The BBC has commissioned a further three series and three Christmas specials of the multi award-winning drama Call the Midwife.

The deal will take the show through to series nine and follow the nuns and midwives later into the 1960s. Each series will consist of eight hour long episodes.

Call the Midwife has been one of the most popular dramas on British television since it first arrived on screens in 2012, with an average of 10 million viewers per episode.

The show tackles issues dealing with childbirth, race, sexuality, relationships and mental and physical health whilst touching on important changes in society and family life during the sixties. The series has been celebrated for its honest and sensitive approach to these subjects in the narrative and character depiction.

Charlotte Moore, Director of BBC Content, told the BBC: “I’m privileged to have Britain’s most popular drama series on BBC One, and this new three-series commission underlines our commitment to the show. Call the Midwife continues to raise the bar with each new series and is really valued by audiences. The quality and ambition of the storytelling is credit to the excellence of writer Heidi Thomas, who has successfully brought the show into the 1960s with a diverse range of subjects.”

"I am hugely excited by the prospect of creating three more series of Call the Midwife,” said creator, writer and Executive Producer, Heidi Thomas. “We have now delivered well over one hundred babies on screen, and like those babies, the stories keep on coming! Above all else, it is an incredible privilege to work on a show that is made with such care and received with such love.”

Before the return of series six next year, audiences can watch the latest upcoming Christmas Special where six of the characters are taken to South Africa to help a struggling hospital that faces closure. The special will air on Christmas Day on BBC One.