Vintage on the BBC

In my opinion, nobody does a good historical drama better than the BBC and recently I've been spoilt by both Call the Midwife and We'll Take Manhattan.  Both are brilliantly shot and the costumes and set design left me drooling!

Call the Midwife is based on Jennifer Worth's memoirs, during her time as a midwife in London's East End during the late 1950s.  The series follows Jenny as she moves to Nonnatus House to reside along nuns and nurses.  The show really does have everything you need for perfect Sunday night TV; it will make you laugh and cry throughout and leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy!  The casting is superb.  Fresh faces play alongside more experienced actresses such as Pam Ferris and Jenny Agutter.  Acting experience correlates nicely with the fictional midwifery experience, making the characters and relationships believable.  There's also been quite a buzz about Miranda Hart's participation.  I personally really enjoy her role as Chummy and think she brings a special comedic element to the whole programme.

Story lines and acting aside, what I love most is the costumes, hair and makeup!  Jenny is definitely my favourite.  When she's not in her blue and maroon nurses uniform she's looking impeccable in cute 50s dresses and a matching pastel cardigans!  Her overall look is rather prim and proper but the Springtime palette of her wardrobe is really fun and adorable.  Her makeup is really simple but striking too; a matte red lip and strong brows.  Another character whose style I admire is Trixie, the flirtatious blonde.  Her non-uniform outfits mainly consist of a black chic numbers and posh cigarettes.  My favourite look of hers however, is with her hair in pin curls and a gorgeous aqua floral dressing gown.  She brings a lot of glamour to the group; a welcome distraction from their frantic jobs.

The show has proved to be so popular that the BBC have commissioned a second series.  The current one ends on 19th Feb, and the final episode has been moved to a slightly later time slot, reportedly to avoid clashing with Coronation Street.  I'll certainly miss Call the Midwife and am eagerly anticipating the next series already.  However, the BBC have cleverly scheduled the second series of Upstairs, Downstairs to start following this season's finale to keep us sweet!

If you've missed Call the Midwife, you can catch up here and look out for more on We'll Take Manhattan later in the week!