All language subtitles for call.the.midwife.s07e00.christmas.special.2018.hdtv.x264-river

MATURE JENNIFER: Birth is the
shortest journey we will ever make.

It begins in darkness,
and ends, we think, in light.

But welcomed and safe,
we rest upon the shore

for what amounts to moments

before we begin the greatest voyage
of them all.

There is no map, no route,
no arrowhead to follow,

for none of us have ever
walked this way before.

All I'm saying, Fred Buckle,

is that you haven't
thought this through.

Now, Father Christmas is known

for one very particular mode
of transport, and it's a sledge,

not a rocket!

Santa has to move
with the times, Vi!

My old mate Nolly let me
down with the reindeer.

So I've had to improvise
with some space elves.

Your beard's not straight.

He's not real.
He's just one of the helpers.

Yeah, but the kiddies
don't know that, Reggie.

And I should never have let
you convince me

about these silver gnome things.

They're not gnomes,
they're space elves!

Everyone's ready and waiting.

Oh, goodness me,
what lovely...grey pixies?

BOTH: They're space elves!

I hope this paint comes
off with soap and water.

Reggie? The bell.

ALL: We have liftoff!

Merry Christmas!

Ho, ho, ho!

Merry Christmas.
One more week to go till Christmas!

Ho, ho, ho!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas sweets!

Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas.

Well, Miss Higgins.

I think that now we've run
through the protocols

for posting the urine to
St Cuthbert's every morning,

that's everything ticked
off your list for our first day.

I did find your sputum
routine a little opaque.

Would you like me
to refresh your memory?

I think we may need
to refresh the system.

Phlegm samples tend to accumulate
during the winter months.

Twice-daily dispatch
might prove preferable?

I think we'll find that
Dr Turner has always

been entirely satisfied.

Oh, you've brought your own tree!

Oh, it's only a utility one.

My late parents bought
it the year that war broke out.

It was one of the few things

that made it out of the rubble
of their home intact.

I'm sorry.

I'll lock up, Mrs Turner.

You go home and enjoy yourself
with your family.

MUSIC: It's The Most Wonderful Time
Of The Year by Andy Williams

# It's the most wonderful time
of the year

# With the kids jingle-belling

# And everyone telling you
be of good cheer

# It's the most wonderful time
of the year... #

Happy Christmas! Oh, Patrick!

Do you not think
it's a bit over-large?

But we've got three children

and we're picking up
a seven-foot tree on the way home!

To go with that battered old silver
one we put up every year?

We like that battered old
silver one!

Mum, can we get a dog

and put him in the boot when we go
on days out?

A dog? I don't think so.

Angela's written to Father
Christmas for a rabbit,

and there isn't room for another
living thing in our household.

Or this car!

# It's the most wonderful time
of the year... #

Taxi!

# ..hearts will be glowing
when loved ones are near

# It's the most wonderful time
of the year... #

WRAPPER RUSTLES

PHONE RINGS

Nonnatus House.

Sister Julienne speaking.

Oh, greetings.
This is Sister Hilda.

Ah, Sister Hilda!

It's usually
Mother Jesu Emmanuel who calls.

One snowman cake,
all present and correct!

What's all that green stuff
round the edges?

It's lime-flavour jelly,
chopped up to represent grass.

I bet Trixie was pining for green
jelly while she was in Portofino.

We must hope that she did not pine
for grandiose illuminations,

for these spasmodic gewgaws
will surely disappoint her!

Sister Monica Joan, Sister Winifred.

Would you please
join me in my office?

SHE SIGHS

As you will both be aware,
Mother Jesu Emmanuel was due to come

to the end of her tenure
as Superior next February,

after which her successor
would have been elected.

You have deployed
the future perfect.

I deduce that this bodes ill.

Mother Jesu has been diagnosed
with a brain tumour.

She is expected to live a handful
of months, but no more. No...

She asks that we leave
our work here at once,

and return to the Mother House
until a new Superior is elected.

Sister, our work is here.

Sister Mildred is arriving
at the Mother House

with a number of orphans
from Hong Kong.

They will be staying at the order's
orphanage

whilst they get
to know their adoptive parents.

I am told there will be plenty
of work for us to do once we arrive.

We are called upon to care
for more than infants

and frail flesh!

We have a chapel to attend to here,

in which we must abnegate

the evils of the world
with constant prayer!

I dare say we can make shift,

with Nurse Franklin coming home.

She can do the work of three
when she's firing on all cylinders.

Yes!

Besides, Sister Winifred
and I should be back

in time for Christmas.

Should be?

I hope there's nothing
to this election

that you're not telling me about.
Not at all.

I'm quite sure there are better
candidates than I for the position.

I'm really not happy
with the length of this, Valerie.

If you do a pirouette on stage,

people are going to see
everything you've got!

There's no pirouettes, I'm just
helping out the baby ballet class!

I lead them on stage
in their little angel costumes,

and we all point our toes in time
to You're All I Want For Christmas.

I'm still going to let the hem down.

And then if I can see
anything I shouldn't,

I'm going to put a flounce on it.

DOORBELL RINGS

It's Trixie. Come on!

I'm Sister Mildred,
and I'm indefatigable!

Except when arriving from the East,
escorting orphans.

This is Ming.

There are three more
in the taxi cab,

and each and every one in need
of napkin change.

We were told you were going directly
to the Mother House!

Fog at the airport, fog on the road.

Non-appearance at said airport
of Child Care Officer.

I'm a nun, not a conjuror.

I told customs I had nothing
to declare but my annoyance,

and I'm hoping you'll tell me
there's room at the inn.

From left to right,
May, Sui and Chi.

Ming you've already met.

And they're all girls,

as you're about to discover.

They're almost all the children
of refugees from China,

found abandoned as newborns,
in the main.

Discovered in the street,

or in the stairwells
of apartment blocks.

