Call the Midwife’s Jenny Agutter recalls her dramatic real life Christmas Day birth after son arrived five weeks early
Jenny reveals her plans for retirement
CALL the Midwife star Jenny Agutter has recalled the dramatic real life birth of her son who arrived five weeks early on Christmas Day.
The pains mystified Jenny while she was away celebrating with family in Oxfordshire in 1990.
Jenny, who plays Sister Julienne in the beloved show, feels Christmas Day is more about celebrating her son’s birthday.
In an interview with , Jenny recalls his birth saying: ‘I woke up feeling uncomfortable so I called my obstetrician and he asked me whether I was in labour.
“I said I didn’t know because I hadn’t experienced it before and wasn’t expecting him yet.
“He said “you’d better come in and I’ll see you.”
Jenny concludes: “I was there all day and my son arrived very late. It was a long day!”
Jenny and her hotelier husband, Johan Tham, split their time between London and Cornwall.
Johan bought the Cornwall house before he met Jenny and she fell in love with it instantly.
“When I was collecting watercolours, years before I met him, I ended up with a collection of Cornish paintings of the area that I live in anyway,” Jenny revealed to .
This year, the couple have rented a property close to their son Jonathan’s home in Dorset so that they can enjoy the festive season together.
And Jenny is much looking forward to spending time with her grandchildren Oliver and Lyra.
‘They live too far away for me to be hands on all the time, but when I am there I am.
“I’m there to tell stories and to play and crawl round on the floor and do whatever one needs to do.
“Children’s laughter is the most wonderful sound in the world and I am looking forward to hearing lots of it this Christmas.” she says.
The family will have a traditional Swedish feast on Christmas Eve following the traditions of her husband’s homeland.
Call The Midwife: A breakdown
Call The Midwife first came onto the airwaves in 2012 and has been seen by millions. But what is it about?
Series one: Set in early 1957 and it explored the ‘Baby Boom generation, which included themes of poverty and post-war immigration.
Series two: Set in 1958 and it showed gas and air being introduced for pain relief for the first time. It ended with the Nonnatus House building being condemned.
Series three: Set in 1959 and it depicted gruesome conditions such as cystic fibrosis, polio and it showed the midwives in the context on prisons.
Series four: Set in 1960 under the threat of nuclear warfare and the emergency response guidelines issued by the local Civil Defence Corp. Other themes included LGBT rights, and syphilis.
Series five: Set in 1961 and it shows the care of patients with conditions such as Typhoid and strokes. We also saw the effects of thalidomide, the introduction of the contraceptive pill.
Series six: Set in 1962 and domestic violence was at the centre of the season. Other themes included FGM (female genital mutilation), mental health issues and interracial marriage. It was also notable for the introduction of Reggie, a recurring character with Down Syndrome.
Series seven: Set in 1963 and we see Nurse Lucille Anderson for the first time. We also see the show address conditions such as dementia, huntington’s disease, leprosy and meningitis
Series eight: Set in 1964 and it bravely covered the issue of abortion, which was not legal for another three years in 1967. Sickle cell disease, cleft lip, cleft palate and intersex people also featured.
Series nine: Diptheria was at the centre of the ninth instalment in 1965, and it was notable for featuring a blind expectant mother. But the role of Nonnatus House within the community also came into question.
Series ten: Set in 1966, Nonnatus House has a rival in the form of the private Lady Emily Clinic in Mayfair. PKU, diabetes and the controversy surrounding abortion were central themes.
Series eleven: Set in 1967 amid the housing crisis and a scabies epidemic. The show was rocked by a train crash right next to Nonnatus House.
‘It’s very much a yuletide smorgasbord made up of gravlax (cured salmon) and lots of herring and beetroot dishes with sour cream.
“There are meatballs and maybe a fillet of beef. Then you have Schnapps and sing Christmas songs.” explains Jenny.
But she will be celebrating Johnathon’s 34th birthday on the day itself along with enjoying the usual festivities with her grandchildren.
“They get a double whammy Christmas and my son gets to enjoy his birthday!” explains Jenny.
Jenny is also looking forward to helping with bedtime stories and bath time. ‘
“Bath time is always great fun with lots of splashing and there’s a lovely Michael Morpurgo book On Angel Wings, which is a Christmas story I’d like to read to them.” she says.
In the evening, Jenny plans to relax and watch Call the Midwife, which she warns will be a teary watch for viewers.
She explains: “It’s an episode that really did make me cry. There’s little snow this year, but it has an almost Dickensian feel about it with all the difficulties one can face over Christmas with poverty and homelessness.”
Despite getting older, Jenny doesn’t want to retire Sister Julienne because she loves playing her and said: “‘I love the crew and the cast that we work with.
“What’s lovely is when you get involved with stories that people actually enjoy.
“I’ve just been for my flu jab and the nurse said “Ooh I think I recognise you” and we talked about Call the Midwife. It’s a point of conversation.”
Call The Midwife returns for part one of The Christmas special on BBC One on Christmas Day.