The Other Bennet Sister: Call the Midwife fan-favourite transforms into plain Mary in BBC series

The period drama launches this weekend

Ella Bruccoleri returns to our screens as dowdy Mary in BBC One period drama The Other Bennet Sister, four years after she left Call the Midwife. And you might have to do a double take.

The actress, now 30, got her big break on the Beeb, playing Sister Frances between 2018 and 2022. Fans adored the character, and were gutted when she left Poplar for good after four years.

But now Ella Bruccoleri is back on TV playing another underdog who will charm you, too. Just like Sister Frances, who began as a timid, naive, and socially awkward nun, Mary Bennet is the often overlooked sister in the family made famous in Pride and Prejudice.

Here’s everything you need to know about Ella Bruccoleri’s new role in The Other Bennet Sister. As well as why she left Call the Midwife, and what else she’s been up to.

What is Ella Bruccoleri drama The Other Bennet Sister about?

In BBC One’s new period drama The Other Bennet Sister, Mary Bennet finally gets her “close‑up”. The 10-part series offers a fresh take on one of Jane Austen’s most ignored characters.

A synopsis for the show tells us: “Forced to step out of her sisters’ shadows, Mary embarks on a journey of self-discovery – finding love, and most importantly herself, along the way.”

The Pride and Prejudice spin-off puts the limelight firmly on the underdog in the BBC series we can all relate to. As the “spirited Bennet sisters navigate the minefield of the marriage market”, bookish Mary follows another path.

The drama brings a fresh perspective to Jane Austen’s iconic story as Mary steps out of the shadows and into her own life. It starts at Longbourn, where the Bennet family’s five unmarried daughters navigate the “rigid expectations” of Regency society.

Is it based on a book?

Yes, the new 10-part period drama is based on Janice Hadlow’s acclaimed novel of the same name. In Jane Austen’s 1813 story Pride and Prejudice, we learnt the fates of the five Bennet girls. But while her sisters were celebrated for their beauty or their wit, dowdy Mary was overshadowed. Author Janice Hadlow corrected that wrong in her own novel inspired by the classic.

Perfect for fans of Bridgerton and Jane Austen, the 2020 Regency novel zooms in on Mary Bennet, the “plain” middle sister. She’s the introvert in a family of extroverts, and a constant disappointment to her mother.

In the book, “one by one, the Bennet sisters find their place”. But The Other Bennet Sister zooms in on the “one left behind”. 

A synopsis for the book tells us: “Lonely and lacking connection, Mary turns to the only place she feels safe: her books. Determined to be ‘right’ since she can never be ‘beautiful’, she prepares for a life of solitude at Longbourn. One by one, the other sisters move on. […] But Mary slowly discovers that there is hope for the ‘plain’ sister after all.”

Who plays Mary Bennet in the cast of The Other Bennet Sister?

Ella Bruccoleri portrays Mary Bennet in The Other Bennet Sister. As her sisters embark on relationships and marriage, Mary’s journey sees her leave her family home for the soirées of Regency London and the peaks and vales of the Lake District, all in search of independence, self-love, and reinvention.

The series follows Mary as she steps out of her sisters’ shadows in search of her own identity and purpose. She subsequently finds herself in the middle of an epic love story along the way.

The cast also includes Richard E. Grant and Ruth Jones as Mr and Mrs Bennet. Indira Varma and Richard Coyle portray Mr and Mrs Gardiner, while Laurie Davidson and Dónal Finn stars as Mary’s potential suitors, Mr Ryder and Mr Hayward.

Talking about her role in The Other Bennet Sister, Ella Bruccoleri told us: “Many members of her family have written Mary Bennet off. And, as a result, she’s written herself off too. When we meet her at the beginning of the series, she’s living with her family in a small village and has never really left that world. These are the only people she knows, and she understands herself through the values they impose on her. We know these characters from Pride and Prejudice, but it’s fascinating to see the impact they have on someone like Mary.”

She added: “Mary’s not your typical period drama heroine. She lives in a world where, particularly for women, appearance is everything, and she doesn’t understand that value system at all.”

Director Jennifer Sheridan and producer John Pocock sent Ella for “piano lessons, calligraphy, horse riding and movement sessions” for the role.

How many episodes is Ella Bruccoleri drama The Other Bennet Sister?

The Other Bennet Sister is 10 episodes of 30 minutes each.

The Power’s Sarah Quintrell wrote nine of the 10 half-hour episodes, with Maddie Dai (We Were Dangerous) writing one episode.

How can I watch The Other Bennet Sister?

The Other Bennet Sister launches with episodes 1 and 2 on Sunday, March 15, 2026 at 8pm and 8.30pm on BBC One. That day, the first five episodes will be available exclusively on BBC iPlayer at 6am.

A double bill will follow weekly on BBC One at 8pm. Episodes 6 to 10 will be available on BBC iPlayer on Sunday 29 March at 6am. BritBox will premiere the series exclusively in the US and Canada on 6 May.

Who was Sister Frances in Call the Midwife and why did Ella Bruccoleri quit?

Ella Bruccoleri portrayed Sister Frances in Call the Midwife between 2018 and 2022. She remains one of the most popular characters to ever have worked in Nonnatus House, alongside Chummy Noakes, Trixie Franklin, and Nurse Crane.

Call the Midwife introduced Sister Frances as a novice in the 2018 Christmas Special. After taking her vows, she was sent to Nonnatus House alongside Sister Hilda, as replacements for Sister Winifred and Sister Mary Cynthia. 

Fans were saddened when the character left Call the Midwife during the 2022 Christmas special. She fell off her bicycle and fractured her arm in the icy weather. As a result, she was sent to the Mother House to recuperate and did not return to Nonnatus House… It was a rather disappointing ending for such a beloved character.

In reality, actress Ella Bruccoleri had made the decision to leave the show. At the time she told Radio Times: “It felt crazy quitting a great job. But I’d started getting different offers, and I realised I love the variety of different things.”

What other TV and films has Ella Bruccoleri been in?

Actress Ella, as the surname suggests, was born to an Italian family, but grew up in Scarborough. After graduating from the Oxford School of Drama in 2017, she won the role of Sister Frances in 2018. It would become a life-changing role for the young actress.

After leaving Call the Midwife in 2022, Ella went on to play Ali Day in the 2024 ITV thriller Passenger, and later appeared as Miss Barragan in Bridgerton. More recently, she’s played Merula Harkup in Bookish, Nurse Steph Ricci in Down Cemetery Road, and Socks in Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials.

She’s been in multiple films, too, including The Strangers franchise, Wicker, Bank of Dave 2: The Loan Ranger, and Paddington in Peru. 

Is she in a band?

Yep, Ella Bruccoleri is also musician and singer. She has her own band with ex-boyfriend Yoan Segot called Marry Me Emelie (see below for a taster). They released their debut album titled The Distance Makes the Mountains Blue in 2024.

They are described as an “alt-Americana band”, who independently released their first single I Have a Lark in February 2025.

Ella and Yoan met in Paris on the open-mic circuit, and embarked on a relationship. After relocating to London, they lived together in London. The band now continues, even though their romantic relationship of 13 years ended.