End of an era as Call the Midwife Christmas special won't return for 2026
It’s become a key part of Christmas Day for many
Last updated 4 hours ago
Settling down to watch the Call The Midwife Christmas special at the end of a busy Christmas Day has become a key part of festive events for many — but now it's been revealed it won't happen in 2026!
Fans have taken to social media to declare the news the 'end of an era' — having enjoyed the beloved BBC show's dramatic-yet-uplifting nostalgia year after year on Christmas Day, since 2012.
It comes as the 15th series, set in 1971 Poplar, wraps up this weekend (Sunday 8th March), while show bosses prepare for an upcoming three-part prequel and a movie set during World War II. Writer Heidi Thomas has spoken about the show's hiatus, telling Radio Times: “The sets need repair. The nuns’ habits are worn out.”
Here's everything there is to know about the show which has stolen the hearts of the nation, including what we know about the confirmed 16th series, which will eventually air after its hiatus...
When does Call The Midwife finish?
The final episode of series 15 of Call The Midwife will air on Sunday 8th March 2026.
It's after it arrived on telly on Sunday 11th January 2026. This followed a two-part Christmas special, which aired on Christmas Day and Boxing Day 2025.
Is there a trailer for series 15?
Yes, on 19th December 2025, the BBC released a trailer for series 15. you can watch it below.
What is series 15 about?
As Poplar moves into 1971, changes are afoot across the country. Writer and executive producer Heidi Thomas said of series 15: "1971 sees the dawn of a whole new era. It heralds the launch of the Women's Liberation movement in the UK, and a period when medicine starts moving really fast.
"We see a premature baby kept alive by machines in a high-tech incubator. We meet our first ever baby on an ultrasound screen, suspended in the darkness of a womb like a tiny astronaut. We witness a mother’s childbirth agony vanish as she is given a pioneering epidural - and throughout it all, the nuns and midwives of Nonnatus House are there to hold their patient’s hands."
In a post to mark the release of series 15, in January 2026, Call The Midwife bosses paid tribute to six actors who have starred in the beloved series since the start. Stephen McGann (Dr Turner), Judy Parfitt (Sister Monica Joan), Jenny Agutter (Sister Julienne), Helen George (Trixie), Cliff Parisi (Fred) and Laura Main (Shelagh) have appeared in show since its very beginning in 2012. Here's what some of them had to say:
Jenny Agutter: “I can't believe that we're on series 15 because in many ways it feels like no time at all. It's 15 years of my life with so many changes in that time. Then there have been the changes in those 15 years on screen - social, economic, artistic, scientific and medical - which for me has always been the exciting thing about doing it.”
Helen George: “It feels really special that I've been here from the beginning, and there's only a few of us that have that badge now. Watching Trixie's storylines develop and watching the popularity of the show grow not just in this country, but around the world, has been an amazing thing to witness. It's been something that I could only have dreamed of. I'm so proud of everything we've achieved.”
Cliff Parisi: “I'm very, very lucky. In this industry, you don't generally get jobs for long. You know, you might skip from doing three jobs at the same time to not doing another day's work all year. So to be doing what you love for 15 years, is a great privilege”
Laura Main: “I feel so happy that I’ve got to be part of this wonderful show that's grown so much and is still loved. I'm so lucky that I've got to do this lovely work with this amazing bunch of talented people for 15 years.”
Will there be a Christmas special in 2026?
Sadly not. It's been revealed Call The Midwife will take a hiatus after series 15 wraps up. According to an interview with Radio Times, this means no Christmas special in 2026. But it's rumoured the upcoming three-part prequel MIGHT air around that time, bringing a little festive nostalgia back to fans who have come to include it in their festive celebrations.
Christmas Special 2025
The most recent Christmas special aired in two parts, on Christmas Day at 8.15pm and on Boxing Day at 8.30pm. You can watch the trailer below and catch up now on iPlayer.
Is there going to be a Call The Midwife movie?
Yes! In an unexpected announcement in May 2025, we discovered there were plans afoot for a Call The Midwife film, which would be set overseas in 1972. Although we've not been told where overseas just yet, we do know filming will get underway in 2026 — and it will feature the characters we've come to know and love in the BBC drama.
