Call the Midwife

Have you ever watched a TV show that was so good you cried when it was over?

That's what happens to DH and I as each season of Call the Midwife comes to an end.

We sit on either end of the couch, in the dark, afraid to look at each other because we know we will see a few embarrassing tears.

We just finished watching Season 7 of Call the Midwife and can't wait for Season 8 in early 2019.

Call the Midwife, based on the memoirs of the late Jennifer Worth, tells the often heart-wrenching, often funny, stories of midwifery in London’s East End  in the 1950's and early 60's. The drama follows the nurses, midwives and nuns from Nonnatus House, who travel by bicycle to provide maternity care to some of the city's poorest mothers.

The series is produced by BBC1 and PBS.  Newly qualified midwife Jenny (Vanessa Redgrave) and the  eccentric, lovable community of nuns at Nonnatus House can all be found on Netflix, which is airing all 7 Seasons.

This is the perfect series to binge watch as the fall days grow shorter. I promise that it will make you laugh, cry, and maybe even want to dance.

That's because the episodes of Call the Midwife are accompanied by exactly the perfect music for the times. The soundtrack includes so many favorites from the 50's and early 60's:  Diana, Lollipop, My Special Angel, Here Comes Summer . . . 

Little Darlin', Come Softly to Me, Stranger In Paradise, Dedicated to the One I Love. If you're a Boomer like me, you can fill in the rest of the list (and probably remember all the words too!).

As the Series begins, Jenny is surprised to find herself at a convent -- she thought she was being sent to a small private hospital -- and is initially daunted by her surroundings, most notably the formidable Sister Evangelina and the unconventional Sister Monica Joan. 

But Jenny gradually begins to find her way and develops incredible friendships among the nurses, as they are drawn into the lives and homes of the women and families they treat.

I like that the producers of Call the Midwife are not afraid to address the medical and social issues of the time, including polio . . .

Thalidomide babies . . .

Down Syndrome . . .

and womens' issues like poverty, domestic violence, and the lack of birth control among women who can't afford even one more baby.

Thankfully, truth is mixed with a big dose of British humor that often makes you laugh out loud

As the nuns interact with the families of their East End neighborhood of  Poplar.

Jenny's voice lives on in Vanessa Redgrave’s crackly narration, as an elderly Jenny, who reminds us at the end of each episode . . . 

that love is often the only answer. 

   By then, I'm usually reaching for the tissues and repeating to DH, "This is just so well done". 

I say it every time. 

This post is linked to:

Share Your Cup #310 at Mrs. Olson blog
Sundays at Home #13 at The Little Farmstead
Amaze Me Monday #285 at Dwellings