Call the Midwife is set to further its explorations of a changing Britain in its next series.
The BBC period drama, which was initially set in the 1950s and has now moved on to the 1960s, is casting a new West Indian character for Series 7.
The new nurse, named Lucille, will be the first recurring black character in the show.
“My research is continually bringing up new things,” series creator Heidi Thomas said at the BFI & Radio Times Television Festival.
Call the Midwife, Series 6 - in pictures
“[It] has made me very aware of the contributions made by West Indian and Caribbean nurses to the NHS in the early 1960s.
"[Lucille is] going to bring stories with her, and a different cultural point of view, and that's very exciting.”
In recent years Call the Midwife has been praised for tackling significant topics including the Thalidomide scandal, women’s liberation, and most recently FGM.
In a recent Radio Times poll, the show was named the UK’s best period drama of the 21st century, ahead of the likes of Poldark and Downton Abbey.
The survey was voted for by readers of the publication.
Call the Midwife Series 7 is expected to arrive on the BBC in 2018.
