SERIES 6, EPISODE 5
Please feel free to comment on my review.
There’s a lot going on in this episode. There’s the start of a brand new midwife, the introduction of a new character and the revelation of what happened when one of our main regulars went missing. 😮
This episode features the first day of Jennifer Kirby as new recruit Valerie Dyer. She’d been introduced in the second and fourth episodes of Series 6, so it is great to see her begin as a midwife.
She arrives at Nonnatus House with Sarah Winman as her mum June Dyer accompanying her for a bit before she’s welcomed by Jenny Agutter as Sister Julienne. Pretty soon, Valerie gets settled in! 🙂
I like how she gets introduced to everybody including Helen George as Trixie, Charlotte Ritchie as Barbara and Kate Lamb as Delia. There’s a little tension between Valerie and Trixie over the wardrobe. 😐
Thankfully Trixie’s okay with Valerie rearranging the wardrobe to put her things in since Trixie meant to reorganise the wardrobe herself. Everybody also enjoys Valerie’s broken biscuits from her mum. 🙂
There is a nice tender moment where Judy Parfitt as Sister Monica Joan recognises Valerie as she remembers helping her mum bring her into the world. I wish that’d been explored a little bit more. 🙂
Elsewhere in the episode, we’re introduced a vulnerable young man – Daniel Laurie as Reggie Jackson. Reggie has Down syndrome and he has been living her mum, Kate Williams as Ivy Jackson. 🙂
Unfortunately, Reggie’s mum dies during a church service as Barbara confirms when she’s with Jack Ashton as Tom. This of course means having to break the sad news to Reggie who’s waiting at home.
Fortunately, Reggie’s mum happens to be the cousin of Cliff Parisi as Fred Buckle. Fred persuades his wife Annabelle Apsion as Violet to take Reggie in on a temporary basis so they can find a home for him. 🙂
It was interesting to see the relationship Fred and Violet form with Reggie as he captures their hearts. But he needs more care than they can offer which is why they need to find a home for him. 😐
Very soon, Fred accompanied by Sister Monica Joan goes and visits a potential home for Reggie. The place they visit happens to be a grim mental hospital which is not very ideal for Reggie to be in at all.
What’s even worse is that Fred and Sister Monica Joan are shocked to find Bryony Hannah as Sister Mary Cynthia there. So, this is where Sister Mary Cynthia ended up. I was shocked this was the case.
Sister Mary Cynthia has had a very rough time these past two seasons. What with being raped and eventually going into a mental breakdown. Maybe choosing to be a nun wasn’t a wise decision for her.
The mental hospital also happens to be run by Jemma Churchill as Sister Ramsey. I’ve seen Jemma Churchill before in ‘The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot’ and she’s done a Series 4 ‘Brittas Empire’ episode.
I’ve also heard her in Big Finish audios of ‘Doctor Who’ like ‘Creatures of Beauty’ and ‘Breaking Bubbles and Other Stories’. Sister Ramsey seems to be a rather cold person in charge of the hospital.
There’s also a subplot where a pregnant patient has dental problems. This happens to be Laura Elphinstone as Crystal Williams. Trixie assists Crystal out to overcome her fears of seeing the dentist.
Trixie also meets a charming dentist who happens to be Jack Hawkins as Christopher Dockerill. Hopefully a potential romance will ensue between Trixie and Christopher. Maybe it’ll be successful.
Victoria Yeates as Sister Winifred seems keen about taking part in the dentist teaching activities for children in this episode. She’s also keen to learn to drive with Linda Bassett as Nurse Crane assisting.
Meanwhile, Laura Main as Shelagh Turner tries to persuade her husband Stephen McGann as Dr. Turner that they need a bigger house. Thankfully, they find a house and Dr. Turner seems keen on it.
Incidentally, Fred and Violet manage to find a place for Reggie to stay in, but can they really be parted from this young man who’s captured their hearts. Maybe they might see Reggie again soon. 🙂
This episode was very compelling. It had a lot going on in it with Valerie starting off as the new midwife, the introduction of Reggie and the revelation of what has happened to Sister Mary Cynthia.
‘Series 6, Episode 5’ rating – 8/10
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