When is the Call the Midwife Christmas special 2022 and who is leaving the show?

Fans of the show are wondering when is the Call the Midwife Christmas special in 2022 as the annual Christmas TV schedule is announced for December.

If you're anything like us, Call the Midwife has been must-see viewing ever since its first series premiered in January 2012. The BBC One drama, which follows the lives of a group of nurse midwives in 1950s and 60s East London, has earned itself a cult following over the past decade with its lovable cast and gripping explorations of issues like miscarriage, stillbirth, and poverty. It's also one of the few medical shows still available on the national broadcaster since Holby City's cancellation earlier this year.  

After celebrating its 10th-anniversary on our screens last year, Call the Midwife was greenlit for a 12th and 13th season. This means that fans of the show can look forward to adventures from the Poplar midwives until 2024 - and of course, at least two more of its signature Yuletide episodes. Call the Midwife's Christmas specials have been a highlight of the show ever since its inaugural festive feature aired in 2012, and this upcoming season look to be no different. Our excitement has only been boosted by the recent behind-the-scenes content from its cast, which now has many people asking where is Call the Midwife filmed. Whilst recent episodes have had many viewers distraught and asking why did Lucille leave Call the Midwife?

When is the Call the Midwife Christmas 2022 special? 

In keeping with tradition with previous seasons, the Call the Midwife 2022 Christmas special will air on BBC One on Christmas Day. 

Producers on the beloved BBC  drama took to Instagram to tease the special, promising fans that the results of their team's 'hard work' is 'looking FANTASTIC'. The first behind-the-scenes snap shows the characters Trixie Franklin (Helen Elizabeth George), Lucille (Leonie Elliot), and Megan Cusack (Nancy Corrigan) dressed in their nursing uniforms before embarking on a snow fight. 

Another post shared in May 2022 revealed Helen George's character, Trixie, having her hair fixed by a crew member while she stares into the distance. In the festive shot, the midwife can be seen wearing a gold and turquoise dress and a pair of dangling pearl earrings. 

Fans were quick to share their excitement over the preview, with some even predicting a Christmas wedding could be in store. Of course, Call the Midwife bosses have kept cleverly quiet about the reason for Trixie's formal attire, so it looks like we'll just have to wait until December 25 to find out. 

What happens in Call the Midwife Christmas special 2022?  

Ever since the tragic finale of Season 11 aired, Call the Midwife fans have been desperate to know what awaits the nurses of Nonnatus House in the show's Christmas special 2022. According to PBS, the festive episode will see "the midwives move to their maternity clinic" where they are "delighted" to find that their first patient is a familiar face. 

The Call the Midwife Christmas special 2022 will also focus on the devastating effects of thalidomide, a drug prescribed to pregnant women in the 1950s that injured or killed approximately 10,000 babies worldwide. 

Who is leaving Call the Midwife? 

The rumours are true - Sister Hilda and Sister Frances have been confirmed as the two characters who will have left Call the Midwife by the time its Christmas special 2022 airs. 

Sister Hilda (Fenella Woolgar) is the first to go, with the gregarious nun being relocated Nonnatus House to carry out God's work at the Mother House instead. Sister Frances (Ella Bruccoleri) will also be sent to join Sister Hilda at the HQ hub, after falling off her bike in the snow during a birth emergency. With the Mother House's reputation as a place of no return for Nonnatus' nuns, it's possible viewers will never see the pair again. 

Fans of Call the Midwife will likely miss the two characters, who have both been central to the drama since Series 8. 

There is hope, however, for Sister Hilda and Sister Frances to make a comeback. 

"Ella and Fenella are off doing other things now - but that doesn’t mean they won’t come back again at some point. They’ll both be missed," an insider told the Mirror, while Jenny Agutter, who plays Sister Julienne, added: "The door is always open."

Where to watch Call the Midwife:

You can catch up with all previous seasons of Call the Midwife online via BBC iPlayer. The streaming service has all 11 series, with each season having between 6-8 episodes plus a Christmas special.

Episodes usually last around 60 minutes each. Here's to binging all 96 before the 2022 Christmas special arrives!

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