Call the Midwife viewers were close, oh so close, to finishing off an episode without tearing up this week. However, as Sunday night's instalment drew to an end, Helen George’s Nurse Trixie Franklin finally came clean about her spiralling alcoholism.

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After dealing with her break-up with Christopher and separating a mother from her children in the show's Huntington’s Disease storyline, Trixie relapsed into dangerous old habits.

She swigged Vodka secretly in the bathroom. She drank sherry with patients. She skipped her support meetings. And then, finally, she broke down in tears to Sister Julienne (Jenny Agutter).

And by this point, viewers at home were really really concerned about Trixie…

Many viewers also praised the show for its realistic portrayal of alcohol dependency.

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Then came the real tear-jerker: Sister Julienne told the struggling Trixie to leave Nonnatus House for six months to get treatment.

And people are really going to miss her...

But worry not: Trixie will return to Call the Midwife. Helen George simply took time off the show when her baby bump (don’t tell us you haven’t noticed) could no longer be hidden.

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As writer Heidi Thomas told fans at a screening last year, Helen George will only be gone for a couple of episodes after appearing briefly at the start of next week’s instalment. Which means you're probably due to shed even more tears for Trixie next week.

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