Call the Midwifeis a long-running British period drama that completed its 13th season in May2024. The acclaimed TV series is set in the 1950s and 1960s, telling the story of Jenny Lee (Jessica Raine) and her close fellowship of female nurses and nuns who assist mothers during childbirth at a conventin London’s East End. Once Lee leaves after Season 3, the drama focuses on the other midwives, including Jennifer Worth (Vanessa Redgrave), Sister Julienne (Jenny Agutter), and many others.
WithCall the Midwiferecently renewed for two more seasons, questions about a supporting character named Lucille Anderson, a dutiful nurse who starred on the show between Seasons 7 and 12, have continued to swirl online. At last glance, Lucille had difficult decisions following an unspeakable personal tragedy, directly informing her fate on the show moving forward. Between her individual trauma and professional responsibilities, Lucille makes a life-changing decision at the end of Season 12 that bears further explanation.
Call the Midwife
What Is Call the Midwife About?
Created by Heidi Thomas,Call the Midwifeis a popular British period piece of television that debuted on the BBC in 2012. The ensemble drama concerns the nurses, nuns, and practicing midwives at Nonnatus House, a religious convent in London’s East Side during the 1950s and 1960s when medicine was making advancements. In a compelling narrative format, each season progresses one calendar year at a time, beginning with 1957 in Season 1 and continuing through 1969 in Season 13.
As progress is made medically, the show explores how far behind society is in appreciating the contributions of the unheralded female heroes, who often put their needs behind those of new mothers. While characters come and go on theacclaimed medical drama now on Netflix, the narrative is connected by narrator Jennifer Worth (Redgrave), a founding member whose memoirs serve as the series' inspirational basis. Apart from those mentioned, additional mainstays include Nurse Shelagh Turner (Laura Main), Dr. Patrick Turner (Stephen McGann), Sister Monica Joan (Judy Parfitt), Nurse Phyllis Crane (Linda Bassett), Nurse Trixie Franklin (Helen George), and Nurse Lucille Anderson (Leonie Elliot).
Who Is Lucille on Call the Midwife?
Introduced in Season 7, Lucille Anderson has become aCall the Midwifefan-favorite.Arriving at Nonnatus House in London from Jamaica, Lucille is celebrated as the convent’s first West Indian nurse. There to replace nurse and midwife Delia Busby, Lucille instantly captured viewers' hearts and minds thanks to her kind bedside manner, heartfelt medical duties, and warm sense of humor. From the jump, efforts are made to care for Lucille. Her arrival in London in 1963 was marred by freezing weather, which she was not used to in Jamaica. The bad weather left her train stuck for 14 hours, fostering sympathy for her inconvenience.
As a former librarian who studied to become a nurse, Lucille is intelligent and well-read. Further efforts to sympathize with her occur when Lucille trips and injures her knee on her first day at work. Later, she is revealed to have a bladder infection by Dr. Turner. Despite the infection, Lucille delivers a baby on her second day but is blamed by the mother when the newborn suffers a stroke. A victim of racial prejudice, the mother claims her baby would be fine if an English midwife delivered her baby instead of Lucille.
As the show progresses,Lucille becomes romantically involved with a car mechanic and aspiring civil engineer from Guyana named Cyril Robinson (Zephryn Taitte), whom she eventually marries in the 2021 Christmas Special. Following a happy honeymoon period, tragedy befalls Lucille in Seasons 11 and 12, leaving her fate worthy of closer scrutiny.
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What Happened to Lucille on Call the Midwife?
In Season 11,Lucille’s life changes when she becomes pregnant with Cyril’s child. The good news comes after Cyril has been rejected for his civil engineer license based on skin color, giving the couple a modicum of hope after such bad news. Alas, in the next episode,Lucille suffers a shocking miscarriage that devastates the married couple.
As Season 11 advances, Lucille and Cyril start to heal their hearts following the unthinkable miscarriage. As progress is made, more tragedy strikes when Dr. Turner and Sister Julienne are gravely injured in an explosive train accident. Lucille leads the effort to nurse the survivors back to health at Nonnatus House, which becomes a makeshift ER. Season 11 ends with Lucille finding redemption as she nurses Turner and Julienne back to health despite losing her own baby.
Despite Lucille’s heroic efforts in Season 11, more tragedy strikes the beloved character in Season 12. Trying to conceive a child on purpose this time,Lucille becomes depressedwhen she gets her period. The depression increases when she receives photos of her estranged sister Celine’s wedding in Jamaica and becomes extremely homesick.Lucille’s desire to return home escalates when Parliamentary Member Enoch Powell gives his “Rivers of Blood” speech decrying immigration policies in Britain that he claims have led to widespread violence and racial prejudice. Lucille delivers a baby at work, only to be victimized by more racial discrimination by the ungrateful mother. Lucille storms out of work feeling even more depressed.
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Contemplating suicide, Lucille nearly launches herself in front of a moving vehicle on the street. Lucille needs to get away after being clinically diagnosed with a nervous breakdown by Dr. Turner.Cyril takes money from their financed house to pay for a plane ticket to Jamaica, so Lucille can return home and see her family. In a tender emotional moment duringthe sad medical drama episode, Cyril takes Lucille to the airport on the same motorbike used to pick her up on their first date.
Will Lucille Ever Return?
As Lucille returns to Jamaica to work on her mental health, she accepts a nursing job at a homeless shelter that requires a six-month commitment. Although she misses Cyril, Lucille is determined to help her parents pay for her room and board.Cyril travels to Jamaica to work things out with Lucille but returns to London alone. Violet consoles Cyril, suggesting that Lucille’s absence could make their marriage stronger in the long run.Lucille’s final appearance onCall the Midwifecame during Season 12, Episode 2, leaving fans wondering if she’ll ever return. While chances are slim to none, more clarity could be provided when Season 14 premieres.
