Call the Midwife continues with a new episode on Sunday night which will see Nonnatus House celebrate its 100th birthday and while we've seen many characters come and go over the years, there's one exit in particular that fans still aren't over.
MORE: Call the Midwife fans seriously concerned over character's future in new clip
Viewers of the BBC drama said goodbye to Nurse Barbara and her husband Tom back in series seven. Here's everything you need to know about how the character met her tragic end.
WATCH: Call the Midwife fans concerned for Sister Julienne after series 11 clip
What happened to Nurse Barbara and Tom Hereward?
In season seven we saw Barbara and Tom return from their time in Birmingham but shortly after Barbara restarted her work as a midwife with Nonnatus House, she began to show symptoms of a cold.
After a visit from Doctor Turner, Barbara was found to have blood poisoning from meningitis and was rushed to hospital.
Despite signs of a possible recovery, viewers soon learned that the septicaemia had caused irreparable harm, as three of her fingers had tissue damage, therefore ending her career as a midwife.
MORE: Call the Midwife viewers praise series for important but heartbreaking storyline
MORE: Call the Midwife viewers left 'sobbing' following shocking storyline in season 11 premiere
After it became clear that Barbara wasn't going to improve, she died with Tom and Phyllis by her side.
© Photo: BBCBarbara died in season seven
Following his wife's heartbreaking death, Reverend Tom left Poplar to join Barbara's father on his mission in New Guinea.
Charlotte Richie played Barbara for four years from series four to seven. Speaking about her character's shocking exit at the time, she told RadioTimes.com: "I felt like Barbara had gone through such a lovely journey, having arrived at Nonnatus House a sort of wreck and quite incompetent, or at least on the surface."
"And she’s really grown up and become this adult. And it felt like such a lovely time, with her wedding to Tom, having found that happiness and reconciled with Trixie. It could be a good time to go."
Revealing her reason for leaving the show, she said: "They ask you to commit quite early on in the year to the show. And I always wanted to do it, but I also felt that I’d done three different series for the last five years, and thought it might be good to slightly try and branch out and try something new."
Like this story? Sign up to our newsletter to get other stories like this delivered straight to your inbox.
