‘The Last Post’ first look: ‘Call the Midwife’ star in BBC’s new 1960s army drama

The first photo has been revealed from the BBC’s new period drama from the creator of Silk and The Village.

The Last Post features original Call the Midwife star Jessica Raine‎ alongside Jessie Buckley (War and Peace), Amanda Drew (Broadchurch), Ben Miles (Coupling), Stephen Campbell Moore (The Go-Between)‎ and newcomer Jeremy Neumark-Jones.

The six-part series is set in 1965 in the shimmering heat of Aden in Yemen and follows a unit of Royal Military Police officers and their families.

The official synopsis reveals: “Their job is two-fold: half soldiers and half policemen who face constant insurgency and threat. Danger is everywhere. Hand grenades, mines and sniper attacks are a constant threat.

“But life and love must continue. The Sixties are starting to swing: sexual liberation, polka dot bikinis, new music and prized copies of Vogue have reached the sun loungers of the glamorous BP Club. Dashing, newlywed RMP Captain Joe Martin (Neumark-Jones) and his wife Honor (Buckley) arrive dressed like JFK and Jackie, full of excitement and ambition about the start of married life. A big new adventure. But how well does Honor know the man she’s just married?”

Based on writer Peter Moffat’s childhood memories, The Last Post is described as “an close-up view of soldiering with strong contemporary parallels.”

Moffat commented: “Young married couples in the heart of the Sixties living in extremely close proximity in a very alien and dangerous environment has always struck me as ripe territory for drama.

“Men full of vim, vigor and a desire to be heroes in a situation where that isn’t always possible; alongside young women who are starting to feel the emancipation of the Sixties and a sense of new freedoms but who are living in a constrained setting where their role is supposed to be merely supportive.

“My mum remembers standing on the balcony of our flat in her first week in Aden and seeing a hand grenade thrown killing a five year old boy and my dad rushing out to try and do something…

“Throw in rock’n’roll and tumultuous love stories alongside the unexplored territory of this period in our history and you have a pretty heady mix. This was my parents world and one I have wanted to write about all my career.”

The Last Post began filming in South Africa last October and is expected to air later this summer on BBC One.