The BBC has ordered three further seasons of medical drama series “Call the Midwife” from Neal Street Productions, which is about to deliver the show’s sixth season.

The new seasons, commissioned by Charlotte Moore, director of BBC Content, and Piers Wenger, director of BBC Drama Commissioning, will consist of eight hour-long episodes each, plus three Christmas specials. The new seasons will take the nuns and midwives into the mid-1960s.

Heidi Thomas, creator, writer and executive producer, said: “In the 1960s Britain was a country fizzing with change and challenge, and there is so much rich material — medical, social, and emotional — to be explored. We have now delivered well over 100 babies on screen, and like those babies, the stories keep on coming.”

“Call the Midwife” has been one of Britain’s most popular drama series since it launched in 2012, and it continues to be the most watched drama series in the U.K., with all five seasons to date gaining near or more than 10 million viewers per episode.

Moore said: “’Call the Midwife’ continues to raise the bar with each new [season] and is really valued by audiences. The quality and ambition of the storytelling is credit to the excellence of writer Heidi Thomas, who has successfully brought the show into the 1960s with a diverse range of subjects.”

Pippa Harris, executive producer for Neal Street, said: “Like a truly supportive parent, the BBC has nurtured our series from conception onwards, and this exceptional three [season] commission further demonstrates their care and commitment.”