Their files are marked
"Left To be Found".

They may find comfort in that
when they're older.

There is love in the gesture
as well as desperation.

Mmm, not all are so
fortunate, I'm afraid.

Might I try another portion
of that snowman chappy?

The trouble with marshmallows,

one finds, is that they're mostly
air,

which does little to erode
the digestive vacuum.

Sister Mildred, why is little May
so much older than the others?

Let's not discuss her details
in front of her.

She may not speak English yet

but she is beginning
to understand it.

Besides, she's going
to the most wonderful family!

An accountant for a father,
big, sweeping lawns,

big sister has a pony.

Are they a Chinese family?

No.

There aren't enough of them

to provide homes for all the babies
coming in on this project.

But the babies need to know
they're Chinese.

They'll know they're Chinese

every time they look
in the mirror, bless 'em.

I'll be sad to see them
leaving in the morning.

I don't think you've any idea

how often I gazed at
the Mediterranean in a Pucci tunic,

dreaming of this.

I see you're entertaining some
guests. Nurse Franklin.

Trixie, you look wonderful.

I dare say you'll be wanting
a decent cup of tea.

Yes! And if it comes
with cake, yes, please!

There's one potted-beef sandwich
left.

I'll go and look into the cupboard

and see if I can rustle
you up some gherkins. Ooh!

Or maybe I'll just go out for
fish and chips.

Oh! There's my girl.

Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack!

What about in the water?
Ooh!

Quack, quack, quack.

SHE LAUGHS

Quack, quack, quack.

BABY GIGGLES

Moths, moths, moths!

I'm surprised you have a single
intact garment left, Valerie.

I've got more Crimplene
than cashmere

and moths
don't really go in for that.

They went in for my
uniform cardigan!

We're going to have to fumigate
that wardrobe,

or you can't hang
a single thing in it!

My godmother insisted we spent
a week shopping in Paris,

so she could send me
back to London

prepared for every style
eventuality.

Does she know which bit
of London you live in?

She knows that a woman
is defined by her potential

and not her circumstances,

and that one exquisite black shift
dress from a top couturier

can take you anywhere.

Even out for dinner
with an Italian count.

An Italian count?

I bet he never bought you the last
piece of haddock in the chip shop!

Come on.

Grub's up.

And welcome home.

I understand the moths made
a banquet of your woollens.

I shall ensure that naphthalene
sachets are supplied.

But in the meantime,
you might like this.

Is it a new one?

Not new, no.

A certain person would have been
the first to give you hers.

Barbara?

There's still a label
inside with her name on.

You can snip it out.

Or leave it in.

No tears, lass.

You're back, and you're well.

One way and another, we're going
to have a happy Christmas.

A few extra little bits
to take on our adventure!

Meanwhile, this morning's post
also brings a Christmas card

from Nurse Mount and Nurse Busby,
with greetings from Scotland,

plus a paw print from their
brand-new puppy, Garbo.

Ahh!

I've also had an aerogram
from Mr Hereward,

safely arrived in New Guinea

and made warmly welcome
by Barbara's father.

That's nice.

Sister Julienne?

Good morning, Doctor.

To what do we owe the pleasure?

I'm here to see Sister Monica Joan.

Sister Monica Joan?

Ohh!

When has the pain been
at its worst, Sister?

When I was forced to make my
way to the telephone

to summon you.

If you'd knocked on my door,
I would have telephoned the surgery.

I did not wish to inconvenience you.

You are so very fixed

on preparations for your departure
to the Mother House...

I'm prescribing kaolin and morphine,
and a few days' bed rest.

I'm afraid you'll have to
go without her.

Oh!

Your carriage awaits, good ladies!

And I picked up a tin
of those glucose sweets,

just in case anyone's car sick.

If I feel nauseous, I just stick
my head out of the window.

Fresh air generally does the trick,

and if it doesn't,
nobody else is inconvenienced.

Ha! We're ready, Mr Buckle.

Hello, you.

Are you ready for the last
leg of your journey?

You've come a long, long way.

But you'll be home soon.

No reason to be peering at her,
Doctor, she's not ill.

Just one of my shyer types.

There.

FRED: # Good King Wenceslas
last looked out

# On the feast of Stephen... #

A little bird tells me

you're never very keen on going
to the Mother House.

Once, it was a place where I found
my new beginning.

Now, it is where I will
likely meet my end.

Nursed in a narrow bed,

tenderly cared for but without
the purpose

that comes from engagement
with the world.

The only engagement
I want from you now

is with a nice bowl of porridge,
or some egg on toast.

Sister Julienne is arriving soon.

Yes, I'm looking forward
to seeing her. Oh, me too.

Is there any sign of
the minibus, Sister Hilda?

I'm supposed to be helping
when the Chinese babies arrive,

but I've also been told
to do my spiritual reading.

By whom? By you, Sister.

Well, heads will obviously
roll if I'm disobeyed!

Oh!

Greetings! May we be of assistance?

Goodness!

Blimey. It's normally sheep
and rabbits that make me nervous

in the countryside!

An atheist, perhaps.

Or a builder wanting to turn
the convent into flats.

I've seen more than one
of that breed turn tail and run.

Is everyone all right?

I don't know who that was.
We're just going to go in here.

How is Mother Jesu Emmanuel?

Confined to her room.

And she's resigned
from her duties completely.

Oh, poor Mother Jesu.

She always sought
to sail the ship alone.

There are records and documentation
here

for every branch house
in England, and the world.

She said that was the role
of the Superior,

to navigate on behalf of those
with other work to do.

But she was struggling, clearly.

Yes.

And for longer than we knew.

Please don't think me indiscreet.

You really are the only one who
can step into Mother Jesu's shoes.

I have no desire to do
anything of the kind.

My work is in Poplar,

where I live amongst the people
I serve.

