Call the Midwife, the much-loved BBC drama, has captured the hearts of millions with its portrayal of midwifery in the post-war East End of London. Its mix of heartwarming moments, gritty realities, and a colourful cast of characters has made it a beloved show for over a decade. But behind the drama’s captivating storylines lies a fascinating truth: the show is based on real-life experiences.
At the heart of this narrative is Jennifer Worth, the author of the memoirs that inspired the series. Worth’s books, Call the Midwife, Shadows of the Workhouse, and Farewell to the East End, chronicle her time working as a midwife in the East End during the 1950s and 1960s. Her stories, filled with emotional depth and gritty realism, paint a picture of a bygone era—a time when poverty, hardship, and social upheaval were part of daily life for the working class. So, what is the real story behind Call the Midwife? Let’s take a closer look at the truth behind the drama and the incredible woman who brought it to life.
A Calling from the Start
Jennifer Worth’s path to becoming a midwife wasn’t a typical one. Born in 1935 in Essex, she had a privileged upbringing compared to many of the women she would later encounter in her career. After attending a private school, she went on to train as a nurse in the late 1950s. But it was during her training that she first became drawn to midwifery. Worth was fascinated by childbirth—the miracle of life—and this led her to take on midwifery training at a time when the profession was largely dominated by women from working-class backgrounds.
In 1957, Worth joined the Royal London Hospital’s midwifery team, which served the East End of London. The area was infamous for its high levels of poverty, poor living conditions, and a rapidly growing population. The hospital was situated in Whitechapel, an area that had long been associated with the dark history of London’s criminal underworld and the infamous Jack the Ripper murders. The women that Worth helped to deliver babies were often from some of the poorest families in the country, living in overcrowded and dilapidated housing.
Nonnatus House: Real and Imagined
In Call the Midwife, the action centres around Nonnatus House, a fictional convent where midwives, including Jennifer Worth’s character, work under the guidance of nuns. While Nonnatus House itself is a creation of Worth’s imagination, the idea of midwives working alongside religious orders has a foundation in reality.
The real Nonnatus House is based on the Community of St. John the Divine, a religious order of Anglican nuns based in the East End. These nuns, dedicated to serving the poor and vulnerable, worked alongside midwives to provide care to expectant mothers. Jennifer Worth’s memoirs paint a vivid picture of her time with these nuns, who were deeply committed to their work but also a source of tension and humour for Worth. They were strict, but they were also compassionate, often providing the only healthcare that many of the women in the area could access.
Worth’s time at the Community of St. John the Divine was formative. She describes the nuns as fierce and compassionate, always doing their best for the women they served. The experience shaped much of her later writing, with the nuns often serving as both sources of strength and frustration for the author.
The Reality of Midwifery in the East End
What truly sets Call the Midwife apart from other period dramas is the gritty realism with which it depicts the lives of the women in the East End. Worth’s memoirs focus on the often painful, heart-wrenching realities of midwifery, especially in the post-war years when the country was still recovering from the devastation of the Second World War.
The East End during the 1950s and 1960s was a world of immense contrasts. On the one hand, the area was home to many hardworking families, often struggling to make ends meet. On the other hand, it was also a place of poverty, overcrowding, and social deprivation. Midwives like Worth were often the only source of support for women who lacked access to proper healthcare. As Worth writes in her memoir, “The women we served were poor, often uneducated, and lived in terrible conditions. They were, however, proud and resilient.”
One of the most striking aspects of Worth’s work was the intimate nature of midwifery in the East End. Unlike today, when most births take place in hospitals, midwives in the 1950s and 1960s often worked in women’s homes. They would visit women in their cramped, often unsanitary flats, providing support and care throughout the pregnancy and delivery. In her memoirs, Worth describes the sometimes harrowing births she attended, where poverty and a lack of proper medical equipment made every delivery a dangerous event.
While Call the Midwife is known for its lighter moments and charming characters, it also tackles some serious issues, including maternal death, infant mortality, and the difficulty of accessing healthcare in impoverished areas. These themes were very much part of Jennifer Worth’s experience as a midwife. In her memoirs, she reflects on the emotional toll that such work had on her, recounting the sadness of witnessing lives lost due to preventable causes, as well as the deep satisfaction she found in helping to bring new life into the world.
The Real-Life Stories Behind the Characters
Call the Midwife is filled with a rich cast of characters, some of whom are inspired by real people in Jennifer Worth’s life. The most notable of these is Chummy, the loveable, bumbling midwife played by Miranda Hart. While Chummy is a fictional character, she is based on a real woman who worked as a nurse and midwife at the Royal London Hospital. Worth had high regard for her, describing her as an “unconventional and somewhat clumsy woman who nevertheless was dedicated to her patients.”
Another central character in the series is Nurse Barbara, who is based on a midwife who worked alongside Worth in the 1960s. Nurse Barbara was a much more serious character than the others, dedicated to her work and often emotionally withdrawn. Worth’s memoirs describe her as a no-nonsense figure who was deeply committed to her patients, even when it meant sacrificing her own happiness.
Perhaps the most significant character in the series is Jennifer Worth herself, who, in the TV adaptation, is portrayed by Jessica Raine. In real life, Worth was deeply involved in the creation of the show, and her character is based on her own experiences. Her writings are filled with a deep compassion for the women she helped and a keen understanding of the social and medical issues that shaped their lives.
The Legacy of Jennifer Worth
Jennifer Worth passed away in 2011, but her legacy lives on through her books and the TV series they inspired. In many ways, Call the Midwife is more than just a drama about midwives; it’s a tribute to the women who lived through hardship and fought to create better lives for their families. Through her work, Worth not only chronicled the stories of those women but also helped to shine a light on the challenges faced by the poorest members of society.
While the drama takes some liberties with the facts for dramatic effect, it stays true to the spirit of Worth’s memoirs, exploring themes of compassion, resilience, and the changing landscape of healthcare in post-war Britain. Through Call the Midwife, the stories of these brave midwives and their patients have found a new audience, ensuring that their incredible work will never be forgotten.
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