Series writer and executive producer, Heidi Thomas, said: “As the classic Call The Midwife series moves further into the 1970s, it also seems the perfect time for our much-loved regulars to take a short break from Poplar and test themselves in an unfamiliar landscape. The rise in hospital births, and changes in the NHS, have clipped their wings, and this is their chance to take flight and work out what really matters. Whilst the location of the film remains top-secret, I can say it is going to look absolutely fantastic on the big screen!”
Will there be a Call The Midwife spin-off?
There will! Fans were thrilled to hear we'd get to go back in time to see some of the iconic Call The Midwife characters during wartime Britain, in an exciting spin-off. With filming also getting underway in 2026, the spin-off promises to feature familiar (but younger) faces during The Blitz.
Heidi Thomas explains: “The Blitz years in the East End were extraordinary - the bombs fell, the babies kept on coming, and the Sisters kept on going. There will be so much in the prequel for our wonderful, loyal fans, including the appearance of some familiar (if much younger!) faces.”
What channel is Call The Midwife usually on?
Series 15 is airing on BBC One — with all previous episodes also available on BBC iPlayer.
How many episodes are in the latest series?
There are eight new episodes in series 15.
What was series 14 about?
Call the Midwife bosses posted on their official social media pages in September 2024, telling fans:
'As our team race through filming for Series 14, they have had reasons to leave the film studio, and head for locations in the sprawling London metropolis.
'This isn't something new for us - although it's often been tricky for us to achieve. As you might imagine, not much of the old Poplar remains - being transformed by post-war town planning and urban slum clearance. Locations have had to be carefully chosen, and allowances made for the busy traffic and noise of the capital! For that reason, we usually film our exterior shots in the familiar, age-appropriate, and more congenial surroundings of the Historic Dockyard in Chatham, Kent.
'As the years roll by, however, our needs have begun to change. Series 14 is now in 1970 - a time when much of the old brick terraces of Poplar had already disappeared - to be replaced by imposing concrete high-rise flats and rapid road building. It was now the height of urban post-war modernism - yet our nurses and midwives were still tasked with their traditional role of care in the community. Their task of navigating warrens of grimy victorian slums had been replaced by the need to visit mothers on high floors - whether the lifts were working or not!
'This photo taken from a location in London perfectly illustrates the changing look of Call the Midwife through the years. Rebecca Gethings (Sister Veronica) is filming a scene on her rounds in the district - but the landscape now is very different from the Blitz-damaged landscape that we first saw in Series 1.
'Yet we think the most important aspect of the picture is not the background, but Rebecca herself. She is wearing the same Nonnatus habit our sisters have always worn. She is performing the same duty of care to her mothers that we saw in Series 1. While the landscape changes - and even the mode of transport changes! - the work of the Nonnatus House sisters does not. A mother will always need her midwife - no matter how high she may now live, or how many stairs there may be to reach her. xx
'Call the midwife returns with a new Christmas Special, and Series 14 in 2025 xx'
Will there be any more series?
Yes! BBC bosses delighted fans by confirming the series 16 will happen 'in due course' — although it's looking like that won't be in January 2027 like usual. Series 16 will return after a hiatus to film the prequel and movie.
In an interview with Radio Times, Heidi Thomas said of the next series: “I’m exploring the notion of a community hospital. They were big in the '70s and I was familiar with one in urban Liverpool; you would go there to see the GP or have your x-ray. By the end of the 1980s, they’d been phased out but they’re bringing them back now because it’s a model that works.
“So, we’ll see. We don’t know when series 16 will be yet because we’ve got the prequel and then the film.”
Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama previously said: “Call The Midwife's enduring popularity is thanks to the extraordinary creative talents and hard work of creator Heidi Thomas, executive producers Pippa Harris and Ann Tricklebank, and the series' dedicated cast and crew. I know they have many more stories to tell - and that the residents of Nonnatus House have many more babies to deliver - so I'm delighted that Call the Midwife will continue on BBC One and iPlayer for more years to come."
Has Call The Midwife been axed?
No. Rumours were rife in June 2025 that Call The Midwife would come to an end after its 15th series. But BBC bosses were quick to shut down reports, saying in a statement: "The BBC would like to reassure fans that Call The Midwife will remain at the heart of the BBC for years to come.
"As previously announced, there are two Christmas specials, a new series, a film and prequel series, before a sixteenth series in due course.
"Call the Midwife isn’t going anywhere.”
How can I watch old episodes of Call the Midwife?
All past episodes of Call the Midwife are available on the BBC iPlayer now.
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