And I am of more use there

than I will ever be
behind a desk here.

I...I'm sure that someone much
more appropriate will be elected.

In the meantime, if I can attempt
to calm this chaos,

I will do so most humbly.

Midwife calling!

Hello, Nurse.

Long time, no see.

Is that Russell underneath
all that chocolate?

Doesn't seem five minutes
since I delivered him!

Mmm, I gave him his
selection box early.

Keeps him good.

I thought I'd drop
by and check you over.

We don't seem to have
seen you for a while.

I've decided to go
to the hospital for this one.

But we need to refer
you before you can do that!

And why would you want to?

Ah, they treated my sister
like the Queen when she was in there

having her Lorraine.

Breakfast on a tray,

ashtrays emptied every time
she snapped her fingers.

We really discourage smoking
in expectant and nursing mothers...

That's the trouble, though,
isn't it?

No offence, Nurse,
but you lot at Nonnatus,

you come into our homes,
you inspect them,

and then you start telling us
what we can and can't do.

Then after the baby's born,
you all waltz off and leave us

with a pile of dirty washing.

No offence, Nurse,

but it's St Cuthbert's
for me for this one.

One trifling flick through
the maternity Rolodex

and I've found more than a dozen
mothers who have "changed their
minds"

and plumped for a hospital delivery!

It isn't Dr Turner's doing.

He won't refer patients
to St Cuthbert's

unless there's good reason.

The trouble is, they ask him to.

Hospitals are telling women
there are a hundred good reasons

for giving birth in clinical
surroundings, and word gets round.

Young mother. Old mother. Twins.
High blood pressure.

Low blood pressure. Piles.
First-time patient.

Multiparous patient.

Elderly relative
sitting in the corner. What?

They're calling it "undesirable
socioeconomic circumstances".

It used to be called
"living in the East End".

Oh!

I want my little troupe
all sitting side by side,

with a seat immediately
next to them for me.

We will need another high chair.
And no food containing cow's milk.

Somebody said it was macaroni cheese
and semolina pudding.

I'll go and see if there's
anything plainer.

Some of the children
from the Hong Kong Adoption Project

spend a short while in
a residential establishment,

getting acclimatised
and to know their new families.

I may be biased, but I think
ours is much the best.

Yeah, it's, er, it's lovely.

It's like a home from home.

Hello.

Who are you, then?

I wonder what your name is.

He's called Neil.

Hello, Neil.

Why isn't he eating
with the other children?

He was brain damaged at birth
through lack of oxygen,

and has to be spoon-fed.

Sister Hilda thinks it goes
down a bit better

if we can do it one to one.

How long has he been on
the list for adoption?

I asked Sister Hilda that
the first time I saw him.

And she said, "He isn't."

Have I got time for a cigarette
to calm my nerves, Vi?

I'm not having any naked flames
near this,

you'll go up like a bonfire.

Wotcha, Fred.
Oh, evening, Nolly.

No hard feelings about the reindeer,
then, eh? We improvised.

If there's trouble at the zoo,
there's trouble at the zoo.

No harm done, then. Well, it might
have been nice for the kiddies.

Some of them might have liked
to have seen an animal at Christmas.

Would have made it special.

And the other way.

AUDIENCE COO

# You're all I want for Christmas

# And if all my dreams come true

# Then I'll awake

# On Christmas morning

# And find my stocking
filled with you. #

GIRLS GIGGLE

APPLAUSE

O Lord, our Heavenly Father...

O Lord, our Heavenly Father,
almighty and everlasting God...

..and grant that this day
we fall into no sin,

neither run into any kind of danger,

but that all our doings,
being ordered by thy governance,

may be righteous in thy sight.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

..Jesus Christ our Lord.

This tastes horrible.
There's not many to go now.

And then you can take
these down to the postbox for me.

Where've you been, Fred Buckle?

I've had three slices of streaky
congealing under the grill

for an hour and more.

A tricycle, a scooter,
a hobby horse and...

..a Scotty dog on wheels!

I've been collecting toys
for the kiddies at the orphanage.

It's all old.

Yeah, but, you know - we clean it up
and a coat of paint...

And if we look sharp, we'll get
it off to Santa in loads of time.

There's fleas on that Scotty dog,
I can see them dancing from here!

Reggie, get away!

I'm going to do them all up.

Oh, Fred!

You are as soft as a brush
when the mood takes you.

And you do mean well.

But you haven't got the time to do
these up before Christmas.

And no child wants to wake
up to broken toys

that other people have thrown out.

It happened to me
when I was a kid.

It was just a thought.

Come in, Sister...

..and sit where I can see you.

I still have the sight in one eye,
but it must do the work for two.

I remember clasping hands
with you

the night before we took
our novice vows.

After we put on the hand cream?

You remember.

Who could forget Sister Gertrude
marching in with the Nivea,

announcing that we would all go
to the altar

with hands as smooth
as they would ever be again?

I love the smell of Nivea, even now.

It's one of the things I missed
when I was voted Superior

and stopped going
into people's homes...

..the smell of hand cream,

the talcum powder.

Even baby soap.

You don't imagine

you will mourn those small
connections to ordinary things

as Mother Superior.

But you do.

I pray for you every day.

I want my work to be your work.

I want you to take my place.

But you cannot choose.

The Sisters vote amongst themselves.

You are the only one
who has the intellect,

as well as the spirit and the heart.

I believe our Sisters see that.

And if they cannot,
there is one who does.

They mark the paper.

One higher moves the pen.

PEBBLE CLATTERS

PHONE RINGS

Turner residence.
Shelagh, it's Sister Julienne.

Have you time to talk?

I'm on holiday from midwifery
until New Year.

Angela and Teddy are wrapped up

and are feeding the ducks
with their nanny.

Tim's lying upstairs listening
to some appalling music,

and Miss Higgins
is cracking the whip.

