Call the Midwife is a British period drama television series about a group of nurse midwives working in the East End of London in the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.

The principal cast of the show has included Jessica Raine, Miranda Hart, Helen George, Bryony Hannah, Laura Main, Jenny Agutter, Pam Ferris, Judy Parfitt, Cliff Parisi, Stephen McGann, Linda Bassett and Charlotte Ritchie.

The series was created by Heidi Thomas, originally based on the memoirs of Jennifer Worth who worked with the Community of St. John the Divine, an Anglican religious order, at their convent in the East End in London.

[1] For the most part it depicts the day-to-day lives of the midwives and those in their local neighbourhood of Poplar, with certain historical events of the era having a direct or indirect effect on the characters and storylines.

[4] It has been praised for tackling topical subjects and contemporary social, cultural and economic issues, including nationalised healthcare, infertility, teen pregnancy, adoption, the importance of local community, miscarriage and stillbirths, abortion and unwanted pregnancies, birth defects, poverty, common illnesses, epidemic disease, prostitution, incest, religion and faith, racism and prejudice, same-sex attraction and female genital mutilation.

The plot follows newly qualified midwife Jenny Lee, as well as the work of midwives and the nuns of Nonnatus House, a nursing convent and part of an Anglican religious order, coping with the medical problems in the deprived Poplar district of London's desperately poor East End in the 1950s.

The second series, set in 1958, shows the introduction of gas and air as a form of pain relief, unexploded ordnance, an outbreak of tuberculosis, a baby born with spina bifida and ends with the condemning of the Nonnatus House building.

The sixth series is set in 1962 and touches on domestic violence, an explosion at the local docks, interracial marriage, female genital mutilation, mental health, and introduces Reggie, a recurring character who has Down syndrome.

The seventh series, set in 1963, introduces the first major character of colour, Nurse Lucille Anderson, as well as dementia, racial abuse, Huntington's disease, leprosy and meningitis featuring in storylines.

The tenth series, set in 1966, compares the practice at Nonnatus House with the private Lady Emily Clinic in Mayfair, PKU, diabetes and the controversy of abortion on the eve of legalisation.

The thirteenth series, set in 1969, introduces fertility drugs and higher order multiple birth, cerebral palsy, porphyria, tetanus, hip dysplasia, retinoblastoma, and the Apollo 11 moon landing.

[13] On 23 November 2016, the BBC announced a three-year deal with Neal Street Productions, commissioning a seventh, eighth, and ninth series, each with a Christmas special.

[19][21] In May 2012, BBC Worldwide and the American Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) announced that the first series of Call the Midwife would premiere in the United States on 30 September 2012.

[22] BBC Worldwide also sold the programme to SVT (Sweden); NRK (Norway); RÚV (Iceland); Yle (Finland); AXN White (Spain; Portugal); ERT (Greece);[23][24] ABC in Australia and TVNZ 1 in New Zealand, where its debut recorded a 35% share of the audience – 20% above average.

The Wall Street Journal declared that "this immensely absorbing drama is worth any trouble it takes to catch up with its singular pleasures",[47] while The Washington Post stated that "the cast is marvelous, the gritty, post-war set pieces are meticulously recreated".

[55] Caitlin Moran in The Times called this "an iron hand in a velvet glove",[56] while Allison Pearson in The Daily Telegraph lauded its ability to "tickle the middle of the brow while touching the most anguished parts of the human condition".

Alison Graham in the Radio Times dubbed Call the Midwife "a magnificently subversive drama" and "the torchbearer of feminism on television,"[58] while Caitlin Moran claimed the series encapsulated "how unbelievably terrifying, dreary and vile it was to be a working-class woman 60 years ago.

[59] Heidi Thomas, however, described how she'd received a specific blessing from Jennifer Worth to continue the series,[60] and had enjoyed a fruitful collaboration on future plans before the author's death.