Call the Midwife viewers open-mouthed as they spot legendary soap villain in Christmas special

CALL the Midwife fans had to do a double take after spotting a legendary soap villain in the Christmas special.

BBC One viewers were thrilled to see Hollyoaks bad boy Liam Donovan, played by Jude Monk McGowan make an appearance in the historical drama.

Jude – who landed the role as troublemaker Liam in 2018 – was up to his old tricks on the popular midwife series.

Viewers met apprehensive mum-to-be Mrs Paige, who immediately left the nurses concerned that she was underweight and very pale.

Believing she was anaemic, they request her to have tests done but the anxious woman runs off.

Later on, Dr Turner received a call from Mrs Paige asking him to come to her flat due to a medical emergency.

But upon his arrival, he finds a group of unsavoury men in a flat and one injured man stabbed in the neck.

After helping the distressed individual, it’s clear that the gentlemen are a group of criminals.

One of the lads is Channel 4 soap star Jude, who plays hardman Ned, and later takes overdose as his life hangs in the balance.

Viewers were surprised to see the familiar face pop up on the period drama.

One wrote: “That fella from Hollyoaks is very, very handsome. Good to see him back.”

Liam was killed by his sister Grace after she pushed him down a flight of stairs after he held everyone hostage in an event which he call “The Devil’s Dinner Party” in 2020.

Meanwhile, Christmas proved to be a memorable one at Nonnatus House as Lucille and Cyril prepared for their upcoming winter wedding with plenty of hitches.

At her hen party, Lucille got drunk and tripped on the stairs. The following morning she has a black eye and later discovered that she needed an X-ray due to the severity of the injury.

Planning to cancel the wedding fearing she looked disfigured, Dr Turner suggested that they use an old-fashioned remedy of medicinal leeches.

After enduring the gruesome treatment for 45 minutes, the swelling luckily reduced.

Lucille and Cyril Robinson walked down the aisle in a romantic ceremony on Boxing Day, surrounded by their closest friends and with Reggie Jackson (Daniel Laurie) as the best man.

Elsewhere, Mrs Paige finally comes clean about her drug addiction after she gives birth to a baby girl but the new mum has contracted an infection after she hid that she was in labour for a day or two.

The staff were shocked to learn that the little tot was also experiencing withdrawal symptoms upon birth.

Mrs Paige opened up about her traumatic childhood with her addictive mother and promised that she will change for her baby.

The Nonnatus team faced with their busiest Christmas Day ever as the Maternity Home was filled with expectant mums to be, each with their own challenging case including a breech baby and a mother who had a haemorrhage.

Luckily Mother Mildred was on hand to support the team as another manic year Nonnatus House drawn to an end.