Nobody needs this much time.

I need any you can spare.

I have never seen an office
in such disarray.

And I cannot restore
it to order alone.

You'll be home in time
for Christmas.

Lord, but you look lonely there,
Sister Monica Joan.

I am in the company of the Almighty,

who - being of the masculine
persuasion - would,

I suspect, be unmoved by my current
skirmish with this carpet sweeper.

I sense the presence
of something malign in it.

You have a bit of cotton
wrapped round the brush.

Sister Monica Joan,

would you like to come
to church with me?

It's not in some great building,
or even a chapel this size.

But you might find
it feeds your soul a little.

In fact, it would feed
more than your soul,

we serve lots of sweet
cakes and puddings

round this time of year.

I...I dare not vacate these
premises,

when no other is here
to raise their voice in prayer.

You must imagine me
veiled in scarlet,

like the Vestals of Rome,

charged with keeping
the flame alive.

Miss Higgins has blocked off
my days away on the calendar

in three different colours of ink.

I'm sorry to have to say it,
but she seemed enthusiastic.

We'll all be fine.

And Sister Julienne needs you.

I think we should leave now.

I'm scared I'll miss the train.

Or change my mind.

Well done!

Well, that's all done now, Denise.
Thank you!

Do you want to take Mandy

and go and watch television
with the others?

I want to be here when
the mums and dads come.

They're only coming to see
the Chinese babies.

They're coming to choose.

They look at all of us
on choosing days.

This isn't a choosing day!

Even if there was such a thing.

Besides, we already know

who the Chinese babies' new mums
and dads are going to be.

They're just coming
to meet their children,

and have some fun with them.

That's nice.

Oh! Oh, my dear Shelagh.

I brought you some mince pies.

I'm a guest now.

I shouldn't come empty-handed.

Is it self-indulgent to say
I hardly recognise myself?

It's as though that woman
was erased

as completely
as the old Nonnatus House.

Not a wall or a window
left standing.

Your vocation changed.

And you did not disobey the call.

I couldn't disobey it.

It was stronger than
anything I'd ever known.

Shelagh.

My dread of what I think is coming

is stronger than anything
I have ever known.

Are you really afraid
you'll be voted in as Superior?

Mother Jesu Emmanuel
is lying upstairs willing it.

And the prayers of the dying
are such a very potent thing.

Mother Jesu Emmanuel may be praying
for something she wants very much.

It doesn't mean she is
praying for what is right.

What do you want to do?

I am a religious Sister.

I am not allowed to want anything.

What are you doing, Mavis?

I was just showing June

where the Bickiepegs
were for Russell.

The first thing she said
when she arrived was,

"Ain't you got your tree up yet?"
I said, "I'm not due till New Year."

I thought we had ages
to get it organised.

Maybe this is just wind.

Bobby, if this is wind,

it's enough for me to take off
in a flaming hot-air balloon.

Denise!

Come and help Neil
to play with maracas.

He likes the noise they make.

We might try and sit
you on the rocking horse later.

Would you like that?

We could sing...

# Ride a cock horse
to Banbury Cross

# To see a fine lady
upon a white horse! #

She ran away as soon as she saw me.

I think we should call the police.

She's heavily pregnant,
and looks very distressed.

Well, most pregnant women
would be distressed

if they looked in through the window
of an orphanage.

And if they knew what's just
happened to poor little May here,

they'd throw back their heads
and howl like wolves.

What has happened?

Her adoptive parents have utterly
failed to materialise! No!

Something must have
gone terribly wrong.

I shall ascertain.

Make way,
I shall require the telephone.

CHILDREN SING ALONG TO TV THEME

Must May really wait a year
before her parents can take her?

Tuberculosis is tuberculosis.

12 months in a sanatorium
ought to see it off,

but while the husband's away,

the wife doesn't feel
she can proceed.

May already seems
terribly withdrawn.

May's mother was a refugee
who turned to prostitution.

Pretty little thing,
forever determined to reform.

Came back to the Hong Kong orphanage
for May three times,

talking of a better life,

job as a servant,
place at a night school.

She'd take the child away
and then, weeks later,

bring her back.

One or other of them always
had a black eye or a cigarette burn.

I used to wonder which of them
was most in need of care.

Sister.

Tea is usually a silent meal.

Today is not a usual day.

Our guest has bought mince pies.

Are we to drive her from the room
while we consume them?

No, I don't doubt love was there.

But sometimes love's not enough.

Courage is worth more.

And common sense, more still.

May's mother had neither.

She kept coming back,

and the child forever
waiting by the door.

TV: And he won't come
without his bed. Won't he?

No, not this time of night.
Always brings his bed with him.

Oh, hello, Francis...

Mrs Hollinger?

It's Hollier, it's on her card.

I'm sorry. Well, I'm pleased
to say

we've been able to accommodate your
wife

under the Emergency Bed Service.
At St Jolyon's.

But that's on the other
side of the borough.

The matron there is expecting you.

You can either wait for an
ambulance,

which might take up to an hour, or
you can make your own way there.

Sister, you're wanted in Room 6.

You must excuse me.

What do you want to do?
I'm not staying here.

My sister said they treated her
like a queen.

As my godmother said,

if you invest in an exquisitely
simple silhouette,

you can ring the changes
with a multitude of accessories.

So she took me to the best couturier
in Paris...

..and bought me this!

It's very plain.

That's the whole point, Lucille.

For example, the vendeuse suggested
that, for an informal supper,

I might wear it with
a white mink chapeau.

Do you not think your head
might get a bit hot?

I'm going to put on these high heels

and demonstrate the infinite
possibilities

of pared-back elegance.

Oh, we should have waited
for the ambulance.

I thought there'd be a bloody bus!

It must be the fog.

There'll be a taxi coming
soon, I promise you,

even if it's just a cabbie
coming home from up West.

