From graveyards to cable cars: The weirdest places soap mums have given birth

If there’s one thing we love about our soaps, it’s their creativity – especially when it comes to birth scenes.

This week on EastEnders, pregnant Whitney Dean (Shona McGarty) found herself locked in a taco van with best friend Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa), so, naturally, her waters broke while they were trapped.

Whitney isn’t the first soap mum to have found herself about to give birth in a precarious situation – and she almost certainly won’t be the last.

Over the years, women in soap have given birth in some bizarre and unexpected places, and, lucky for you, we’re here to take you through some of the wildest birthplaces in soap.

The Minute Mart

We don’t think we will ever forget the look on Phil Mitchell’s (Steve McFadden) face when he helped Kim Fox (Tameka Empson) deliver her second child, Mica, in the Minute Mart stockroom, where the pair had found themselves locked in in 2018.

Poor Phil seemed well out of his depth, but Kim was no stranger to giving birth in unusual places, as we’ll soon discuss.

Toilets

Kim Fox has a habit of giving birth in strange places, with her first child, Pearl, being born in the Queen Vic toilets during EastEnders’ 30th anniversary live episodes in 2015.

She’s not the only one to have given birth in the toilets of a pub though, as Emmerdale’s Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter) delivered daughter Eve in the Woolpack’s loos in 2019, with the help of cousin Marlon Dingle (Mark Charnock).

A year earlier on Coronation Street, Eva Price (Catherine Tyldesley) was locked in a bathroom when she went into labour, and Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor) was forced to break down the door in order to help her deliver her daughter, Susie.

A cable car

Giving birth in a cable car isn’t ideal, especially when you’re expecting quadruplets.

However, that’s exactly what happened to poor Gemma Winter (Dolly-Rose Campbell) back in 2019, when she went into labour during a trip to Wales in Coronation Street.

Panicking dad Chesney Brown (Sam Aston) only made things worse when he stopped the cable car in mid air by pulling the emergency stop chord, but fortunately the first of four babies was delivered safely, before Gemma was taken to hospital to have the rest.

The back of a car

You’d be surprised by how many soap mums have given birth in the back of a car.

The first that springs to mind is Emmerdale’s Priya Sharma (Fiona Wade), who delivered daughter Amba on the backseat in the middle of a country lane in 2014.

Over in Weatherfield in 1990, Corrie’s Sally Webster (Sally Dynevor) delivered daughter Rosie in the back of a taxi on Rosamund Street – hence where her name came from!

A classroom

Back in 2022, Nancy Osbourne (Jessica Fox) was forced to give birth while locked inside her classroom with clueless Felix Westwood (Richard Blackwood) in Hollyoaks.

After a series of comedic and heart-wrenching scenes, Felix helped Nancy to safely deliver her baby girl, Morgan.

A shed

At just 15 years old, Emmerdale’s Debbie Dingle (Charley Webb) fell pregnant – something that she kept secret from her entire family.

When the time came to give birth in 2005, Debbie took shelter in Seth’s Hide – a shed in the woods, while her friend Daz Eden rushed to get help.

Debbie was left horrified when baby Sarah stopped moving, but thankfully Emily Kirk was able to warm her up and get her breathing again.

The funeral parlour

Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) has had some iconic moments in EastEnders, and giving birth in the funeral parlour after being held at gun point by Ben Mitchell (Max Bowden) isn’t one we’ll forget in a hurry.

During the 35th anniversary episodes in 2020, Ben realised he was out of his depth when Sharon went into labour, and quickly called mum Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth) for help.

Kathy helped Sharon to deliver son Albie, but disaster would later strike when her firstborn son Denny tragically died in the boat crash on the same day.

A cemetery

On a similar vein, Emmerdale’s Amy Wyatt (played at the time by Chelsea Halfpenny) gave birth to son Kyle in a cemetery in 2011.

Fearing that her baby had been stillborn, she left him in a phone box, where he was later found and taken to hospital.

At just 17 years old, Amy didn’t feel ready to be a mother and put him up for adoption, though she later re-entered his life.

A hotel room

2019 was a popular year for giving birth in strange places in soaps, with Coronation Street’s Vicky Jefferies (Kerri Quinn) continuing the tradition in December.

After faking her death in a bid to frame Robert Preston (Tristan Gemmill) for her murder, Vicky called partner-in-crime Michelle Connor (Kym Marsh) to the hotel room where she was hiding out and revealed that she was in labour.

Michelle helped to deliver baby Sonny, before blowing their cover by calling in paramedics to check over Vicky and the baby.

On stage

They say that life’s a stage, and Corrie’s Katy Armstrong (Georgia May Foote) made sure baby Joseph knew that from the outset when she gave birth on one during the nativity back in 2011.

Katy had offered to take on the role of Mary in the school play after Faye Windass (Ellie Leach) got stage fright, but she wasn’t expecting to give such a realistic performance!

A restaurant

Hollyoaks made history in 2020 by airing soap’s first socially-distanced birth – and where else would you mark such an occasion than in a restaurant?

Liberty Savage (Jessamy Stoddart) gave birth to daughter Faith on the floor of The Hutch, with the help of Sienna Blake (Anna Passey), Brody Weston (Adam Woodward) and Misbah Maalik (Harvey Virdi).

Similarly, Lola Pearce (Danielle Harold) gave birth to daughter Lexi on the floor of McKlunky’s in EastEnders during a live episode in 2012, which saw Billy Mitchell (Perry Fenwick) run with the Olympic torch.

A pig pen

Christmas Day births are par for the course in soapland, but Lisa Dingle (Jane Cox) had no way of preparing for the arrival of Belle Dingle in 1998.

Unable to make it as far as the stable, which would have been fitting for the Christmas birth, Lisa ended up having her baby in the pigsty, with vet Paddy Kirk (Dominic Brunt) helping her through it.

A lift

Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson) was left horrified when she went into labour in a broken down lift in 2017 during a power cut, with only sister Toyah to help her.

Thankfully, it didn’t take long for backup to arrive, and they were freed from the lift shortly after Leanne delivered baby Oliver.

A beach hut

It seems that taking a holiday while pregnant in Coronation Street just isn’t a good idea, as Maria Connor (Samia Longchambon) was another character who went into labour while on a trip.

Having gone into labour on a beach, Maria found a beach hut to shelter in as she gave birth, with the help of murderer Tony Gordon.

MORE : Whitney Dean’s birth joy in EastEnders as Peach’s nurse delivers newborn – and another surprise

MORE : EastEnders legend has her life destroyed as the Square is left disgusted by shocking secret

MORE : EastEnders spoilers: First look pictures as Whitney finds herself trapped in dramatic birth crisis

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.