Call the Midwife actress to appear in new Channel 4 drama with A-List stars

Call the Midwife star Ella Bruccoleri left fans of the show devastated when she stepped down from her role as Sister Frances in the popular BBC period drama last year. 

Luckily, it won't be long before the actress is back on our screens in a compelling new drama, which is sure to be a big hit with viewers. 

Ella will appear in a new Channel 4 drama titled Alice & Jack, which stars Hollywood actors Andrea Riseborough and Domhnall Gleeson.

Andrea is an Academy Award-nominated actress and producer, who is known for her performances in Birdman, Nocturnal Animals and To Leslie, which won her an Oscar nomination. 

© Olly Courtenay

Meanwhile, Domhnall is an actor, director, and screenwriter, who has appeared in an array of films including Harry Potter, Brooklyn, The Revenant and Ex-Machina. His performance in The Patient earned him a Golden Globe nomination.

Aisling Bea (This Way Up), Aimee Lou Wood (Sex Education) and Sunil Patel (Stath Lets Flats) also appear in supporting roles.

© Channel 4

The drama, which comes from award-winning writer and film director Victor Levin (Mad Men), is described by Channel 4 as "a love story for the ages". 

The synopsis teases: "When Alice (Andrea Riseborough) and Jack (Domhnall Gleeson) first meet they’re bound by a connection so powerful it seems nothing can break it, but will their path lead them to a place of happiness and togetherness? Or will life and their own emotional complexities get in the way? Honest, intimate, and surprisingly funny, the series shows love in all its unexpected, technicolour, kaleidoscopic beauty."

MORE: Grantchester and Line of Duty stars to appear in new Channel 4 drama – and it sounds gripping

MORE: BBC confirms hit drama is returning for season 2 with Unforgotten star - and it sounds seriously good

The upcoming drama is a Fremantle production in partnership with BAFTA and Emmy award-winning Me + You Productions, Academy award-nominated Groundswell Productions (The Visitor) and De Maio Entertainment.

© Getty

Both Andrea and Domnhall acted as executive producers on the project and worked closely with Groundswell. 

Commenting on the new drama in a statement provided prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike, Andrea said: "We unite in yearning to see evidence of real love, and, too, are soothed to share with one another the ache of its inevitable imperfection. This story is for anyone who could or couldn't make the sacrifice that love demanded, for anyone who battles and accepts the one who makes their soul soar, for anyone who longs to feel, who has felt, and who feels the tingling anticipation of love’s joy."

© Photo: Getty Images

Domhnall added: "The only work I’ve wanted to watch and do since the pandemic is work about connection and love, and work with a sense of humour. Alice & Jack keep coming back to each other because they can't help themselves - they find in each other something that they don’t have on their own. I think they're soulmates, I think it's bigger than just the two of them. Their story centres on connection and love in the most beautiful way and reminds us that we are always allowed to smile - even if it’s through the tears."

When did Ella Bruccoleri leave Call the Midwife? 

Ella, who is set to play the role of Louise in Alice & Jack, left the show last year. At the end of season 11, her character bid farewell to Poplar when she was sent away to Chichester to recover from an injury she sustained after falling from her bike.