I want to go home.

I wish we'd never come out!

You've just got to keep walking.

I can't hardly stand,
never mind keep walking!

I'm in labour... Mavis, listen to
me. We're going to that phone box,

and we're going
to call an ambulance.

Come on, you can do it. OK.

Oh...

SHE MOANS

Mavis! Mave!

The phone's busted,
I don't know what to do!

Oh, you'll have to go
to Nonnatus House and get a midwife.

I don't know where it is,
I'm not a woman, Mavis!

It's next door to the school,
you stupid article!

Just...just stay there!

Promise me you'll stay there.

Oh...

I'll say this for the best
couturier in Paris,

for a Frenchman,
he certainly fits a lovely zip.

And the beauty of it is,

I can wear it with a pair of
elbow-length white satin gloves

and a discreet diamond brooch
for the opera,

or a pearl-grey tweed coatee
for a city luncheon.

I just worry you're going to look
like a photographic negative.

And what's this, may I ask?

A gorgeous jacket
in a lovely shade of red.

It's a fuchsia-pink duster coat
in shantung silk.

FRANTIC KNOCKING AT DOOR

I don't like the sound of that.

It's my wife, she's by the phone
box. I think the baby's coming out!

We need coordinates.
Which phone box?

I can't remember!

And it's goodbye to one pair
of fully fashioned Parisian nylons.

We're almost with you, Mavis!
Hold on!

Oh, I can't hold on, I can't!

Go and ring for an ambulance,
and tell them to prepare for a BBA.

BBA? Born before arrival.

We're on the corner of Bateman
Street and Chandler's Mews,

tell the Ambulance Service that,

then come back with hot water
bottles and clean towels.

Oh, come on, mate, I promise you,
when they come as quick as this,

they come easy as a wink.

As soon as we've got
this contraction out of the way,

we're going to do some
basic checks

to tide us over
until the ambulance arrives.

MAVIS GROANS

It's all right, we're here now.

Let's slip these off
and see where we are.

They said I had to go
to St Jolyon's.

Well, we're not having that.

We want it born within
earshot of Bow Bells,

or it's not a Cockney.

I can feel something down below,
I reckon it's the head.

With this next pain, you push
if you have the urge to, Mavis.

Don't I need to lie down?

No, you're fine as you are,

just keep your feet
nice and wide apart.

Oh...

I can feel the top
of baby's head, Mavis.

Push! There you go, chick,
that's the ticket.

As hard as you can, Mavis,

all the way to the end
of this contraction.

That's it, you're doing brilliantly.

They will keep neither
mother nor infant warm

if they are not kept
warm themselves.

Thank you, Sister.

God speed you on your way.

We need all the help we can get.

Keep pushing, Mavis,
like you did with the last one,

and the one before.

Good girl.

Thank you. That's all right, chick.

Now, you catch your breath,
save all your strength

for the next one.

Is the head out?

When I was having Russell,
you let me reach down and feel it.

I think Russell was a little bit
more biddable than this one.

Dragging its heels a bit, is it?

Push as soon as you like, Mavis,
a really big, brave push.

We're with you. Keep pushing,
that's it.

Come on, chick, you can do it.
Don't let go of this, Mavis.

You have to keep pushing.

Clean towels, two hot water bottles,
all present and correct.

And I wish I could say
I did see an ambulance,

but there isn't any sign.

That was a superb push, Mavis,
but baby's not moving.

I need to get you
onto one knee, sweetie.

No, I can't!
Well, you can, because we're here.

You have three of us,
all to yourself.

One of us is even wearing
her uniform.

Just think of us as the Beverley
Sisters, but with rubber gloves.

Gently now, that's it.

All right, there we go.

Yep.

Here we go.

And push, push, push, push, push.

The pain's gone!

Then push anyway.

That's it, that's it, that's it!

BABY CRIES

Posterior shoulder first.

BABY KEEPS CRYING

Oh, there we go.

There.

I think somebody's Christmas

has come a little bit early,
hasn't it?

You've got a little boy, Mavis.

I'll have to give him
a Christmassy name now, won't I?

Like Noel.

Or Robin.

Gabriel, like the angel.

Perhaps you should wait
till the shock's worn off!

AMBULANCE BELLS APPROACHING

Come and see your beautiful baby.
Is she all right?

Mr Hollier?
It's a bit bloody late now!

Now, Mr Hollier. Let's have
a bit of peace and goodwill.

Will I have to go to hospital now?

You're not going anywhere where
we can't look after you properly.

Mavis's husband is lying down
across the chairs in reception.

I put two spoons
of sugar in his cup.

How are you getting on?

I seem to have got
all the blood out,

but I'm having less luck
with the vernix.

It's only a dress,
and a birth is never just a birth.

I could call him Nicholas.

It's Father Christmas's name
in some of the old-fashioned books.

Nicholas.

I like that.

Gravel.

You must have come off the cape
when you were pushing.

As one Poplar girl to another,

am I allowed to say
I'm proud of you?

Yeah, we did all right, didn't we?

Everyone tells
you hospital's better.

The hospital tells
you hospital's better.

They never tell you
there might not be a bed.

There you are.

What a smart little soldier.

Bringing him to meals and feeding
him alongside the other children

is having a really positive effect.

I've noticed that little May
hardly eats at all.

I picked her up to put
her on the rocking horse yesterday.

I know what a well-nourished
three-year-old

should feel like in your arms

and it shouldn't feel like that,
like a bird.

Sister Mildred says

some children do less well
than others in residential care.

May just isn't suited
to orphanage life.

It's gone on too long for her.

I wish there was
something we could do.

I pray, for all of them.

I don't think I've stopped
praying since I got here.

Young Nicholas is looking
a little bit peckish, Mrs Hollier.

I'll pull the curtains round

so you can have some privacy
while we put baby to the breast.

