Where Was Call The Midwife Filmed?

The Short Answer

Call the Midwife is filmed mainly at two sites: the Historic Dockyard Chatham in Kent, whose cobbled streets double as 1950s Poplar exteriors, and Longcross Film Studios in Surrey, home to purpose-built sets including Nonnatus House. The real Poplar in East London became too modernized for authentic period filming, so production relocated, with a few street locations near Waterloo and Silvertown still used.

Call the Midwife takes viewers to Poplar in London's East End, spanning the 1950s through the 1970s. Yet almost none of it is filmed there. Modern development in the real Poplar made authentic period filming impossible, so the production built a world elsewhere, largely in Kent and Surrey.

For fans planning a visit, one location stands above the rest. The Historic Dockyard Chatham is open to the public, runs official Call the Midwife tours, and hosts an exhibition of props, sets and costumes. The studio site, by contrast, remains closed to visitors.

Every Location At A Glance

Location	Where	What was filmed	Access
Historic Dockyard Chatham	Chatham	Street scenes, cobbled streets as Poplar exteriors, Grosvenor Hotel, Chummy’s Hill bike scene, police station	Ticketed
Longcross Film Studios (Manor House / Nonnatus House set)	Longcross	Nonnatus House interiors and exteriors, Hendy Street allotments, Violet's shop, square, houses, dining room, clinical room	Private property
St Joseph’s College (Mill Hill)	London	Nonnatus House exteriors and chapel interiors (early seasons)	Private property
Theed Street / Roupell Street area	London	Exterior shots of terraced houses opening directly onto street (mid-century East End)	Free to see
Saville Road, Silvertown	London	Street in opening titles sequence	Free to see

Filming Locations Map

5 locations. The map loads when it scrolls into view.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Location By Location

The dockyard's 400-year-old cobbled streets and Victorian buildings convincingly double for 1950s and 60s Poplar. Street scenes were shot here, along with the Grosvenor Hotel, the police station, and the spot known to fans as Chummy's Hill from the famous bike scene. It is a ticketed heritage site open to the public, and official location tours run with costumed guides plus an exhibition of props, sets and costumes from the series.

Nonnatus House interiors and exteriors were built here, along with Hendy Street allotments, Violet's shop, the square, surrounding houses, the dining room and the clinical room. The standing exterior set stays up year-round, but the site is private and not open to the public. The studio was formerly a Ministry of Defence site with a tank test track; its manor house, Barrow Hills, built in 1853, once served as an officers' mess.

This London college provided Nonnatus House exteriors and chapel interiors in series 1 and 2. After 2013 the site was sold and redeveloped into luxury flats, so it is no longer used for filming and cannot be visited. The show explained the change on screen: Nonnatus House was relocated following bomb damage in the 2013 Christmas special.

These public streets near Waterloo station supplied exterior shots of terraced houses opening directly onto the street, capturing a mid-century East End feel. Visitors can walk the area freely and pick out the recognizable terraces. It is one of the few filming locations actually in central London, and costs nothing to see.

This public road near the Tate and Lyle factory area in Silvertown appears in the opening titles sequence. The titles also feature the QSMV Dominion Monarch in dry dock at King George V Dock. As an ordinary public street, it can be visited at any time, though beyond spotting familiar houses from the credits there is little else staged for fans.

Where It Is Set Versus Where It Was Filmed

The series is set in Poplar, East London, between the 1950s and 1970s, but almost none of the filming happens there. Primary shooting takes place in Kent at Chatham Dockyard and in Surrey at Longcross Studios, with occasional exterior work on public streets in London such as the Theed Street and Roupell Street area and Saville Road in Silvertown.

The Studio Side

Longcross Film Studios in Surrey handles interiors, Nonnatus House, and a purpose-built standing exterior set that stays up year-round. The manor house at the site, Barrow Hills, built in 1853, was once an officers' mess on a Ministry of Defence site that also had a tank test track. The studios are not open to public visits.

Tours That Visit These Locations

Only Chatham offers an official, bookable way to walk in the characters' footsteps. Two guided options cover the dockyard locations, both led with period detail and access to the exhibition.

Most-Reviewed Chatham Location Tour

Call the Midwife Location Tour in Chatham

With 648 reviews and a 4.5 rating, this is the most widely taken Call the Midwife location tour in Chatham, a safe pick for travellers who want the route most fans have already vetted.

4.5 out of 5 · 648 reviews

PriceLive on listingCheck availability

Dockyard Tour With Exhibition

Chatham Historic Dockyard: Call the Midwife Tour

This tour pairs the dockyard walk with the props, sets and costumes exhibition for 54.28 USD, and its 4.6 rating from 244 reviews suggests a slightly higher satisfaction score.

4.6 out of 5 · 244 reviews

From$54Check availability

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you visit Nonnatus House?

The Nonnatus House set stands year-round at Longcross Film Studios in Surrey, but the site is private and closed to the public. The closest a visitor can get is the official Call the Midwife tours at Chatham Dockyard, which include props, sets and costumes.

Why is Call the Midwife not filmed in Poplar?

Modern development in the real Poplar made authentic period filming impossible. The production instead uses Chatham Dockyard's 400-year-old cobbled streets and Victorian buildings, plus purpose-built sets at Longcross Studios.

What can you see on a Call the Midwife tour at Chatham?

Tours cover the cobbled streets used as Poplar exteriors, the Grosvenor Hotel, the police station, and Chummy's Hill from the bike scene. Costumed guides lead the walks, and an exhibition displays props, sets and costumes.

Was Nonnatus House ever a real building?

Early series used St Joseph's College in Mill Hill for exteriors and chapel interiors. After the college was sold for luxury flats, the plot relocated Nonnatus House, explained by bomb damage in the 2013 Christmas special, and a set was built at Longcross.

Are any filming locations free to visit?

Yes. The Theed Street and Roupell Street area near Waterloo and Saville Road in Silvertown are public streets. The former appears in exterior shots of terraced houses, and Saville Road features in the opening titles.

How long has Call the Midwife run?

The series began in 2012 and continues to air. Official location tours at Chatham Dockyard were launched after the show gained popularity.

For most travellers, a trip to the Historic Dockyard Chatham is the single best way to experience Call the Midwife on the ground: real cobbled streets, costumed guides, and an exhibition of props and costumes. Add the free public streets near Waterloo or Silvertown for a self-guided bonus, since the studio set remains off limits.