Call The Midwife star Helen George has said she used “clever trickery” to hide her baby bump during filming for the new series of the BBC period drama.
The 37-year-old actress, known to viewers as the outgoing and glamorous Trixie Franklin, was expecting her second child with co-star Jack Ashton during production.
In its forthcoming 11th series, the story of the midwives and nuns of Nonnatus House in East London is moving to the 1960s and Franklin’s fashion has adapted accordingly.
She said: “The fashion for Trixie this year has been very 60s, very fun. It’s been continuing on the Jackie O theme with some lovely twin sets.
“But I am pregnant this year, so we are trying to use some clever trickery in the costumes to try and hide the bump slightly because it’s not really appropriate that Trixie should be pregnant in this series.
“So poor Claire the costume designer has been working hard to try and get some wonderfully fashionable suits that hide the ever growing bump.”
In June, George announced she was pregnant again.
She already shares a daughter called Wren Ivy, born in September 2017, with her partner.
The series will also see Trixie’s relationship with widower Matthew Aylward, played by Olly Rix, blossom.
George, who has been a cast member since the show began in 2012, said: “It’s really interesting to see how things develop with Matthew because obviously it was a very traumatic moment in which they first met each other, as Trixie was involved in his wife’s delivery of their child and also in her death.
“So it’s a very sad storyline and it’s been very carefully dealt with.
“You see Trixie and Matthew getting closer, and the bond that they initially felt from sharing such a huge thing comes through.
“There’s a trust and a friendship and a support that emerges which is wonderful to see.”
Speaking about the lessons viewers can learn from the new series, she added: “That there are sacrifices to be made if you’re a medic.
“What this show does so well is underline how hard it was to be a medical professional in the 60s and possibly in modern day too.”
Call The Midwife airs on BBC One.