Can't I stay?
It's nothing I haven't seen before.

Please? You'll find a selection
of reading matter in reception.

Oh, Nurse, Nurse,

I'm sorry, but it hurts so much!

Where, lass? Down below.

Oh, it hurts so much!

SHE WHISPERS PRAYERS

Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't
mean to startle you.

I saw you before when
you were looking in the window.

Did you come here
because you need help?

Stop!

Please, miss, stop!

I'm glad you stopped running,
it's bad for you,

it's bad for your baby.

I suppose you're one
of the midwives?

We're all midwives,
it's what our order does.

I know that.

When I was a child,
I used to be at the orphanage.

Oh...

Will you tell me your name?

It's Lena.

Why didn't you knock on the door,
Lena,

why didn't you just ask
to speak to someone?

I just don't know.

I was scared.

Were you unhappy at the orphanage?

No.

It was the last time
I ever felt happy in my life.

You poor thing.

You have a vaginal haematoma,

a massive collection of blood
under the skin.

It's been getting bigger and bigger
since you gave birth.

How big?

Well, if you're looking
for a more seasonal image,

about the size of a tangerine.

Oh...

Your blood pressure
is just a little high.

It may come down with rest
and warmth,

but I would like to check your
urine if you can provide a sample.

My earliest memory is of one of you,
when my brother was born.

I was only two then, maybe three.

Was he born at the cottage hospital?

It's closed down now.

In London, in Poplar.

Our order's been in Poplar
for a number of years.

It was one of you who brought me
down here on the bus.

They said my brother
Billy couldn't come,

because he had a club foot.

He had to have a stick
and wear a special shoe.

How old were you?

When my parents died?

I think I was seven, maybe eight.

I had one big tooth and one
baby tooth at the front,

I remember that.

The nun who met me here

said I should be careful who I
smiled at,

or I might not get picked.

It's OK. Sister Hilda asked if you
could go and help with the children.

Neil seems unsettled
and she thinks he might want you.

Oh.

I can remember one of you standing
with Billy on the pavement.

We were looking at each other
through the window of the bus.

Such a dirty window,
we could hardly see each other.

I was crying and crying,

and the nun said
I had to stop crying

because if I didn't stop,
the bus wouldn't go.

And I wiped my eyes
with the back of my hands,

and the bus pulled away.

I never saw my brother again.

Do you want to tell us
what happened after that?

After I came here?

I was sent to Australia.

On the children's
farm school scheme?

It gives children such
a wonderful chance in life.

Kills some of them.

Yeah, they killed me.

We should be ready now, Dr Turner.

In a moment, I'm going to make
a tiny incision

and drain all of the blood
out of the haematoma.

You'll soon feel much better.

It's already stopped hurting.

That little scratch you felt
before was a local anaesthetic.

I need to go home.

I still haven't got a tree yet.

It's nearly Christmas Eve. The baby
won't know, but Russell will.

How will he know it's
Christmas without one?

I want you to take deep
breaths of the gas now, Mavis.

I haven't even wrapped the presents
yet. Come on, now. Deep breaths.

That's it, good girl.

She's had a rotten run
of luck, poor lass.

Christmas should be
a happy time for a young family.

Yes, it should.

You often hear of children
being sent to Australia.

I thought most of them went
to small children's homes

in the countryside. Lena didn't, she
said she was taken to a farm,

put to work, and treated
absolutely brutally.

She also says she married
an older man and when he died,

she used the small amount
of money she was left

to pay for a passage home.

That's all Sister Julienne and I
have been able to get out of her.

At least you managed
to persuade her to stay the night.

She's been staying
in a room above a pub.

That doesn't sound at all suitable.

The order has never put
any children

to the child migrant programme
directly.

We only ever liaised
with charities who did,

which might explain why
the records seem so sketchy.

Well, what if the records
are sketchy?

What if nothing was ever
properly written down?

If they weren't,
then they should've been.

Facts may sometimes
disappear from sight,

but everyone has a story.

The least we can do is make
sure that it's told.

FORK TINKLES AGAINST GLASS

Your attention, please,
Sisters...and guest.

Or should that be guests?

Neil and I are experimenting
with a new arrangement of cushions.

He seems to be digesting better,
and he's trying to look around more.

Wonderful.

I've been with Mother Jesu Emmanuel,

and the chaplain general will visit
to oversee the election

the day after tomorrow.

Mother asks that we choose a Sister

whose grasp of the religious life
means she may lead us

with both confidence and grace.

In addition, she commends
Sister Julienne

for so swiftly establishing
good governance in the office.

It'll all be over by Christmas,
as we used to say in the war.

You'll be looking forward

to going back to Poplar,
Sister Winifred?

I don't want to go back.

I want to stay here.

Sister, we have to go
where we are called.

Obedience demands it.

Well, with respect, Sisters,

I think there is a difference

between going where we are called
by God

and doing what we are told
by human beings.

I think perhaps I should withdraw.
No, do stay.

The presence of a guest
might persuade our Sisters

to moderate their quarrel.

The quarrel is not between
ourselves, it is within us.

The quarrel is between one's own
desires and that which is demanded.

The quarrel is between
the body and its longings,

the soul and its terrors,
and the mind, yearning to be free.

The quarrel defines us.

It drives us forwards, upwards,
to our knees in prayer.

You must embrace the quarrel.

The quarrel will lead
us to the answer.

It is everything we are.

Tea is supposed to be a silent meal.

Well, I feel called to stay here,
and I don't care who's calling me.

Oh, come on, Reggie,
eat your Swiss roll and custard.

In a few days' time,

everything will have dried fruit in
it, and you hate dried fruit.

DOORBELL RINGS

Oh, get that, Fred, I'm running late
for the WVS sherry party.

DOORBELL KEEPS RINGING

What's the panic, Noll,
your knicker elastic gone?

