The first two series were filmed at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, where Emma worked four shifts a week, day and night, alongside the midwifery team, helping to deliver babies. 

Emma Willis wonders whether she can fit in that car...

For series 3, although Emma is unable to assist in person like she normally would, she offers sound advice, drawing on her own experiences, as well as providing practical tips. As a sweet aside, Emma’s youngest, who’s four, is just outside the door while she’s filming, calling out, “Mummy!”

Find out what’s in store for the bumps on this bumpy ride…
 

Emma meets the families virtually

Emma watches a video that the couples filmed prior to the birth and then she video chats with them before and after the baby is born. She’s heard uttering the phrases of 2020 – “I can’t see you/I can’t hear you!”

As they explain their lives in lockdown, everyone will be able to relate. Katie, who is expecting her second child with Jay, says she used to FaceTime him while he was at the shops and pick things out that way. They’ve since opted for the less stressful option of click and collect!

For first-time parents Florence and Johnny, they find that a cat bed (unused, of course) works wonders to get their little one off to sleep. There is no sign of a cat, so if this was one of their impulsive lockdown buys, we can completely relate! We still haven’t used our Himalayan rock salt cooking block…

The births are shot by the families themselves

Tamira and Chris welcome their third child

Emma laughs, smiles and gasps along from home as she watches the intimate birth videos, which include elective caesareans, hypno-births, theatre procedures and water births. Don’t worry if you’re a bit squeamish, the bits you might be worried about seeing are blurred on screen!
 

Lots of tears!

To keep numbers in hospitals down, partners are only allowed to join when labour has been fully established. That means they’re left waiting in the car during scans, midwife and antenatal hospital appointments, and even early labour. “I’d feel vulnerable and lonely. The panic would be real. The worry would be real,” Emma says in episode 1. Jay arrives just minutes before his daughter is born after receiving a “Come!” message.

This, of course, also means that friends and family aren’t able to meet the new bundle of joy, except virtually. If giving birth was emotional before, giving birth in 2020 was a whole other ball game!
 

Once restrictions are eased, Emma meets the families in person

Takkies and Chris have two children together, but Takkies wants seven!

All filming adheres to social distancing guidelines. It’s odd to watch Emma coo over a baby that she can’t hold, but not even a global pandemic can take away the cuteness factor.

You’ll fall in love with the families and their heart-warming stories. In episode 1, Emma goes to visit Takkies and her husband Chris, who moved to England from South Africa in October 2019, just a few months before the national lockdown. Their second child together, daughter Suri, is a “smiler”, as Emma puts it!
 

When is W’s Emma Willis: Delivering Babies In 2020 on TV?

Emma Willis: Delivering Babies In 2020 airs on W/HD (CH 125/211) on Mondays at 10pm, with the first episode screening on February 15th. It is also available for 30 days in Catch Up > Channels > W.

The four-part series will subsequently air every week until Monday 8th March.