Call the Midwife teases Sister Monica Joan's decline and a wedding in first look pictures
As Call the Midwife approaches the season 15 finale, joy and sorrow awaits.
Call the Midwife fans are still coming to terms with the desperately sad news that Judy Parfitt's time on the show is rapidly approaching its end, after it was revealed Sister Monica Joan has chronic kidney disease – for which there is no cure.
The character's mental and physical health has been in decline for some time now, but still, she soldiered on, as tough as it often was – although she began to reflect more openly on her life and what might await her at the end of it.
But it's not only Sister Monica Joan who must now confront the inevitable passage of time. Her Nonnatus House family must also sit with the painful realty that there will come a time when she's no longer with them, as depicted in the image of Nurse Crane below.
When Dr Turner first delivered the news, she vowed to love Sister Monica Joan "as we always have, but a bit more carefully" – and she's sticking to her word.
"There's this scene [in the finale], I won't really go into detail, but it sort of encompasses all of the characters that we've had on the show over the last 15 years," said Helen George at the Radio Times Covers Party 2026.
"And when I walked onto the set, I just sobbed, I sobbed like a baby. It was really emotional. So if I was a mess – and I'm heart of steel – then the audience will be a mess as well."
The comments follow creator Heidi Thomas's about season 15 bringing an era to an end, and the final episode being "hard" to write.
"I think we've all cried our eyes out at different times because things never will be the same again," she added. "But the whole thing with Call the Midwife, like life itself... it's a process of constant evolution for our characters and also for the stories."
But while the finale is set to be a highly emotional affair, Renee Bailey (Joyce) has said that there is still joy to be had.
"It makes you laugh, it makes you cry. It's a hug and it's also heartbreaking," she told Radio Times. "It's a mix of everything, but I think audiences are going to love it," she said, with additional first look pictures revealing that Rosalind and Cyril are set to get married.
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With the happy couple expecting a baby – a development that wasn't planned, but Cyril was thrilled by, despite Rosalind's initial fears that he wouldn't be – it's now full steam ahead as they seek to make their union official in the eyes of the law and of God.
The pair briefly spoke about tying the knot earlier in the season – and with Cyril's divorce from Lucille now official and a child on the way, they are clearly ready to step into the next chapter.
"I've been thinking about it [the finale] more and more as we get into the spring", said Natalie Quarry. "I think it really will, hopefully, stay with people."
Call the Midwife season 15 will return to BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 1 March.
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Authors
Abby Robinson is the Drama Editor for Radio Times, covering TV drama and comedy titles. She previously worked at Digital Spy as a TV writer, and as a content writer at Mumsnet. She possesses a postgraduate diploma and a degree in English Studies.