I am a man of conscience,
it's part of my jovial carapace,

and I've been thinking

about them little 'uns we
disappointed over the reindeer.

ANIMAL BRAYS

That's not a reindeer.

It's a donkey,
and it's got sand in its fur.

Maybe it cut through Clacton
on the way from the North Pole.

I'll need him back
after the holidays.

Merry Christmas.

Violet, sweetheart?

I've just got to pop down
the civil defence headquarters.

Well, no stopping off down
the Black Sail afterwards.

My word is my bond.

It's a donkey!

Shh!

Reggie, I've taken
a special delivery.

I know, Fred, and it's a donkey!

Look, just go back inside
and don't say anything.

Come on, you.

No, come on, come on,
that's it, this way.

DONKEY BRAYS
Shh.

Good evening, Doctor.

More seasonal confectionery
from grateful patients.

I can't allow that on the premises
until it's passed a fire test.

Aluminium trees are
highly inflammable.

Ah, Mr Hollier! Just the person.

I thought you and your
family might like this. A tree?

Take it, take it home,
turn the lights on.

You'll have a little
bit of Christmas then,

until I can send your wife home.
Thank you, Doctor.

I'll go through and tell Mavis

so she can stop fretting
and concentrate on getting better.

PHONE RINGS

Surgery reception,
how may I be of assistance?

It's for you.

Yes?

Dad, what's happened
to our silver tree?

Look over your shoulder,
Tim, what can you see?

Angela, looking broken-hearted.

And another tree.

Dad, you're always giving things
away, even when it's not Christmas.

But it is Christmas.

Sister, I don't feel well.

Come on, donkey,
come on. No, this way.

You need a hand, Fred?

Oh, no, no, no, me and old...
old Eeyore here,

we understand each other. I'm trying
to get him up the allotment

so I can put him in my shed.

I would let him graze,
but I think he'd run amok.

He's not running amok now.

DONKEY BRAYS

Listen, you haven't got
any peppermints on you,

have you, Doctor? Only...

..I got him all the way here

on the strength of a Polo mint
I found in me pocket.

What are you doing with that donkey?

I'd move that tin a little bit
if I was you, Doctor,

because he seems to have his eye
on the toffee penny.

There we go, that's a good donkey.
Fred? Come on, come on, donkey.

There you go. This way.

This way.

Oh, I told you to stay at home!

I got the donkey a blanket.

You're a bit keen to get this animal
under wraps, Fred.

Well, given your upstanding
status in the community,

Doctor, I'll let you get off home.

I'll leave you the Quality Street.

Right, come on, then, let's...

..let's see if we can get you in
here.

Come on.
Oh, look at all these lovely...

No, come back, come back,

come back, come on,
come on, come on, good donkey.

That's a good donkey.

No, you're not going to go?

Please.

The fog has made the road
to the hospital impassable,

but Sister Hilda let
me into the stores

and I found everything
in there that I might need.

Is it good again?

It's perfect.

I want to be good at
this, it's like...

I want to get good marks.

When I was on the farm,
I never got anything right.

I used to drop the eggs
or leave smears on the dishes,

tea leaves mixed up in the mop,
I couldn't make anything clean.

And that's when they'd hit you

with the flat of their hand
or a stick,

when you couldn't
make things perfect.

Sometimes we just have
to do the best we can,

whatever is asked of us.

You always do your best.

You even did your best by Billy.

Billy?

My brother.

I can remember you holding
his hand when I was looking

through the window of the bus.

I was holding his hand?

You've been in my mind
like a photograph for years,

and yesterday, when I saw the light
fall on your face

and I knew it was you...

There were always
so many children in Poplar,

seven or eight
to a family sometimes.

There was only me and him,
but I knew he'd be all right.

He was holding your hand.

SHE MOANS

That was a wonderful push.
We have baby's head.

Really? Really.

All is well. You're a very,
very clever girl, Lena.

And when the next pain starts,
we're going to tell you to push,

and if you push steadily,
baby will be with us,

and we'll be able to place
him in your arms. Him?

Shh. We'll soon find out
if it's a boy or a girl.

I don't mind what it is,

once he's here, I'll have flesh
and blood again.

It's been such a long time

since I've had flesh and blood
in this world.

That's it, Lena.

That's it, keep pushing,
keep pushing.

Keep pushing.

BABY CRIES

Success!

It's a boy, Lena!

A gorgeous little boy!

Is he all right?

He's perfect.

And completely yours.

I'm going to call him Billy.

ON TELEPHONE: Ah, Mrs Turner,
I'll be with you in just a minute.

Mrs Turner, how may I assist you?

I'm trying to connect some records
we have at the Mother House

with those of a family
who were on our books

before the war, two children,
called Lena and Billy,

or possibly William.

I don't know what's
going wrong with Poplar.

Time was that you could leave the
door to your whole house wide open

and every chattel you possessed
was safe.

Has something gone missing?

Oh, the Brussels sprouts,
and two pounds of parsnips!

PHONE RINGS

I hung them up outside in my string
shopper

so that they'd get a nip
of frost, and they've gone!

Poor beggars, must've been starving
to rob all that raw veg!

PHONE RINGS AT OTHER END

Hello?

Mrs Buckle?

Oh, is that Mrs Turner?

I'm afraid I'm coming
to you with my begging bowl.

Well, I always do my best

to fulfil any charitable requests,
Mrs Turner.

It's quite a big begging bowl.

I need you to fill it
with angel costumes,

and possibly animal costumes.

Animal costumes with heads on,
or just very long johns,

perhaps with papier-mache masks?

I don't mind, but we're putting
on a nativity play

for the Mother House orphanage

before some of them go off
to their adopted families

and to give those that don't
a Christmas memory to look back on.

There will be other people helping,

but I want every single child
to have a costume.

How many are there?

About 20.

