How to join Call the Midwife and RadioTimes.com’s online watch party and aftershow

We're asking fans to join us at 8pm (UK time) and watch a specially-selected classic episode of Call the Midwife. Straight afterwards at 9pm, you're then invited to head over to the show's official Facebook page where RadioTimes.com's Drama Editor Eleanor Bley Griffiths will be hosting an hour-long video discussion of the episode.

She'll be joined on-screen by key members of the Call the Midwife team and cast. Guests so far have included lead actors Jenny Agutter, Helen George, Stephen McGann, Laura Main, Max Macmillan, Jennifer Kirby, Leonie Elliott, Annabelle Apsion and Cliff Parisi, as well as series creator/writer Heidi Thomas and executive producer Dame Pippa Harris.

And for week six, we have a bumper edition: our special guests are Linda Bassett (Nurse Crane), Ella Bruccoleri (Sister Frances), Fenella Woolgar (Sister Hilda) and series producer Annie Tricklebank.

"The cast and crew were due to start filming series 10 this week, but we were prevented because of the lockdown," Heidi Thomas said ahead of the CTM Unite launch. "Linking up with our fans to watch and discuss a favourite episode of the show is the perfect way to cheer us all up!"

Which episode of Call the Midwife are we watching?

RadioTimes.com asked readers to vote for the next watchalong episode – and the fans have spoken!

We gave you three episodes to choose between, and this week there was a clear winner: series 8, episode 8, which picked up 51% of the vote.

In the UK, it's available to watch on BBC iPlayer – more information below for international audiences!

The Call the Midwife team and fans across the world will be tweeting throughout the episode using the hashtags #CallTheMidwifeUnite and #RTWatch, as we relive some of our favourite moments and experience the show together.

Here's the synopsis: "Shelagh organises a ballroom dance to raise money for the maternity home, in the hope of taking her mind off May's impending adoption. A terminally ill patient laments that she will not get the chance to dance one last time, but Sister Hilda is determined to make sure she does. Fred suffers an embarrassing condition, and cannot bring himself to see Dr Turner, while Nurse Crane is discharged from hospital and tries to play matchmaker between Sgt Woolf and Miss Higgins. Valerie and Trixie are called to testify in a court case."

Where do I watch the Call the Midwife aftershow?

At 9pm BST on Wednesday, look out for a video streaming on Call the Midwife's Facebook page. You can also watch it afterwards as a recording.

In previous weeks, we've taken questions from fans throughout the live aftershow – but after experiencing some technical difficulties (thanks for bearing with us!) we've decided to switch things up and pre-record the hour-long show. However, you can still put your questions to our Call the Midwife guests by sending them over in advance!

Share your question on Twitter with the hashtag #CalltheMidwifeUnite, or tweet @eleanor_bg by the end of Tuesday. Or you can head over to the Call the Midwife Facebook page to leave a comment there – we'll be keeping an eye out!

Who are the guests on the next aftershow?

CONFIRMED: this time we'll have four guests! Joining us for the next aftershow are Linda Bassett (Nurse Crane), Ella Bruccoleri (Sister Frances), Fenella Woolgar (Sister Hilda) and series producer Annie Tricklebank.

How can I re-watch the previous aftershows?

On the first aftershow, after watching series 5 episode 1, we had some very special guests: series creator, writer and executive producer Heidi Thomas – and Dr Turner actor Stephen McGann, who also happens to be Heidi's real-life husband.

Stephen said: "It’s a real pleasure to be able to do something for our fantastic fans around the world who – just like us – are having to hunker down in their homes. Call the Midwife is a series with community at its heart – and so the best thing we can all do at this time is join together and remember the good things that we all share in common."

Week one

If you missed the live aftershow on Wednesday 1st April, don't despair! You can still watch a recording of it here...

Week two

In week two, we watched series 6, episode 8.

It was the perfect episode for a chat with Helen George and Jenny Agutter, and they kindly agreed to join us on the aftershow. You can watch it back on Facebook.

Week three

Week three was a Turner family special as we tuned in for series 2, episode 8.

Stephen McGann (Dr Patrick Turner) and on-screen wife Laura Main (Shelagh Turner) joined the show alongside their on-screen son Max Macmillan (Timothy Turner) – and it's available now on Facebook.

Week four

In week four we watched series 6, episode 5.

Despite some technical issues, we were joined by Annabelle Apsion (Violet Buckle), Cliff Parisi (Fred Buckle) and Call the Midwife's creator, writer and executive producer Heidi Thomas. You can watch it now on Facebook, where you can also find a wonderful video message from Daniel Laurie (Reggie).

Week five

For the fifth edition of Call the Midwife Unite, on Wednesday 29th April, we watched series 7, episode 1. To avoid some of the major tech problems of the previous week, this show was pre-recorded with special guests Jennifer Kirby (Nurse Valerie Dyer), Leonie Elliott (Nurse Lucille Anderson), and executive producer Dame Pippa Harris. The hour-long episode is available now on Facebook.

How can I join if I'm not in the UK?

The watchalong will take place at 8pm UK time (BST), with the aftershow at 9pm. But we'd love to invite all Call the Midwife fans around the world to join in by viewing the episode on DVD or on local streaming services including Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

Plus, the Facebook Live aftershow will, of course, be freely available to watch on the internet.

Here are the timings:

UK
Wednesday 8pm – episode watch and live tweet
Wednesday 9pm – live Facebook aftershow

USA/Canada
Wednesday 3pm EDT / 2pm CDT/ 1pm MDT / 12pm PDT – episode watch and live tweet
Wednesday 4pm EDT / 3pm CDT/ 2pm MDT / 1pm PDT– live Facebook aftershow

Australia (Note: from the second Wednesday, after the clocks change, these times will move one hour earlier)
Sydney Time:
Thursday 2nd 6am – episode watch and live tweet
Thursday 2nd 7am – live Facebook aftershow

New Zealand (Note: from the second Wednesday, after the clocks change, these times will move one hour earlier)
Thursday 2nd 8am – episode watch and live tweet
Thursday 2nd 9am – live Facebook aftershow

South Africa
Wednesday 9pm CET– episode watch and live tweet
Wednesday 10pm CET– live Facebook aftershow