YOU can walk in the footsteps of the iconic midwives Trixie Franklin and Sister Julienne with the Chatham Dockyards tour.
Call the Midwife is set in East London, but in reality, a lot of the scenes are filmed in the Chatham Dockyards, Kent.
Having closed for the winter months, the Call the Midwife tour around the dockyards re-opens in March, so now is the perfect time to book.
The tour takes 90 minutes and is led by a guide dressed as a midwife.
They are armed with photobooks and interesting facts about the sisters – believe me, they know everything about the show.
While I was there, I was even lucky enough to meet stars of the show, Cliff Parisi (who plays Fred Buckle), Stephen McGann (Dr Turner), and Laura Main (Shelagh Turner).
The tour won’t guarantee you will see any of the cast, but if they’re filming on the day then you could be lucky enough to catch a glimpse.
One of the very first sights on the tour is the huge Royal Navy destroyer HMS Cavalier.
Fans of the series will recognise the ship from several scenes, like the opening episode of series two, where Sister Evangelina (Pam Ferris) and Trixie Franklin (Helen George) deliver the baby of the Captain’s daughter.
The Royal Navy destroyer has also doubled as a generic fishing trawler and cargo ship for any scenes near the water.
As you go further into the dockyards, you can see the roads and cobbled streets that are dressed to represent 1950s and 1960s East London.
For anyone who watched the show back in 2013, one of the memorable spots is Chummy’s Hill.
The street named after Camilla “Chummy” Browne (played by Miranda Hart) who tried to ride a bicycle and crashed into PC Noakes.
The tour also stops in at the Commissioner’s Garden, and you can see the Grosvenor Hotel too.
When the tour is over, there’s the chance to see the props exhibit that opened in 2023.
The new gallery has parts from various sets as well as props and artefacts.
Most impressively (in my opinion) are the beautiful wedding dresses.
On display is Nurse Barbara Gilbert’s (Charlotte Ritchie) wedding gown and hooded velvet cape, which was inspired by Dame Judi Dench‘s wedding dress.
That stands alongside Trixie’s wedding dress, which she wore to tie the knot to Matthew Aylward (Olly Rix) in series 12.
Trixie’s classic 1960s white tailored wedding dress was made from Vogue patterns and completed with a pillbox hat, which was influenced by Audrey Hepburn.
If you want to try and spot some of the cast, the best time to book is April and May as that is when the filming for the Christmas special usually begins.
The cast have revealed in previous years that they film winter scenes during the summer months, so time your visit between then and October if you’re hoping to spot the cast.
Tickets for adults start at £40 with the option to add on a cream tea at the end for an extra £6.95.
This village is where Downton Abbey was filmed
The 'real-life' Downton Abbey village is actually in Oxfordshire...
Fans will know that the fictional Downton village is found in Yorkshire between Ripon and Thirsk, or so they say. In reality, it was filmed much further south, the cobbled hamlet of Bampton in Oxfordshire was used to film all of the village scenes – there’s even a Downton Abbey filming locations map called the ‘Downton Abbey Mile’ outside the churchyard, a route to catch all the major backdrops.
In the heart of the hamlet is St Mary’s Church, which is a major sight in Downton Abbey. It’s been the centre of weddings, funerals and christenings. Central characters Lady Mary Crawley (Michelle Dockery) and Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens) tied the knot there in the third series.
One of the most recognisable streets for fans is Church View road as it makes up the majority of the village. One of the homes was made up to look like the Dog and Duck pub and another house was used to become the outside of the post office.
