Call the Midwife viewers in disbelief over much-loved character's death

Call the Midwife fans who tuned into Sunday's instalment of the BBC period drama were left devastated by the death of a beloved character.

In the episode, fans watched as Cyril's beloved pet cat Nigel fell ill and suddenly died, leaving the pastor devastated. While Cyril attempted to nurse him back to health, Nigel rejected his food and by the morning, had sadly passed away.

"Oh, my poor friend," said Cyril as he awoke to find Nigel cold in his blanket.

Fans rushed to social media to share their sadness, with one person writing: "Poor Nigel! #callthemidwife. They always kill off the good ones," while another penned: "For all the tears I've cried over deaths on #CalltheMidwife, now they go for the cats! Please, not Nigel."

A third viewer was in disbelief and remarked: "I can't believe they killed Nigel," while another was in tears, adding: "SOBBED. RIP Nigel."

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Ahead of the new series, Zephryn Taitte, who plays Cyril, revealed that his character's grief results in a shift in his priorities.

"The bereavement gives him closure but makes everything feel very real for him and [see] what is important," the actor told HELLO! and other press.

He continued: "He's a social worker now, so everything is just really visceral and it's how he wrestles with that, how he finds himself in Poplar and where he goes forward. It's the making of him as a man."

After Nigel's sad passing, Cyril visited Rosalind in hospital, where she had been recovering from Weil's disease, and revealed his plans to divorce Lucille.

"I cannot be an island. I am not made to be alone," he told the nurse. "I could not have wept for [Nigel] as I did if he had not become my everything, if he had not been all I had."

When Rosalind suggested that Cyril is not alone and has friends and a wife, the pastor replied: "Lucille has made her life over there and while I was waiting for her, I've made a life over here. She isn't coming back and we've decided to divorce."

He continued: "I cannot know what the future holds but I know that I don't want to face it as a single man."

Looking down at their touching hands, Cyril said: "You can let go of my hand if you want to."

Rosalind replied: "I don't want to."

It's safe to say, fans are rooting for the couple, who have enjoyed a slow-burn romance throughout the series. One viewer penned on X: "Oh Cyril and Rosalind!! Please let this man be happy. The handholding, the grapes, the little smiles together," while another added: "The way I SCREAMED at the television for Rosalind & Cyril!"

Call the Midwife is available on BBC iPlayer.