'Call the Midwife's 2025 Christmas Special Boldly Goes Where No Nun Has Gone Before

When Call the Midwife first debuted back in 2012, it was one of the BBC's biggest out-of-the-box hits with audiences right from the jump. It was so popular, PBS jumped on board right away, bringing the first season across the pond before the end of the year. However, while most BBC drama series on PBS usually run multiple seasons, it's rare for them to hit Season 10 (as we've noted before, Grantchester is something of an outlier). Season 15 is practically unheard of, and few would have thought that a BBC show on PBS would run that long, let alone have one of its biggest years ever a decade and a half on.

However, Call the Midwife has defied the odds, not only gearing up for a 15th season with its second-ever two-part Christmas special, but a prequel spinoff, a feature film, and Season 16 all still to come. It's also taking home awards, beating newer, more buzzy shows like Bridgerton and Baby Reindeer at the 2025 Television and Radio Industries Club Awards and the National Television Awards. It's also given the show's creator, Heidi Thomas, a chance to drop delightful tidbits about the forthcoming 2025 Christmas episodes.

Speaking to the RadioTimes after their win, Thomas admitted, "I was born in '62, so Christmas 1971 is a vivid memory for me. It was probably peak Christmas when I was nine. So it is full of nostalgia for those 1970s Christmases, but it has got a lovely, diverse ring to it. Literally, we cover Hanukkah, the Jewish feast of lights, and there's the whole Chinese/Hong Kong dimension. So it feels very, very rich," she said. "It's very much like a melting pot of communities; it's not just about one community. It's about people coming together in the depths of winter and creating something bright out of the darkness, which is just lovely."

Check out this video which the production recently posted from filming overseas:

Here's the official synopsis for the 2025 Christmas double episode:

When senior members of the Nonnatus House staff head to Hong Kong on a mercy mission, the younger midwives are left to cope alone. As the Christmas action shifts between the sun-drenched Far East and a snowy East End, Sister Julienne suddenly finds herself excited about the Order’s future. After years of battling change, she decides to embrace it, work with it, and see what love can do. 

Thus far, there's been no major casting shakeups during the offseason. That means the 2025 Christmas special will star Judy Parfitt (Sister Monica Joan), Jenny Agutter (Sister Julienne), Laura Main (Shelagh Turner), Helen George (Trixie Aylward), Cliff Parisi (Fred Buckle), Stephen McGann (Dr Turner), Linda Bassett (Nurse Crane), Annabelle Apsion (Violet Buckle), Georgie Glen (Miss Higgins), Zephryn Taitte (Cyril Robinson), Rebecca Gethings (Sister Veronica), Daniel Laurie (Reggie Jackson), Renee Bailey (Joyce Highland), Natalie Quarry (Rosalind Clifford), Molly Vevers (Sister Catherine), Max Macmillan (Timothy Turner), Alice Brown (Angela Turner), April Rae Hoang (May Tang), and Edward Shaw (Teddy Turner).

Guest stars for the Christmas two-parter are expected to be revealed closer to the holiday.

As always, Call the Midwife is written, created, and produced by the team of showrunner Heidi Thomas, plus executive producers Pippa Harris and Ann Tricklebank. The trio will also helm the prequel, the forthcoming feature film, and Season 16.

Call the Midwife Season 15 will return with a two-part Christmas special in December 2025, though it remains to be seen if the BBC airs the episodes on consecutive nights like in 2024 or if they'll run back-to-back like PBS did. The rest of Season 15 will arrive on the BBC in early 2026 and follow on most PBS stations in the spring. Season 16 is expected to follow in due course on both networks. 

Call the Midwife Seasons 1-13 are streaming in the U.S. on Netflix; Season 14 is available for members on PBS Passport.