The season 13 finale saw the return of Trixie's brother in Call the Midwife and you might be wondering who plays Geoffrey and what his story is.
The Call the Midwife season 13 finale was every bit as heart-wrenching as we’d been preparing ourselves for after the unexpected farewell between Trixie and Matthew in episode 7. Always a show that sparks questions, perhaps the most pressing one of all this season - is Trixie leaving Call the Midwife? - still doesn’t look to be fully answered. However, we can anticipate that her future on the show will eventually be made clearer in another season of Call the Midwife.
In the meantime, whilst she struggled to comprehend her situation, Trixie's brother thankfully returned to Poplar to offer some words of wisdom. As fans eagerly look ahead to the 2024 Christmas special (we already can’t wait!) we have all the details about Trixie's brother, what Geoffrey's story is and who plays him in Call the Midwife.
Who is Trixie's brother in Call the Midwife?
Trixie's brother is Geoffrey Franklin and he made his latest appearance in the Call the Midwife season 13 finale after her husband Matthew Aylward moved to New York in episode 7. Geoffrey is Trixie's older sibling and they also have another brother called Ronald, whom Geoffrey is far less close to. He initially worked as an Osteopath in Malta but later told Trixie about a job opening at Harley Street.
In the season 12 finale he organised Trixie's hen party ahead of her wedding to Matthew. The siblings ended up having a heart-to-heart the night before the ceremony about their father being ill which shed light on Trixie and Geoffrey's bond.
"We always had to light up all the rooms with fun and laughter," Geoffrey said and when asked if he also found it hard, he responded, "Having a flair for something doesn’t make it easy."
The pair discussed real happiness, with the nurse describing it as "quite something" and makes you realise you "don’t have to pretend to be laughing anymore".
"I’ll take your word for it. And you, most adored of all my sisters, are to grab that happiness with both hands," Geoffrey replied, before he and Trixie hugged each other tightly. It was clear from this exchange how much they mean to each other and the unique position they hold in each other’s lives, from their shared, not always happy childhood, to their current situations.
Who plays Geoffrey in Call the Midwife?
Christopher Harper plays Trixie's brother Geoffrey in Call the Midwife and if you recognise him it might be from his roles in a number of much-loved British TV shows. Christopher has starred in an episode of the popular Inspector Morse prequel, Endeavour, as well as in soap opera Coronation Street as Nathan Curtis from 2016-2018. The Call the Midwife actor has also appeared in Holby City, the 2020 movie adaptation of Sebastian Faulks’s Birdsong, Doctors, cosy crime show Rosemary & Thyme, Roman Mysteries and Upstairs, Downstairs.
What happened to Geoffrey in the Call the Midwife season 13 finale?
Although Trixie and Matthew remain married, she didn’t go with him to the US to start a new life and Geoffrey Franklin arrived back in Poplar on Bonfire Night in the aftermath of this separation. He had been invited to the fireworks celebration by Sister Veronica, who, he revealed he keeps up "quite a lively correspondence" with.
"Please don’t go sloping off on your own, I can’t bear it," he told her as a downcast Trixie looked like she was going to bow out of the festivities. Geoffrey offered to come round and cook for her, offering the options of enjoying his "sparkling repartee" or "companionable silence" - whichever she preferred.
From this it became clear that if Trixie hadn’t already told her brother what had happened with Matthew, then Sister Veronica had. Trixie ended up brushing off his invitation as something to arrange “soon” and was next seen taking caffeine pills at work after suffering from sleepless nights.
This ultimately led to disaster when she set herself on fire accidentally at work and Sister Julienne had to react quickly to put out the fire as it spread down her apron to her legs. She told her the burns were "entirely superficial" but asked if there was anyone she should "fetch or telephone", to which Trixie sobbed, "Yes, my brother."
Geoffrey ended up delivering some tough love to his sister back at her flat that evening, telling her firmly that he wasn’t in the "mood to indulge" her and tipped the caffeine pills down the sink. Trixie’s brother went on to tell her that they both “run from love” and encouraged Trixie to "run towards" Matthew and not away from him.
Trixie ended up heading Geoffrey's advice and rang Matthew in New York. As a delighted-looking Geoffrey listened in to her phone call from the hallway, Trixie told her husband that she would be with him "soon" as she was "coming out to join [him]".
Whether or not she will go through with this and move to America in Call the Midwife season 14 remains to be seen, especially as Matthew reassured her it would only be for 4 months or so. But if it hadn’t been for Trixie's brother, she might have called time on her marriage already.
How many episodes has Trixie's brother been in?
Trixie's brother Geoffrey has been in three episodes of Call the Midwife so far, including his most recent appearance in Call the Midwife season 13 episode 8. Prior to this we were introduced to Geoffrey Franklin in the season 12 finale when Trixie and Matthew got married. He also appeared in the 2023 Christmas special when she surprised his sister and brother-in-law by arriving at their flat for Christmas. He’d been meant to spend it with his friend Bernard but it turned out Bernard was getting married to a hairdresser and so plans had changed.
In the end Trixie told Geoffrey that as much as she loved him, she and Matthew were trying to build something that was just theirs and not please everyone else all the time. Geoffrey moved into Nonnatus House as a paying guest - hence his friendship with Sister Veronica. He also helped secure costumes for the nativity, making it one of the best Christmases ever for Sister Monica Joan.
