one million copies. Jennifer Worth’s books are currently available in Phoenix paperback, eBook, and audio formats.
