‘Call the Midwife’ season 4 finale ratings: Did Miranda Hart = higher numbers?

“Call the Midwife” is still a huge hit on BBC. It apparently does not matter who you cast on it or what the story is: Viewers in the United Kingdom continue to flock to the series regardless.

Sunday night’s finale was a big one, given that you had a powerful story and also Miranda Hart making her presence felt perhaps more than she has during almost all of the season as Chummy. We cannot really say that this had a tremendous impact on the numbers, though, since most viewers were probably already watching when they realized that she was a larger part of the story. Still, the total viewer count here was 8.7 million viewers. This is actually an increase from the 8.2 million viewers for the third-season finale, at least in the preliminary ratings. That’s huge given that the 2014 finale showed us the end of Jessica Raine as Jennifer Worth on the series. There was no notable cast departure at the end of season 3.

What do we take away from these finale ratings more than anything else? It’s as simple as the show proving that it is a complete force to be reckoned with in the long-term. It ultimately does not matter that much who the star is; it’s the concept and the writing that draws in viewers. This is why we feel like this is a show that could in theory last as long as the BBC and creator Heidi Thomas want it to; it is not necessarily as finite as “Downton Abbey.”

Then again, we also don’t imagine that we’re going to be flashforwarding to Nonnatus House in the 1980s anytime soon. The show will probably stay in the 1960s for most of the rest of its run, save for another possible Vanessa Redgrave appearance.

If you missed it yesterday, head over here to read our full review for this big episode of the series. Also, sign up now to score some other TV updates on everything we cover, courtesy of our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: BBC.)