Comedian Miranda Hart has revealed that she was personally chosen for a role in forthcoming BBC drama, Call the Midwife, by its author Jennifer Worth, shortly before the writer died last year.

The drama, which is set in ‘50s London, begins on BBC1 on Sunday night at 8pm, and Miranda is just one of a star-studded cast which includes former Corrie star Tina O’Brien and iconic actresses Jenny Agutter and Pam Ferris.

Of her role in Call the Midwife – which is an adaptation of the books by the same name written by Worth – as Chummy, Miranda told the Daily Mirror, “Jennifer sent me the book and I thought, ‘I really hope I get to play this woman.’ I was thrilled to be asked.”

Miranda went on to explain that given she hasn’t done any serious dramatic acting before, it was a “joy” to take on the role…

She said, “For two and a half years I hadn’t done any parts that I hadn’t written, so it was really nice not to have that pressure.

“That was one of the biggest joys – it was amazing not to have to think about adding to the script.

“It was just weird at the end of every take saying to the director, ‘That wasn’t funny, was it?’”

Miranda went on to say that aspects of filming for the drama had proven to be something of a challenge.

She said, “It was terrifying learning how to hold an infant – I wouldn’t be remotely confident if I had to do it in real life.”

I’m really looking forward to Call the Midwife. Are you?

Here’s the show’s trailer…