Helen George interview: Trixie from ‘Call the Midwife’ chats about the new season
The thirteenth season of Call the Midwife welcomes back Trixie for more drama!
Following last month’s Christmas special, the BBC’s hit period drama about a group of nurse midwives in the East End of London is back with eight new episodes.
We return to Poplar in 1969, with storylines set to explore issues surrounding Cerebral Palsy, Congenital Hip Dysplasia, Tetanus, Porphyria and TB, as poor housing continues to blight areas of Poplar presenting complex social and health challenges to the Nonnatus team.
Brand new Call the Midwife is airing in the UK at 8pm on Sunday nights on BBC One and streaming on BBC iPlayer.
Season 13 will premiere in the US this spring on PBS Masterpiece.
Here, original cast member Helen George chats about returning as nurse Trixie Aylward, the show’s two new midwives, the fashion of 1969, and filming the driving scenes:
Can you talk about the new midwives and how they fit in?
“It’s been really interesting having the new midwives, and it’s also coincided with Trixie leaving Nonnatus House and going to her marital home with Matthew. So, there’s an interesting chemistry, I suppose.
“She sees these young midwives as she once was, moving into Nonnatus and we see how she feels about that and seeing them move into her bedroom when she’s just left.
“So, it’s a really formative series for her in that way.”
What has it been like filming 1969 for you?
“What’s so interesting about this show is that every year there’s a mark in the historic calendar that we can pin the show to and that audiences at home can remember these moments and where they were and watch us go through exactly the same moment.
“So, I think it’s always such a fantastic time warp for the audience.”
Trixie loves her clothes, what can you tell us about them this season?
“This year in terms of costumes, it’s really exciting because we’re in 1969, so we’re just starting to see the start of the Seventies’ fashion.
“We’re really coming away from the higher hemlines and we’re going towards the flared trouser, the longer collars.
“Trixie’s wardrobe has really evolved this year as well because she’s become a wife and because she’s spending Matthew’s money on her own clothes and she’s got some really beautiful outfits.
“But this year they’re much more tailored and she’s got fewer clothes. But the clothes she’s got are beautifully designed and beautifully made. So there’s a real sort of a chicness to her wardrobe this year that I’m enjoying.”
And she has some driving scenes this year – what were they like to film?
“The driving scenes were really fun because I only just passed my test and I haven’t actually driven for two years since giving birth to my daughter Lark.
“So, because I hadn’t been behind the wheel for a while, I was pretty nervous. But the car we have luckily is an automatic, so it was absolutely fine.
“But there were a few moments when I was thinking, ‘I hope they’ve got insurance.’”
Can you talk about how Call the Midwife mirrors modern life?
“What’s interesting about this show is that it always sort of holds a mirror up to society.
“One of the interesting things that I’ve been seeing recently in the news is about the bedbugs coming over from France, which we filmed very early on. I think in the first series we had a big story about bedbugs.
“And it’s really present in Jennifer Worth’s original books, so it’s really interesting hearing that on the news and thinking, gosh, we were filming that a few years ago for Call the Midwife and how societally we go full circle with these things.”
What have been your favourite scenes to film this year?
“It’s been really lovely this year, filming scenes with Archie, who plays Jonty because he’s getting a bit older and he’s really coming out of himself and getting much more confident on set. And it’s really lovely watching this.
“We’ve known him since he was a baby and now when he sees me and Olly, he reacts to us and is excited to see us. So, it’s been lovely doing scenes with him.”
Call the Midwife is available on DVD on Amazon.