The biggest event of the year is almost here! Trixie and Matthew’s wedding is just around the corner, and all of their friends are eager to celebrate the love birds. “Lady Aylward” sure has a nice ring to it. They’re all in awe of the couple’s ~fancy~ invitations (To quote Miss Higgins… three to FOUR sheets thickness. Impressive.) and can’t wait to dress up for the formal society wedding.

The group also celebrates Cyril’s return this episode following his impromptu trip to visit Lucille in Jamaica. After learning that Lucille accepted a new job opportunity for at least six months, he swiftly booked a ticket to the West Indies to see her and to get some clarity on their future. Their plan to build a life in Poplar together is still on hold, but Cyril tries to move forward knowing that Lucille’s mental health has improved since going back to her family.

Poplar’s Housing Crisis

As Cyril tries to resettle into the place he calls home, we meet a new family that’s desperately trying to find a home, any home, in the midst of Poplar’s housing crisis. This week, Nancy meets with the O’Connor family. Her patient Imelda is in her third trimester and though everything is progressing well, she only has days until her baby is due and needs to decide where she’s going to give birth. Imelda’s reluctant to have her baby at a hospital, but if she and her family can’t move out of their caravan and into more permanent housing, she’ll have to go to Dr. Turner’s maternity home.

The next day, the O’Connors continue their tedious search for housing and visit the Tower Hamlets Housing Office where there’s already a long line of people ahead of them. They wait for hours just to step foot into the building, but are informed that the office won’t be seeing anyone else that day. As if that isn’t disheartening enough (because really, when has waiting in a queue for anything ever been a good time?), they return to their temporary residence only to discover that their caravan has been taken away. With nowhere to stay, they’re forced to shelter in an abandoned building in the neighborhood. While they’re in the soon-to-be-demolished tenement, they have a brief run-in with the authorities, and Imelda begins to experience contractions during the high-stress situation.

A Hepatitis Outbreak

Imelda and Maurice prepare for an unfortunately timed delivery. At Florrie Hall, Rosemary Mason stops by the antenatal and baby clinic for a checkup with Shelagh. She’s part of a close knit family, and they’re all excited to welcome Mason sibling #5 into their lives. However, the expectant mother complains that she feels much more lethargic and achy this round. This requires a home visit from Dr. Turner. When he’s there, Dr. Turner notices tenderness over Rosemary’s liver and believes she might have hepatitis. Since it can be passed on, he advises that Rosemary and her family take extra precautions at home to avoid spreading the infection.

Imelda’s Lonely Delivery

Back at the tenement, Maurice is in panic mode when he realizes that Imelda is in labor. He urges her to go to a hospital, or at the very least, to let him call someone like Nancy for help. Imelda prevents him from doing this and warns her husband that if anyone finds out that they’re homeless, they might take the baby and their son Paul away from them. So, with Maurice by her side purely for emotional support, Imelda bravely gives birth to their new daughter… on her own! She deserves a round of applause, an award, and at least 10 baskets of Sister Veronica’s homemade marmalade. Not to mention, a house.

A Minor Distraction

This episode, Cyril also witnesses the impact of the housing crisis and the toll it’s taking on people like the O’Connors. To keep his mind off Lucille’s absence, he has decided to keep busy with volunteer work at a local men’s hostel where he’ll be helping to feed and shelter the homeless. However, the hostel has strict rules and will only allow 20 men in each night for both food and rest. Once they’ve reached their limit, Cyril is forced to refuse any others from entering, including Leon Chapman, who only wants to get out of the cold. Leon appears to be in poor health, but Cyril has no choice and instead gives Leon some of his own money for food before sending him off. Still, the act of turning those in need away doesn’t sit well with him.

Sister Monica Joan’s Deteriorating Health

Though the team has only just dealt with an infection that closed down the maternity home and could probably do without another outbreak, the hepatitis cases in Poplar grow. At Nonnatus House, Sister Monica Joan’s health takes a turn. She’s tired, confused, and her eyes are jaundiced. Sister Julienne and Phyllis call Dr. Turner and, as it turns out, her liver is also enlarged. She too has hepatitis. The only thing they can do is offer her liquids and pain medication as her body fights off the infection, but the group worries how her age will impact her recovery.

Rosemary’s Baby

Though it could just be a coincidence that both Sister Monica Joan and Rosemary have hepatitis, it’s more likely that Sister Monica Joan became ill after the pair’s brief interaction at the midwives’ clinic. However, since no one else at Nonnatus House is sick, they can’t be sure. When Shelagh checks in on Rosemary, she asks her if she could have been around anyone in the days prior to her hepatitis diagnosis, but Rosemary tries to dodge her question. Shelagh finds it curious that no one else in Rosemary’s family has the infection, but Rosemary insists she hasn’t seen anyone.

