We're the Call the Midwife nuns! Real-life sisters who inspired popular BBC show reveal their story

BBC hit: Miranda Hart stars in the BBC hit Call the Midwife which has already developed an army of fans

It's the hit TV drama that has developed an army of devoted fans with its portrayal of underage pregnancy, prostitution and illegal abortions.



And now for the first time the Birmingham nuns behind those tales have revealed their story after the success of the BBC1’s Call The Midwife.



The series is based on the experiences of the Anglican sisters of the Community of St John The Divine, in Alum Rock, in the 1950s.



And it was one of their district nurses, Jennifer Worth, whose memoirs inspired the show.

Jennifer died last May, before she could see her books brought to life on the small screen.



But the seven Birmingham nuns, who moved to Birmingham from Poplar in London’s East End in 1976, believe she would have been proud of the show.



The show illustrates the hard times experienced by the nuns but also depicts the joy they took from the job and Sister Margaret-Angela, who joined the community in 1964, 'The show is definitely a realistic look on how life used to be like for us.

'They have the costumes spot-on. One of the producers visited us here in Birmingham, and we showed her how we would dress ourselves using an old habit that we still have.'

'That included how to put on the girdle, hats and caps. We have many photographs here, too, and we showed them to her to make sure the programme was as realistic as possible.

'And we even loaned them the prayer books that we once used here.

Inspiration: The sisters from Community of St.John the Divine are the inspiration for BBC drama 'Call the Midwife' which has been a huge success

'The stories are also very authentic. The essence of the programme is very good. Jennifer was a wonderful storyteller.'

TV producers visited the sisters Margaret-Angela King, 75, Christine Hoverd, 72, Teresa French, 93, Elaine Knight, 50, Ivy Patten, 77, Shirley Hart, 65, and Ruth Cooper, 55, at their home to ask advice on how to portray them in the show.

They no longer practice midwifery but now offer guidance and counselling to their local community.



Sister Christine, who joined the community in 1961 and worked as a midwife until 1990, also trained students and she added 'It was wonderful from the day I walked into the maternity hospital.

'Every birth is unique and so is every child. It was the most wonderful vocation to have.

Prayer: Sisters Margaret-Angela, Elaine, Teresa, Ivy, Shirley, Christine and Ruth are the real nuns behind a hit BBC show

'It was very difficult at times, though.

'Back in those days we didn’t have the equipment that is available today.



'There was very little to help women who were in distress. But the progress that has been made is enormous.

'The local community was so friendly and really pulled together. That’s what really struck you in the

Tough times: Sister Christine seen here with sister Margaret-Angela says the sisters from St.John House had some 'tough times' which made it easy to replicate for a popular TV show

East End. There was a great sense of community and everyone wanted to help.'

Sister Christine said their oldest member, Sister Teresa, who was in her 30s during the period in which the show is based, especially remembers how neighbours would pull together.



'Sister Teresa remembers how she tended to a very poor woman.



'She had to leave to get some sheets for her bed, but by the time she came back to her patient, the local people had already got together and presented her with all the essential items that were needed for the baby.'



Sister Christine says, despite the medical advances, there is still a basic problem with the profession - a shortage of midwives.

And she believes this could be down to the lack of practical courses available.



'I feel that a great mistake was made when midwifery training was put into university and colleges. Many students want to stay at a certificated level because they are practically minded.

'They don’t want to continue to a degree stage. As in any profession, there are those that want to stay at a point because they are more able.

'The government needs to take a look at how the courses are run.



'I have nothing against students progressing on to degree level, but there are those who would prefer not to, so they need to be given the choice.'

The Community of St John the Divine was created in 1848 as a ‘nursing sisterhood’ and sent nuns to the Crimea to work with Florence Nightingale.



Memoirs: Sister Teresa and Margaret-Angela lead the way to the chapel where they spent a large amount of time with Jennifer Worth, whose memoirs were used to produce Call the Midwife

The nuns continued their work when they returned to Britain in London’s East End.



And when the National Health Service was founded in 1948, the nuns served alongside NHS midwives and doctors for several decades more.



The East End was notoriously dangerous, but the nuns said they always felt safe, even around Cable Street, the red light district where policemen walked in fours.



Authentic: Sisters from St.John the Divine, Alum Rock, Birmingham even loaned BBC producers some prayer books for authenticity in the hit show Call the Midwife

They were highly visible due to their uniforms, which had white wimples and long tabards, which the nuns tucked into their belts when they rode their bikes and, later, mopeds.



They were seen as a comforting presence at the two greatest events in people’s lives - birth and death.



In the post-war years, the community had to find a new Mother House and the main work of the community was concentrated at Hastings, where they ran a nursing home.



Work in London continued, but it had to adapt alongside the growth of the NHS in 1948.



Eventually, work in Poplar came to an end in 1978, due to the increasing absorption of nursing work into the government.



Then, under the leadership of Mother Margaret Faith, the nuns left Hastings and established the main house in the heart of the urban multicultural district of Birmingham’s Alum Rock in 1976.



'When we heard where we were going, we said, ‘Oh no, not Birmingham' laughed Sister Christine.



'But within six months, we’d fallen in love with the place and it became home very quickly.