Well, he's settled in quite nicely.

Fred, it's not ours.

No.

Give him to the orphans.

As a Christmas present? Mm-hm.

Well, better than
those old broken toys.

No fleas, only sand.

Thank you.

I've seen so many people waiting
for news as a midwife.

Now I'm waiting for news of my own.

I have more sympathy for them
than I ever imagined.

I'm worried we won't hear the bell

when it rings to announce
that the vote has been declared.

Maybe I don't want to.

Maybe I simply want to stretch
this moment out and make it last,

fill it with things I have chosen.

If you could choose one thing now,
what would it be?

A cigarette.

I mean it, Shelagh.

I keep them for nervous fathers

and unexpected social situations.

Patrick doesn't know.

This was the last thing
I did before I took my first vows.

It was the first thing
I did when I renounced mine.

I had to speak to Mother Jesu
on the telephone.

If she'd been angry,
it would have been so much easier.

But she said, "Child,
make room for God,

"and he will fill it in ways
you can never imagine."

I put the phone down,
and all I could think about was,

would he fill it
with a pack of Henley's?

CHURCH BELL TOLLS

OK?

Can you manage?

NUNS SING

Your votes have been counted.

May I present your new
Mother Superior...

You have made your will known.

I am to serve you as your Superior.

May his will be done.

And may I come to accept
it with his grace.

Bearing in mind our recent debate
upon the rule of obedience,

I trust Sister Winifred will not
resist my request

that she remain here,
working with the children,

whilst Sister Julienne must
forthwith at once to Poplar

and her work in Nonnatus House.

We will arrange for two new Sisters
to join you in Poplar in due course.

What's all this?

Fortification for your labours,
which, on this occasion,

have nothing to do with childbirth

and everything to do
with motherhood.

One bag of presents,
all shopped for weeks ago

by your loving hands.

And enough paper, sticky tape
and ribbon

to get them all wrapped
up and ready for Christmas morning.

Then if we all get cracking,
we'll be in time

to send them to the North Pole
for delivery by sleigh.

Thanks, all of you.

Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas, love.

SEWING MACHINE CLATTERS

Hello, my love. Erm...

..Reggie and me have got
something to tell you.

Well, unless it's going
to be of some benefit

to this nativity play,

then I'm afraid it's of no
interest to me.

Room for two more?

Yes, please.

That one there.

You'd think it was Ben-Hur on ice,
the way they're carrying on.

Are you sure you don't want
to go with them for the ride?

Vi, I told you, hang them
up in the back of my van.

It's full of scrap timber

and it's too close to the trailer,
which smells.

Too many sprouts!

Oh!

I missed you all so much.
Is Miss Higgins here?

All present and correct.

Oh, this is May, Angela.

Would you like to say hello?

Hello.

Dr Turner?

I've been having a word
with your wife, Dr Turner,

and she's now under orders
to have a word with you.

Lena, I have a visitor for you.

Billy, step into the light
where your sister can see you.

I took a picture
of you with my mind.

But the window of
the bus was so dirty.

I'm sorry I couldn't look after you.

I'm sorry I couldn't look after you.

I did all right, Lena. Did you?

Dr Barnardo's is all right.

I was good at my arithmetic.
Were you?

Got a job down the weights
and measures,

married a girl from the typing pool.

No kids, but I made a nice life.

I'm glad.

Don't cry.

If I don't stop, the bus won't go.

You come home with me,
and you bring the little 'un.

It's Christmas Day tomorrow,
and we'll be together.

I'm not sure it'd stand
up to a force nine gale, Fred,

but I don't think
they had much wind in Bethlehem.

They didn't have a donkey who was
partial to Christmas veg either!

Children! I've got a cherub without
any tights on

and a pair of trotters that haven't
got a home, so can everybody please

look at their feet and then
look at the feet of the angel

or animal next to them
and put their hand up

if something's gone wrong?

You're going to look like the
best-dressed king in the stable.

I think he might be the most loved.

I'd take all of them back with me
if I could. I would too.

A lot of them thrive here.

It's secure and stable.

They do well.

But Mother Mildred is adamant

that any more time in a Home
with a capital H

instead of a small one
would be very damaging for May.

It might well have
damaged her already.

I just wish the people
who want her could take her now.

We could take her now.

Not adopt her, just foster her,
just for the few months she needs...

..show her that there's a world
that's just the right size,

that there's a place
where she will fit.

Or a space that she can fill.

I said we had no room for another
living creature in our household,

or our car.

It's an enormous car,
and our life just keeps expanding.

There's room in it
for everything that matters.

Look at you!

MATURE JENNIFER: There are always
angels everywhere.

Perhaps we only think to look
for them at Christmas,

when their wings can be seen,
when their halos glow with light,

but they are always there...

..there in the quiet corners,
there in the shadows,

there in their ordinary clothes,
and they are beautiful.

Make room for the angels,

for they will catch you unawares,

and fill your heart in ways
you never could imagine.

DONKEY BRAYS

LAUGHTER

APPLAUSE

Good evening.
Good evening. Evening.

You have a gentleman
caller, perhaps?

No, Sister.

I couldn't bear to see
you praying your way

to the good Lord's birthday
all alone.

You come with me.

Home in time for Christmas.

VOICES SING

What's that?

Come in!

SINGING WITHIN

# ..Hail the son of righteousness!

# Light and life to all he brings

# Risen with healing in his wings

# Mild he lays his glory by

# Born that man no more may die

# Born to raise the sons of earth

# Born to give them
second birth... #

MATURE JENNIFER: None of us have
ever truly walked this way before,

but if there is no map, no route,
no arrowhead to follow,

there is sometimes a star,

and we do not make our way
without companions.

As the road unfolds,

we travel side by side
and share the shift

from darkness into light.

# ..Glory to the newborn King. #

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Oh, that was gorgeous!