Later, Cyril runs into Leon again and sees that his illness has progressed since he last saw him at the hostel. Perhaps feeling slightly guilty about their interaction the night before (but also because Cyril is a genuinely good person), he brings Leon to Dr. Turner. Like Rosemary and Sister Monica Joan, Leon has also picked up hepatitis. Unfortunately, that’s not the only issue he’s dealing with. Dr. Turner notices track marks on Leon’s skin and tries to offer him a referral to a hospital that can help treat his addiction. He refuses and abruptly leaves.

When Cyril chases after him, Leon eventually explains that his substance abuse is a result of his difficult upbringing. His biological mother gave him away as a baby, and his foster parents also sent him to a children’s home. He was left to feel abandoned his entire life. He also goes on to reveal that he recently tried to make contact with his mother, hoping that she might finally take him in, but didn’t want to disrupt her life when he discovered that she had a family – and many children.

Following their conversation, Leon returns to his mother’s home, and if you haven’t connected the dots yet between Poplar’s latest hepatitis patients… his mother turns out to be Rosemary. It’s implied that they’ve met before and that Rosemary promised she would tell her husband and kids about Leon.

After many delays, however, Leon believes that she has decided not to tell them about him after all. Shelagh catches the end of their argument and Rosemary confesses that she actually had been meeting with Leon before she fell ill with hepatitis. Rosemary tells her that she was young and unmarried when Leon was born. She had to give him away, only meeting him again after he found her full name and where she lived in recent weeks.

Rosemary’s family comes home during the middle of their conversation, and it’s then that she realizes she needs to tell them the truth. When her husband Arthur learns about Leon, he’s extremely understanding (husband of the year), and even goes out of his way to search for Leon and to bring him to their home for a warm mother-son reunion.

A Family Torn Apart

As one Poplar family comes together, another faces the threat of separation. With the O’Connors’ baby delivered, it should be a time for celebration, but they’re not out of the woods yet. Despite a tremendous solo delivery, Imelda’s daughter refuses to breastfeed, and Imelda herself has become sick. The couple is still wary of calling for help, but Imelda trusts that the nuns of Nonnatus will be able to assist them. Nancy joins Maurice but when she sees Imelda’s condition, she gives her an injection and urges Maurice to call an ambulance.

Mother and baby make it safely to Dr. Turner’s maternity home, and the good news is that a round of antibiotics for Imelda and an incubator for her daughter will do the trick. The bad news is that while Imelda recovers, Paul will be sent to a foster home. This is exactly what Imelda worried about, but Nancy reassures her that Paul will be in good hands and that her own daughter, Colette, lives with a great foster family. Thankfully, they won’t be separated for long. Nancy and the others help Imelda find a place to stay after she leaves the maternity home and let her know that she can also bring both of her children with her. Though Maurice must stay at a men's hostel across the city, he promises that he’ll save up the money to rent a flat in Poplar for all of them.

Matthew and Trixie Take Action

As usual, word travels fast amongst the group, and Trixie raises the issue of the O’Connors’ separation to Matthew. She’s flummoxed that the couple has had so much trouble finding housing and doesn’t understand why there simply aren’t enough homes built in Poplar for everyone who needs them. Matthew blames it largely on bureaucracy but is moved to take action. The power couple attends a meeting held by the council’s Housing Sub-Committee, and Matthew interrupts to voice his concerns about the housing crisis. He criticizes the neverending lines at the Housing Office and the committee’s willingness to demolish buildings without providing alternative living arrangements for its tenants.

Violet challenges him and points out that Matthew and his family have also demolished buildings in the community (touché), and quite a few of them. She’s not wrong, but Matthew argues that if he’d known how slow the process would be for the council to provide new housing, he would’ve reconsidered his demolitions.

Violet doesn’t take well to the pressure he’s put on her in front of her peers, but when they run into each other later that evening, they make amends. Though she wasn’t a huge fan of his approach, she admits that Matthew was right and that the committee could use a push in the right direction. In fact, they could even use a fresh voice. Matthew is shocked and flattered when Violet recommends that he join the Housing Sub-Committee by running for the next council elections. Lady Aylward and Councilman Aylward? We love to see it.

The Road to Recovery

Though the future looks brighter for all of their patients, the midwives are still trying to find a way to support one of their own. Sister Monica Joan’s battle with hepatitis escalates. The discomfort associated with her illness becomes unbearable, and in a confused state, she continues to tell Phyllis and Sister Julienne that she wants to go “home.” During a particularly emotional episode, Cyril drops in to visit her. Sister Julienne warns him that Sister Monica Joan won’t be up for a conversation, but as soon as the elder nun sees him, she is immediately calmed by his presence. However, everyone remains cautiously optimistic about Sister Monica Joan’s recovery, and the episode concludes with a cliffhanger.

Forgot how we got here? Catch up with Call the Midwife with the Season 12, Episode 6 GIF Recap.